Coaching remains a misunderstood profession and roles. Sometimes the term coach is used interchangeably with the term mentor, sometimes people think about a sports coach, in other cases people think a coach is a mental health professional, or a consultant. A coach is NOT a mental health professional nor an advisor of any kind. Instead, a coach is a strategic partner, a provider of perspective, a focus and motivation partner, a sounding board, and an accountability partner. The coach listens and asks questions.
In a coaching relationship the client is the one who chooses the focus, decides on solutions, and develops their stat gives and action plans. The client thinks out loud, explores new and different possibilities, creates alternatives, refines strategies, and details their actions – and then it is up to the client to follow through.
When beginning and throughout a coaching relationship, the coach is transparent about the role of the coach and the role of the client. This means discussing what coaching is and is not, exploring how the coach and client will work together, and being specific with client responsibilities too.
Sometimes the coach serves as a coach and also, separately, does consulting or training. In these cases it is essential that in addition to being transparent about the different roles the coach is also transparent about which role they are in and when.
