In the last couple of years “coaching” has become more popular, although some confusion on the meaning remains, and the subtle as well as not-so-subtle differences between coaching and mentoring, and between coaching/mentoring and educating, is not always appreciated.
Mentoring should be understood as a rather long-term and broad relationship between the two individuals (mentor on one side, client/colleague on the other), aimed at fostering the development of the client in a broader sense.
Coaching is instead more short-term in nature, targeting specific and ideally quantifiable goals. While there are a broad range of coaches, from executive to life coaches, from retirement coaches to career coaches, … coaching was popularised in the ‘70s and ‘80s by two sportsmen: Tim Gallway and John Whitmore, the first coming from tennis and the second from car racing. Coaching concepts, applied to the world of sports, started to be applied to the world of business. From the tennis court to the Board room.
With this in mind, coaching focused on financial topics should be understood as project-based, with a clear objective, commitment on coach and client’s side in order to achieve an improvement within a reasonable time horizon.
If a client wishes mentoring in addition or as an alternative to coaching, the broader goals and situation should be discussed, keeping in mind the difference between the two approaches.