The differences between Life Coaching (AKA 'Pure Coaching') and Mentoring:
Take a look at both pictures above. One involves more of a partnership based collaboration (Life Coaching) and the other is one where there is more guidance from someone who is possibly more experienced (Mentoring). Life Coaching has similarities and certainly overlaps with Mentoring. There are also fundamental differences!
Contrary to what people may think Life Coaching is, it does not involve the coach giving advice nor sharing past experiences. Mentoring involves giving prescriptive advice, sharing past experiences and more based on what the mentor thinks is right for the mentee.
Life Coaching involves taking a backseat and forming more of a collaborative partnership where the coach will ask various questions. These questions can provoke the coachee to conjure up their own solutions and more. This way the coachee takes ownership of their chosen paths. If a coach foresees obstacles or issues, instead of warning them, the coach will ask more questions in such a way that the coachee will have epiphanies. Only in the case of something dangerous will the coach warn the coachee of something relevant. Otherwise, advice, ideas, solutions, action steps are not shared.
The path of being positively probed and picked without receiving any advice by a Life Coach via Pure Coaching (non-advice based) can be very liberating as the coachee will outside of sessions feel independent and also take more ownership of their chosen goals with respective action steps. With mentoring the mentor will often prescribe action steps. This is useful when the mentee is really inexperienced and needs guidance. This is often the case for young recruits in company environments.
Which is the best approach?! Coaching or mentoring. Both are effective. The key is striking an effective balance and putting the person's needs first. Observational skills as well as acurately understanding people is essential. Having a clear seeing perspective stems from working on self to a level where the coach or mentor is so evolved they consistently see clearly. They are 'onion layer' (ego) free. The red devil that was once on their shoulder has been eliminated!
Bhavin Shah is a Law of Attraction Coach in London. For Life Coaching Bhavin Shah will predominately take a 'Pure Coaching approach and so little to no advice is given. For Law of Attraction Coaching there is still mostly a Pure Coaching approach yet at times mentoring is also mixed.
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