What are the differences between coaching and therapy?
There are 2 main areas that we work in, and these are:
- Reducing PAIN and DISCOMFORT, and bad feelings
Things you want less of, to get away from or are trying to get rid of.
These usually cause you some kind of pain, negative feelings or loss of pleasure. - Increasing PLEASURE, COMFORT and good feelings.
Things you want more of, to get closer to, and to gain.
These things usually give you some kind of pleasure and positive feelings, and reduce or eliminate pain and discomfort.
When we remove something unwanted, like eliminating a negative belief or a unwanted behaviour or bad habit, we call that a Negative Gain.
When we add something we want, like increased ability to feel, think, be, do and have, we call that a Positive Gain.
Generally, as a therapist, I work on your negative gains, and as a coach I work on your positive gains.
When you get life coaching, you are empowered to take action in the physical world and do what needs to happen towards a goal. It’s much less about why you feel or experience a thought, emotion or event.
I work with you as your co-creator, partner and equal, but with you as the leader. The orientation in coaching is more focused on outcome and action. We pay attention to how your inner world is reacting and merging with your outer world.
In coaching, you are responsible for your results. I don’t make the decisions for you, instead I help you to clarify your own decisions, ask questions to give you certainty in your next steps, and to be your guide. The style is more casual and conversational, and I will share from my own life experiences to make a point or give an example of principle in action.
When you get therapy, my position is as an expert facilitator of a psychological or spiritual process. We will be focusing on your inner world; why you think and feel a certain way and your interpretation of events in your life. As the therapist, I am responsible for the direction, process and outcome.
The style is much more formal with specific well defined steps in each session and overall in the relationship. During this kind of session, there is little to no conversation, except for a few minutes before and after we start a process.
On this website, my main focus is on eliminating or deleting limiting and negative beliefs. So typically, it would be a therapeutic style of work. However, I always work with what you want and need in the time that we work together, so it will be a mix of 50/50 coaching and therapy.