Coaching vs. therapy: what’s the difference?
Coaches and therapists offer distinct, complementary services. Make sure you know the difference to find the right support for your needs:
Coaching is future-oriented. Coaches help you clarify your priorities, values and intentions. They work with you to set and achieve goals that help you move forward toward an outcome or lifestyle that you want to achieve. Along the way, a coach acts as a sounding board and accountability partner, empowering you to unlock your potential and overcome challenges.
Therapy is often past-oriented. Therapists help you address past experiences that may be creating obstacles or challenges for you in the present. They are also trained mental health professionals who can diagnose and treat mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, or trauma.
Additional key differences include:
Expected Outcomes:
Coaches: Co-create and empower you to work toward a plan, modify your behavior, and/or achieve SMART goals
Therapists: Address underlying mental health concerns; receive a diagnosis; work through past trauma
Professional Credentials:
Coaches: Professional certification, e.g. from the International Coaching Federation (ICF) or the National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching (NBHWC)
Therapists: Licensed mental health professional
Client Orientation:
Coaches: Orient themselves to their clients as partners and peers. In a coaching relationship, the client is the authority on their own individual needs and the coach is present to support.
Therapists: Orient themselves to the client as the authority, which is necessary to fulfill their scope of practice, e.g. diagnosis, recommending treatment, etc.
Techniques
Coaches: Goal setting, action planning, accountability, progress tracking, etc.. Other modalities may be included depending on the coach. For example, Om Labs additionally offers somatic work like meditation and yoga to help clients sit with and move through difficult emotions that can arise as a natural part of the personal growth process.
Therapists: Evidence-based therapy approaches, e.g. talk therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, etc.
Cost
Coaches: Varies, often unable to accept insurance
Therapists: Varies, may be covered by insurance
What else should I consider before hiring a coach or therapist?
Check the credentials of the professional you wish to work with. Although coaching is less regulated than the healthcare landscape that therapists are part of, knowing which credentials to look for in a coach can help you make an informed decision. Look for coaches with credentials from NBHWC or ICF–these are two prominent entities that offer coaching certification. Ensuring your coach either has or is pursuing credentials aligned to one of these entities can help ensure you’re working with a professional who is following industry best practices and guidelines.
Understand whether your coach is able to accept insurance. Unlike therapy, unfortunately coaching is largely unaccepted by insurers, though this is beginning to change (particularly for health and wellness coaching). Before you sign on to work with a coach, make sure you have a conversation with that person about your needs and expectations for financing your sessions.
Know when to call it: It might sound strange to think about ending a coaching or therapy relationship before it even begins. But, it’s important for prospective clients to understand that coaches and therapists have an ethical responsibility to ensure they’re doing everything they can to help you meet your needs. This could mean concluding the working relationship if they believe your needs exceed their scope or practice, and/or referring you to another professional they believe is better suited to assist. Knowing this can empower clients to advocate for themselves should they find themselves in a stalled program.
Choosing the Right Path:
If you're looking for assistance designing a plan to achieve specific goals, modify your behavior or address challenges that are preventing you from reaching your goals, a coach could be a great fit. Coaches are valuable partners helping you move from the present toward a future goal or future life that you want to live.
If you’re struggling with past experiences, negative emotions, or mental health concerns, therapy is an appropriate choice. A therapist can help you discover the root cause of your issues, provide a diagnosis, and help you work toward healthier ways to manage emotions and behaviors.
Coaching and therapy can also complement each other – so don’t rule out working with both modalities in parallel. Ultimately, it’s all about your individual needs. If you’re unsure, most coaches and therapists will offer at least one consultation session to help you decide if they’re the right fit for you.