Teaching vs Coaching

Image credits to Anton Repponen.

While “teaching” and “coaching” are often used interchangeably, it’s helpful to think of the two as different.

Teaching a person/team when they have prior experience with the thing you’re teaching them can backfire. They may be less receptive to new ideas you introduce since you weren’t aware of their knowledge level. They may even trust you less.

On the flip side, coaching a person/team before they have any knowledge or experience on the thing you’re coaching on can also backfire. “You’re leaving me with more questions than answers. Just tell us what to do!” Because you haven’t helped paint a clear path forward, you may leave them even more astray than intended.

I’ve made both mistakes as a product manager and organization designer. I’ve learned to think of both as separate modalities, separate crafts that take a lifetime to master.

Here’s how I currently think about the difference between teaching and coaching.

Teaching is about sharing knowledge while coaching is about drawing out knowledge.

Teaching looks like sharing expertise, drawing from past experience, and offering suggestions. “I’d consider trying it this way to reach your goal.”

Coaching looks like asking questions that guide the coachee. “What would it take to reach your goal?”

Teaching’s main focus is on the consideration of the problem and quality of the solution. Coaching’s main focus is whether the person/team sharpens their ability to frame and solve their problems.

This doesn’t mean that I don’t care about a team or individual arriving at their own answers when I’m teaching. This also doesn’t mean that I don’t care about the quality of the solution the coachee comes up with when I’m coaching. It means that when I’m teaching I care more about the quality of thinking behind the solution, and when I’m coaching I care more about the coachee arriving at the solution on their own. Teaching concerns me with the subject matter; coaching concerns me with the capability of the person/team.

Teaching and coaching’s efficacy depends on the person/group’s prior experience with the topic or framework they’re learning.

In my experience, teaching is generally more effective than coaching when the individual/group has no prior knowledge of the topic they’re learning, while coaching is generally more effective when the individual/group has some prior knowledge. If the team doesn’t know about agile, design thinking, or self-management, I’ll teach. If the team has had some experience with agile, design thinking, or self-management, I’ll coach. This is of course a guideline instead of a rule: There are exceptions when a group with no prior knowledge will benefit more from coaching.

The purpose of teaching and coaching is to help others grow and realize their potential. But they are two different ways of realizing this purpose. One way shares knowledge, the other draws it out.

Some moments need you to teach. Other moments need you to coach. Some even requires a mix of both. Having both modalities to draw from equips you to meet the needs of any circumstance.

What’s the main difference between the two in your mind?