I use to think that the terms "Coaching" and "Mentoring" were interchangeable. The idea of mentoring has been around for ages, while the practice of coaching (other than as related to sports) appeared popularly on scene only since about the 1960's. And while both practices may have overlapping traits, they are quite different in their approach and sometimes even their desired results. Here's a short explanation that might help in deciding which practice, if any, fit's your needs best.
The Mentor: In Homer's Greek myth, The Odyssey, one of the lead characters "Telemachus" develops a relationship with a wise old man called "Mentor" who supports Telemachus by sharing his wisdom and knowledge. It was from this tale that the term mentoring was established. The concept is pretty simple. The Mentor is the expert in a particular field or a variety of fields, and shares his or her knowledge with a less experienced person.
This transfer of knowledge occurs within a relationship designed to support a person in meeting their goals within that particular field. It can also work in a similar fashion throughout other areas of life, for example an uncle or aunt may be considered as a life mentor for someone.
In the business world the mentor is often someone who agrees to share their knowledge with one or several people within the organization, with the idea that their efforts will help the individual learn and hopefully ascend within the organization, thus helping the organization as well.
The Coach: The word Coach is believed to have it's roots in 15th century Europe and the town of "Koc"(pronounced "kotch") in Hungary where they made carriages that became very popular throughout Europe due to their light weight. In the 1830's England referred to these carriages as a coach, likely related to the town they were first made.
Long story short, carriages (coaches) get people from where they are, to where they want to be. The English were the first use the term in reference to a tutor or teacher. Over time and today the term applies to the practice of assisting people in realizing their full potential in a particular field or in life, which of course includes their career--getting people from where they are, to where they want to be.
It differs from Mentoring in that the Coach does not have to be the expert in the area that the client is operating in. In other words, the client may be seeking to advance in or to, let's say, the sales industry. In this case the coach does not have to be an expert in the sales industry to successfully help the client in meeting their desired goals. In the Coaching relationship it is the client that is recognized as the expert in "their" field, just as they are in all the other areas of their life. It is the coach's role to establish a trusting relationship with the client in order to have full understanding of what the client wants and needs to succeed.
The coach then works with the client to determine a clear path to the determined goal, while offering help in overcoming any hurdles that may have obstructed the client in the past from meeting their goal. The expert here (the client), is the only one that can have the true answers to the important questions; What do I want? What can or has stopped me in the past from having what I want? And how do I move forward to successfully meet my goal(s)?
What an effective coach is expert in, is having the ability to facilitate a conversation in a manner that brings out the full potential of the client, allowing the client to realize their true desires and how to bring those desires to fruition. Working with the client, an effective coach will help set concrete steps designed to meet the clients needs and assist the client to stay focused and on track until the goal is met.
Certainly both the Mentor relationship and the Coaching relationship have a place in assisting people in meeting their life and career goals. As someone who has mentored and coached, I'll conclude here by saying, my mentoring relationship advisements were usually only specific to the field I was expert in and the information I passed along was mostly generic in nature. By that I mean the information I had to impart applied to everyone under my mentorship--it was my best advice regarding the career and organization. As a coach, what I offer is specific to the individual client. What I offer to one client preparing for a job interview or promotion assessment, may be quite different from what I offer to another, depending on their needs.
Lastly, which ever talent you decide to invest your time and in some cases money into, always have a conversation first. Be sure that the person you end up working with is a good fit for you. After all, your future can depend on it!
Vincent Avila
@yourbestself.info