A counselor, a coach, and a consultant walk into a bar...
Sorry, I don’t have a punchline for the end of this common way to start a joke. 😂 If you can create one, please share it with me.
Before you can add a punchline you need to know the difference between these professions and what each one provides.
If you own a business or lead a team, there will likely come a time when you or a staff member will require the services of at least one of them.
Simply defined:
Consulting - advice and direction for a desired business outcome. The consultant will provide expertise and solutions for the situation or problem.
Coaching - support to reach a desired individual future state or specific goals. A coach will ask challenging questions to guide the person to their own solutions and achieve results.
Counseling - helps to overcome a past experience that is hindering one’s present and future. A counselor focuses on healing and awareness.
Each of these professionals is highly valuable and helps people succeed in various ways. An unbiased and trained outside view of the situation is valuable. The key is choosing the right professional at the right time for the desired result.
I believe that people would greatly benefit from a counselor and a coach at some point. Every person struggles with some level of self-preservation, self-sabotaging thoughts, and fear of failure.
There is a vast number of respected studies that show the benefits of coaching, including research from the Harvard Business Review that concludes coaching boosts productivity by 44%, and an International Coaching Federation commissioned study claims that coaching clients report a median ROI of 788%!
As a trained leadership coach, I focus on helping clients see what it’s like to be on the other side of them and discover what is hindering their influence and performance. Oftentimes, clients see results immediately when they make small adjustments in their actions and thoughts.
Who do you know that might need a coach to support and challenge them to find peace in the midst of chaos and high stress, improve relationships, and increase productivity?