Whitmore (1992) describes coaching as, “unlocking people’s potential to maximize their own performance” and Whitworth, L et al (2007), expand on Whitmore’s definition by stating, “coaching is chiefly about discovery, awareness, and choice. It is a way of effectively empowering people to find their own answers, encouraging and supporting them on the path as they continue to make important choices.”
While time consuming, if coached, you can be challenged to look intrinsically and analyse how your actions act may affect others. By developing a self-awareness, you will be able to adjust your communication and actions to events and individuals around you. By being encouraged to understand workloads, capacities, stress levels and personalities will mean you start to develop your own self-awareness.
Academics have developed several different definitions to establish the differences between coaching and mentoring. The first mention of mentoring is in Greek mythology, when Odysseus puts his son, Telemachus, in the care of his friend Mentor with the instruction of “teach him all you know.” Coaching is a discipline that has developed through its association with sports, but the methodology has been adapted and adopted for the business environment.
There is some conflict between where a coach stops, and a mentor starts or vice versa unsurprisingly because switching between the two disciplines in one conversation is common. You could argue that you cannot have one without the other. This is without considering the option of teaching, which also plays a considerable role within a coaching and mentoring relationship. If you are unable to draw knowledge out of individuals through coaching and mentoring, then first you must provide knowledge by teaching.
Megginson, D and Clutterbuck, D (1998) state, “Counselling is mainly dealing with the past, coaching about the present and mentoring about the future.”, but they also recognise that there are many nuisances within these relationships.
One thing that is paramount in developing a coaching or mentoring relationship is the ability to build rapport with the individual you are working with (and also if you get on with your coach), it is only by development of trust and mutual respect that a relationship can move forward to both the benefit of all parties involved.
Coaching focuses on the here and now to overcome barriers, mentors are there to help an individual develop for the future.
Often coaching sessions are set, either weekly or monthly.