One thing I know about our profession is that we often have strong opinions. And I for one, love hearing them!
Case in point: My new 5-part report: “The Future of Psychotherapy: Don’t let these five trends catch you by surprise.” (Get your copy in the box to the right and then please pass it around.)
In Trend #1, I wrote about the Medical Model and the Personal Growth Model of therapy. This has created strong controversy on both sides. Some professionals are passionate about the need to take a medical view. Others are concerned that the medical model has tarnished the image of therapists and therapy with the general public.
But Trend #2: “The Line between Coaching and Therapy will become more blurred” has by far created more of a stir than almost anything else I have done since we started Be A Wealthy Therapist.
I have had dozens of emails and comments.
Let me share a few of those comments from therapists (omitting names for privacy)
Some are from therapists who also do coaching:
“I transitioned into coaching two years ago and LOVE it! I enjoy working with motivated clients and appreciate the forward thinking of what coaching brings. I don’t like the medical model that assumes pathology and how it dictates who, what, when, where, and how you can work with clients.”
In response to my question about the lack of laws regulating the coaching profession:
“I received my (coaching) credential and I am also a therapist - (LSCW) in private practice. I am not too concerned with the lack of laws concerning coaching. I make sure that my welcome pack is very thorough in covering some of these issues. I found the ethical class offered by the coaching school very helpful as well.”
I also asked “Do you separate your work? Is it clear when you are a therapist and when you are a coach?”
Here is one response:
“Depending on my clients’ starting point, I often begin in the therapist role helping clients find their intuitive selves and to fully feel their emotions. Once they get in touch with their inner selves, then we work together discovering their choices and to find their passion or dream goal(s), and that’s when I believe the coaching begins.”
While these are a sampling of those who enjoy coaching, there were some equally passionate feelings about the entire profession of coaching. For example,
“I have strong concerns about self-appointed “coaches” opening practices and charging as much or more than licensed therapists when they haven’t had the 6-8 years of higher education that becoming a therapist requires. Nor have they had supervision, standardized exams, continuing education requirements, and ongoing legal/ethical training. I think therapists need to protect their profession from those who claim that they can “do the same things we do” without graduate school or licensure or state oversight.”
Here is another:
“It’s frustrating to see coaches with less experience, less restriction move into our space. I could have been a coach 8 years ago based on what training most have had. However, for my own growth I’m glad I took the path I did.”
As someone who has a strong foothold in both professions, I too have strong opinions. In fact I have been invited to write an article for a national magazine on the subject.
So, before I complete that article, I’d love to have another “Open House Town Hall Meeting” on Tuesday, June 23 to hear your thoughts on the subject. http://www.TherapistLeadershipInstitute.com/townhall
Join us for this lively event!
This will be a International Therapist Leadership Institute Open House tele-meeting hosted by me, Casey Truffo.
You are invited to share your thoughts on the subject. In fact, you can participate in several ways. You can be a part of the call live. You can sign up and get the recording later. Or share your thoughts in the comment box below.
If you’d like to register for the Open House Town Hall Meeting where our agenda is the Coaching and Therapy Professions, please visit: http://www.TherapistLeadershipInstitute.com/townhall
I can’t wait for this exchange!
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
I have been listening to the coaching vs. therapy debates and what I am hearing is tremendous resentment on the part of therapists that coaches have found a way to reach clients and communicate their value in a way that therapists do not. It seems to me that those going into coaching have a MUCH better grasp on how to market their practices, target their ideal client and communicate that on the internet. I also hear a tremendous deal of griping that coaches are charging the same and even higher fees that therapists who presumably have years of training, internships, schooling, etc. That suggests to me that these financially successful coaches do not have the “money issues” that seem to plague so many therapists. The successful coaches seem to have no problem communicating their value and demanding to be paid well for what they offer (something I think therapists in general sorely lack).
I have been thinking since the “townhall” the other day. Have you heard of Western Governors University? They are a different kind of University that was started in an attempt to bridge theory and practice. They have what they call a “competency based” approach. Meaning, that you pass a course when you complete a certain competency level, not because you sat through class, did busy work, etc., but because you met certain competencies.
Now, I am not sure how realistic it is that you can test someone’s competency based on most paper and pencil tests ;0) At the same time, I wonder what the therapy profession would like if we took a competency based approach. There are some people with a great deal of knowledge who I went to school with, who were never competent to become a therapist ;0) At the same time, there are some people without many years of schooling that have share many of the competencies that I developed during my education.
When I see them interacting they just scream “THERAPIST” to me! However, they do not have the qualification to provide private therapy.
Wouldn’t it be great if I had a point? I am not sure that I do… but I wanted to share those thoughts.
Coaching has always been part of what I offer to my psychotherapy clients when appropriate for the person and situation. It is one of many cognitive/behavioral approaches taught at the University of Michigan School of Social Work., where I earned my master\’s degree. Psychodynamic approaches were taught as well. I cannot imagine doing therapy without being able to exercise skills in both areas as appropriate to a particular client\’s situation.
People who operate solely as coaches lack a range of psychotherapy skills, including crucial ones for understanding transference and countertransference. Those who need solely a mentor can get helped by a coach who has the knowledge and life experience to serve in that role. However, those with longstanding issues around connecting to others in relationships are not likely to get what they need.
Therefore, I would not recommend coaching as the primary way for someone to get help for a serious issue concerning a relationship. People who see a well-trrained licensed psychotherapist with whom they feel comfortable will experience a trusting relationship during face-to-face sessions with that person. A climate for self-acceptance and safety for exploring emotions is generated, which is important for overcoming internal obstacles for better relationships outside of the therapy office, particulary when entrenched, self-defeating patterns are present. Psychotherapy empowers people to deal successfully with serious relationship issues and to achieve their goal for a more fulfilling life.
My problem is not with therapist who do coaching. It is with people with little or no training labeling themselves coaches (because ANYONE can call themselves a coach), having no governing board or minimum requirements, and serving an uninformed, unsuspecting clientele who believe they are getting the same standard of care whether they choose \"therapy\" or \"coaching\". I believe someone will probably have to suicide under the care of a coach before stringent requirements and regulation comes into being. Tragic.
Personally, I have seen a number of coaches that are out there marketing themselfs to the public as counselors and therapists, with all kinds of funky letters after their names. They are also doing a number of unethical behaviors (not all of them, mind you), but have no control or oversight through a state licensing organizations. Usually, from what I have seen of them, they feel they can treat most things with new-age woo-woo, and put themselves out there as gurus. A lot of them, I have seen, I refer to as charlatans. I think coaching needs to be licensed and regulated.
Casey, I enjoy your enthusiasm and marketing creativity and that you can assist both therapists and coaches in expanding their business. I also believe in the rules, laws, tests, and oversight for clients of licensed therapists for a good reason – to protect the client and to acknowledge the boundaries that we struggle with on a day to day basis (sometimes depending on your therapeutic framework or the particular needs at that moment.) The caveat is that we struggle with them! Meaning, we acknowledge them, think about it, have an awareness. I\’m sure there are a lot of great coaches out there who come from various specialities, and I know I am excited to be adding coaching and product development to my repertoire. Part of what I can offer, is the ability to decipher when screening a client, if the client is better served within the context of therapy (which is deep even if it is relatively short) as opposed to someone who is truly searching for solution focus/overwhelm management to a particular problem or goal. Often the people who don\’t think there is a difference between psychotherapy and coaching have never studied or had therapy so they simply wouldn\’t know. Also, I think the problem many therapists are facing, that you acknowledge, is not the work, but the problems with insurance and all that entails. Thank you for the discussion.