There is a lot of confusion these days about coaching and how it differs from consulting, and other helping fields.  And it’s no wonder.  Coaching is one of the fastest growing industries and as such is suffering from two major growing pains.  1.  Though an international governing body (International Coach Federation) does regulate credentialing, training, certification, and ethical standards for the industry, there is no law that requires a “coach” to be credentialed, or even to be trained.  A high school drop-out, literally, can market themselves as any kind of coach they want.  2.  As a high dollar industry ($200-$1000 per hour or more), the market, nationally, is flooded with individuals selling snake oil and bad advice at a premium price.  Certified coaches, in truth, are in the stark minority.   

What is Coaching?

It’s a non-directive, one on one, professional process that helps individuals clarify values, strengths and priorities.  Coaches help clients figure out what they want (in any area of their life), set goals for getting there, and help them overcome the obstacles (like fear, lack of resources or support) that get in their way.  Coaches help clients restore life balance, find fulfillment in work and in life, and reduce stress and anxiety while achieving (and often earning) more. It’s a ‘work smarter, not harder’ philosophy. Coaches do not give advice, or fix problems for their clients.  Rather, they tap into the knowledge the client already has or helps them figure out where their knowledge gaps or blind spots are.  Coaching is a vein of psychology, often referred to as the “psychology of happiness”, “positive psychology” or “the psychology of high performance.”  Coaches won’t analyze your childhood or try to help you figure why you are the way you are.  They will help you figure out where you want to go from here.  And if the coach is good (and you do the work)… you will actually get there.  Because results are most often quite dramatic, most progressive companies, at this point, have a coaching firm on retainer to work with leaders and professionals, just as they would have a psychologist on retainer via an employee assistance program.   Expect intense individual  impact and 500-600% ROI. 

What to look for.

Credentials.  A certified coach will have upwards of 400 hours of training, at least 100 hours of actual coaching experience.  They will have been supervised in their work, and should have passed a thorough written and performance exam.  Remember it’s a vein of psychology- you wouldn’t open up your chest to a surgeon who had no training, you should not open up your life to a coach with no training either.  A certified coach will always have, for example,  MCC, ACC, PCC, or CPCC after his/her name.  These credentials are good in any niche of coaching. MA, MS, MBA, or PHD are not coaching credentials.

Compatibility.  People, like chemicals, bring out different qualities in one another.  Two people meet and there is harmony or they “click”.  Two others meet and there is instant distain- certainly you’ve observed this in your own life.  Look for a coach who you like, who makes you feel comfortable, and who (on a gut level) you absolutely trust.  Expect your coach to want to feel the same way about you.   Try to work with a firm with multiple coaches to choose from, or sample many different coaches and/or firms before committing to one.  Of the coaches who have great word of mouth, which one do you feel most comfortable with?

Consulting: What is it?

Consulting is, in a way, the opposite of coaching (which is confusing since so many consultants call themselves coaches and many firms (like ours) do both.  Consulting is straightforward expert advice, or training.  It could be engaging someone to walk you through the strategic planning process, or paying an experienced business person to look over a potential merger for you.  It can be communication skills training for 100 people, or it can be one person telling another, how/when to make a financial move.  Bottom line is, consulting is information from an expert (either by training, experience, or education) conveyed to another or multiple others.  Expect accurate, credible, and effective knowledge/information transfer.   This may or may not equate to skill transfer, depending on how it is conducted.  Listening to someone talk about something for an hour will result in skill transfer in less than 3% of participants.  

What to look for. 

Consulting can take on so many forms, what you look for will vary.  Bottom line: outstanding credentials.  These can be in the form of education (usually an MA, MS, MBA or PhD) and /or specific, solid, successful business experience and expertise. Keep in mind, bio’s are very easy to inflate.  Professionals can have really, very lackluster credentials but can sound quite good on paper.  Ask very specific questions about breadth and depth of experience, education and training, and always ask for references you can talk to.  Quotes on a website are great, but can you call John Smith of Acme Corp on the phone?  Happy, loyal clients will always take time to speak with others considering using the same vendor- ask the consultant for actual names and numbers.

Most people enter helping fields because they care about others, and want to make a difference.  We are fortunate that there are a number of great coaches and consultants across our region.  Armed with enough information to know what to ask, and what to expect, you’re more likely to have a positive experience.  Keep in mind, even if you aren’t 100% sure which tool you should employ, an ethical professional will always tell you if they aren’t the best fit for your needs.  Be wary of professionals who try to be everything to everyone.