Last week we took a look at 5 Benefits of Mentoring, discussing the incredible power and importance of having healthy mentoring relationships throughout your life and career.
Today we’re going to look at some of the benefits of coaching and also identify the key differences between mentoring and coaching.
What is coaching?
An effective coaching arrangement provides:
- Guidance and counsel from a content expert.
- Help in improving a specific skill set.
- Increased competency in a given area.
- Advice and assistance in achieving a particular goal.
- Growth and stretching opportunities.
How is it different than mentoring?
- Mentoring is relationship-oriented and coaching is task-oriented.
- Mentoring tends to be more long term and has a broader and more general focus, while coaching is often limited to a shorter timeframe and usually includes specific, measurable goals and outcomes.
- Mentoring usually focuses on personal and professional development. Coaching usually focuses on improving particular skills, overcoming specific challenges, or achieving clear goals.
What’s in it for me?
With coaching and mentoring you will have the opportunity to:
- Improve your soft skills and enhance your hard skills.
- Grow and advance personally, professionally, and organizationally.
- Identify and leverage your strengths.
- Overcome challenges and achieve specific goals.
- Receive advice or assistance with problem solving.
- Gain greater self confidence.
- Reduce stress and frustration.
- Improve your communication and interpersonal skills.
- Develop better working relationships with supervisors and colleagues.
Bottom line: wherever you’re at in your career and whatever goals you’re striving toward, asking for a little help can go a long way!
How about you, have you benefited from mentoring or coaching? Or if you were to have the chance to benefit from mentoring or coaching, what would you like to learn?
