As a Counsellor working in Madrid with the expat community I am often asked by clients about the differences between Counselling and Coaching. Although I have not researched this subject my explanation normally includes the argument that Counselling is for people who find themselves in a situation where they perform below what they consider to be their normal level of functioning. A Counselor is trained to assist clients getting back to their previous “normal” level of functioning. This explanation indirectly tells you what my view entails about Coaching: to get people, already functioning well, to perform even better.
From the above view you may deduct that some people receiving Coaching, actually might benefit more from Counselling. For example, when someone´s performance is temporarily affected by issues such as relationship problems or work related stress, Counselling seems a more approprioate way to get someone back on track again. I would add to this that Counsellors have more in-depth knowledge about the underlying triggers that lead to stress, and therefore are better equipped to look at the source of stress, rather then trying to make the symptoms go away through the use of relaxation techniques (also an important part of counselling). However, there are also people, currently receiving Counselling, that might actually benefit more from Coaching. Obviously there is no such thing as a clear line drawing the line between “will probably benefit most from Coaching” and “will probably benefit most from Counselling”.
Issues such as costs and availability also play a key role: the availability of one service – coaching or counselling – might increase the likelyhood of someone using one of the two services where actually the non-available service might benefit this client most. Let us also not forget the companies, schools and universities that are more or less inclined to be pro-active when it comes to offering Counselling and Coaching services to their most valued Human Capital: employees and students.
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