Coaching VS Therapy: What’s the Difference?
The Difference Between Coaching and Therapy
So what’s the difference between coaching and therapy? And, how are they the same?
Let’s define our terms so we’re working with clarity.
Coaching is a partnership. It’s client-led. We ask questions. We help clients build awareness, take action, and stay accountable. We don’t give advice or diagnose.
Therapy involves diagnosing and treating mental health issues. It requires a license. It often goes into the past, the psyche, and unresolved trauma.
When Clients Don’t Know the Difference Between Coaching and Therapy
Here’s where it gets tricky: Many clients don’t know the difference. So they come to us (as coaches)expecting answers, advice, or even healing. And that’s when we, as coaches, need to stay rooted in our role.
Best Practices to Define Coaching Vs Therapy
Name your scope in your coaching agreement. Define what coaching is, and isn’t. In fact, go so far as to state in your coaching agreement how you will handle a referral if you feel the client is a better fit for therapy.
Get coach mentoring. If you’re feeling unsure, talk it through with a more experienced coach.
Have referral partners. Therapists, doctors, other professionals. Know your hand-off points. In the CLCC coach training program, we have an entire module on what to do when you need to refer out a client.
It would be really helpful if the different coaching and therapy powers that be would get together and determine more concrete differences so that there would be clarity throughout the industry. Since they haven’t done that, it’s imperative that coaches behave ethically and responsibly with their clients.
In our CLCC coach training program, we encourage our trainees to recognize when they feel like a coaching relationship is out of scope in any sort of context, and to have open and transparent communication with clients when that happens. Something doesn’t have to be “diagnosable” to be out of scope for your capacity as a coach.
Honest and transparent conversations up front are the best way to go to ensure that you and your client can differentiate between coaching and therapy. Developing your confidence as a coach to prioritize the client experience and what’s in the best interests of the client, is what enables you to have those conversations.