So What Exactly is Coaching Anyway?

Difficult roads lead to beautiful destinations.

This has got to be one of my #1 most asked questions I get. “So you’re like, a life coach?” (Insert my cringe face here.)

Yes, I’ve trained to be a coach. Very much like the way I trained to be a counselor. But I certainly have never been called a “life counselor” nor have I ever been met with visceral reactions after telling people I’m a school counselor, the way I do when people hear the word “life coach.”

And that got me thinking about how little people know about the field and why there are so many preconceived notions about what coaches do. For one, most helping modalities (be it coaching, counseling, therapy, consulting, mentorships) can focus on life issues. So I’m not really sure where the word “life” got caught up into the mix. So yes, by traditional educational standards I’m a licensed school counselor, who has helped students with many issues, including LIFE issues. I am also a certified professional coach, who has also helped adults with, you guessed it, life issues. There are both similarities and differences here.

Traditional counseling/therapy is a helping modality which often focuses on mental health. While many counselors and therapists can focus on non-mental health issues, the largest difference is that therapy often times focus on the past. Meaning, therapy is a modality in which much of the session can focus on past history, trauma, etc. Essentially, therapy focuses on the “WHY.” Why we act and behave certain ways? Why do we feel the way we do? Why we keep repeating unhealthy patterns?

With coaching, we DO NOT focus on mental health issues. Where therapy focuses on the “why”, coaching focuses on the “HOW.” Coaching is forward thinking and action oriented. Coaches do not start focusing on a client’s past, but rather release the energy the past has on the client so they can move forward. The past is only the focus in coaching as a learning/growing tool, and if part of the present problem. Coaching focuses on the here and now, as well as the goals the client wants to achieve. Specifically the details of the HOW in order to achieve that goal.

So yes, I am a coach. I personally don’t love the term “life coach” because it’s a confusing and watered-down title for the work that coaches actually do. Specifically for me, I prefer the term “Life Design Coach” because that’s what I’m most passionate about, and that’s the focus of the work that I do. My goal is to help others design + create an authentic life that lights them up, how to transition out of life situations that are no longer working for them, and create one that is joyful and fulfilling. It’s a journey I myself have traveled (and still currently on. I mean, do we ever reach the destination?!) with the help of my own coach in the past, and have become inspired to do the same for others. 

To really sum it all up, coaching is a powerful method to support you in making the changes you want to make in your life. If you want to work on present issues and get the support and accountability you need to break through your limiting beliefs, then coaching may be right for you! On the other hand, if you feel like you carry around past trauma that you want to explore and unravel, then therapy is likely a better fit. And again, both coaching and therapy can work amazingly well together, when focusing on different issues. Hopefully this has been helpful in clearing up some misconceptions you might have had about coaching or the coaching vs therapy debate. If you feel coaching is the right option for you, or have any follow up questions, you know where to reach me!

— Steph xx