Coach, Mentor, Therapist, Consultant
The names are interchangeable to some degree. All involve a process of self- improvement. And all involve working with someone to solve problems. Whatever we decide to call what we are doing together, each is a little bit different though there is plenty of overlap. All of the choices below have in common one thing: you will not be diagnosed with an illness and our work together will not be submitted to health care insurance for treatment of a clinical condition, as is often the case when going to a psychotherapist or other mental health care provider. We will identify strengths and vulnerabilities. We will create a plan together. We will have goals which are more or less explicit, depending upon which of the three services that you have chosen. In all cases, the work is totally confidential. I will bring my background from other areas relevant to help us formulate a plan. And you can count on me to listen carefully and respectfully. We will figure out our own unique way of proceeding together. While coaches and consultants generally do not have training in psychotherapy, psychiatry, and neuroscience, psychotherapists sometimes go on to become coaches as well.
Again, there is plenty of overlap. The quality of the working relationship, whether you are consulting with a life coach or a therapist, is, in my view, the most important factor.
Setting goals and priorities, finding more focus and purpose, possible career directions, etc. Make your goals your new reality, greater fulfillment in relationships, unlocking pathways for change and new possibilities. I work with people of all ages. In every situation, I will help you to find any relevant professional adjunctive service, should the need arise.
Life Coaching
All of these services involve a process of two people working together. Life coaching, in comparison to therapy and personal consulting, tends to be more specific in terms of the goals which are set and how to achieve them, though the goals may change and evolve as we go along. You could be wanting a coach for anything that one can imagine.
Personal Consulting
This process is the most like psychotherapy. Your goals may be less clear to you at the outset and we will seek to understand you and develop a coherent path forward. Again, it is not therapy in the sense that you will not have a medical or psychological diagnosis. You may wish to consult with me just one time or a few, or, you may choose a longer-term process.
Executive Coaching
Executive coaching is very much like life coaching but differs in two respects. First, it is a process that addresses a person’s functioning in a very particular context: one’s work environment. All goals are related to their functioning at work. The second difference is that in executive coaching, the client may be not only the person in their employment context; the client may also be the environment or culture itself that one works in. It may be that one client’s issues are seen more coherently through the lens of the organization itself. This sorting out is a process; and, it also depends upon who is paying for the coaching.