A therapist will diagnose and/or treat a client based on symptoms. A therapist is not the client’s partner, but has superiority to the client. Often a therapist has to make a firm call to protect a client’s life and well being and there exists certain urgency with therapy. Therapy focuses on a client’s past to help them through their difficulties and sees clients that will most usually have symptoms that a therapist will need to provide a diagnosis for and develop a specific treatment plan for.
A consultant is someone a client will hire to resolve a problem and develop a specific plan of action for improvement. A consultant does not act as a partner to the client, as they are sought out for their expertise and relied upon for a plan of action by the client. The solution or plan of action is not of the clients’; as the problem is given to the consultant to fix or solve for the client because the consultant has expertise in this area that the client does not.
A coach will provide coaching services for you focusing on what you have, what you need and define the gap in between; this would be your coaching request for the session. The coach will provide you with opportunities to reflect and deepen your awareness and will ask thought provoking questions designed to help you take meaningful action. The coach will help develop your confidence and decision making. You will take responsibility and ownership of identifying your own goals and areas for development. The coach will be your equal, your partner, and will help you to discover your own answers. Coaching sessions are forward thinking without focus on the past. You will be in control of each session. The coach will not provide solutions or a diagnosis but a partnership in self discovery. You will be creating the agenda for each session and will determine what you would like to take away with from each one. The coach actively listens and encourages forward thinking, and asks questions intended to help you open new doors and discover new awareness.