Know The Basics (FAQs)
What is Life Coaching?
There is some confusion out there about what “life coaching” is. That’s because there is no professional organization or board that certifies credentials in the practice of life coaching yet. So, anyone with any kind of training (or no training at all!) can offer life coaching and give you whatever they decide that means. And THAT makes it hard to know who to trust and what you should be getting for your money.
What is Coaching at Compass?
Coaching at Compass is time-limited. It gives you reliable information, skills development practice opportunities, goal-oriented behavioral strategies, and helps in tailoring these skills to your specific situation. It is a topic-specific, empirically-based program that is built on cognitive-behavioral principles and motivational interviewing techniques.
Is Coaching the same as therapy?
Coaching is NOT therapy (even though your coach may be a mental health professional). Psychotherapy is a form of treatment aimed at relieving emotional distress and mental health problems. Provided by any of a variety of trained professionals—psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, or licensed counselors—it involves examining and gaining insight into life choices and difficulties faced by individuals, couples, or families. Therapy sessions refer to structured meetings between a licensed provider and a client that may address several issues at once, have evolving goals, emphasize the development of the helping relationship, and involve several types of personalized treatment strategies.
While some of the techniques in coaching may be part of psychotherapy, therapy covers a much broader territory and is more involved and complex.
What really sets Compass apart?
Other life coaches often want to tell you what you need to work on. At Compass coaching, you are the expert on your life and what you need. We are the experts (literally, credentialed experts who you can vet) on the processes of change. That means we can help you reach the goals you decide are most important to you!
Other life coaches (even well-intentioned ones) often offer questionable services, like advice from their own life, or things they just read online. They might say things like “world class” coaching, But what does that mean? Everything we offer you is grounded in well-established science. You can always ask your coach, “Hey, how do you know this will be helpful?” or “Where’d you learn that?” and they’ll be able to tell you. We offer a high-quality experience that you can trust (and verify).
Other coaches might be willing to give you advice on anything, whether they’re qualified or not – as professionals, we’ll never give you advice outside our areas of competence (for example, while we can help you manage your finances as part of your overall wellbeing, we won’t give you advice about the stock market, while we can help you to overcome motivational barriers to weight loss and implement a plan your physician recommends with more success, we’ll never give you advice about nutritional supplements).
Other life coaches may offer you some very enticing options, like “texting anytime!” While it might feel nice to be able to receive “coaching” right in a stressful or confusing moment, those life coaches know that being available 24/7 leads you to develop a dependence on them, and they’re counting on it - so you keep paying them longer! At Compass, we want to give you convenient help and support without cultivating your dependence on us. Our goal is to help you achieve your goals in 8-12 sessions. If, after that, you had such a good experience that you want to work on something else, you’re welcome to do that!
How much does Coaching cost?
Coaching prices are as follows: $125 per session for individualized coaching. The coaching “programs” are $125 if paid each session and $100 per session if all coaching sessions for that program are paid upfront. Coaching cannot be paid for through insurance.
How long does Coaching take?
Coaching typically lasts between 8 and 12 sessions depending on the coaching topic and clients’ needs. Up to three follow-up sessions may be scheduled, at the client’s request. Sessions are 50 minutes long.
Can I do Coaching from home?
While coaching is available in the office, most coaching is provided remotely through a secure, HIPAA-compliant telehealth service. Coaching sessions are specifically designed to work well in the virtual environment, for your convenience. As long as you find a private place with a good internet connection to attend your coaching sessions, you can do coaching anywhere!
What if I need more help?
We can “supercharge” your progress with the following services that support your thriving, and don’t foster your dependence, which you can request at an additional fee if you think they’d be helpful to you:
· Consultation meetings with your support team – this is a session with whomever you invite (e.g., spouse, kids, coworker, best friend) to explain what they can do to help surround you with support and make changes easier and last longer
· Support documents – these are anything from a progress summary that you may want to show your spouse to a letter supporting your leave from work to a “cheat sheet” that you can keep in your wallet or on your mirror to help you remember important points from the session
· Personalized homework – your coach can create journal prompts, worksheets, and other interactive resources for you to increase progress week over week
· And some of our coaches offer Skills Boot Camps – a multi-hour training-and-practice session to maximize the development of important skills for faster progress
