What’s the Difference Between Coaching and Mentoring?
Jun 18, 2025
Coaching and mentoring often get used interchangeably, but they aren’t the same. Mentoring is about sharing wisdom, offering advice, and guiding someone along a path you’ve walked yourself. Coaching, by contrast, is about helping someone reflect, solve problems, and grow by asking great questions.
In the MACRO Leadership framework, coaching is a leadership skill, not just a support role. It’s how we lead performance conversations that move projects forward and help people grow on the job. When you coach well, you don’t give answers — you draw them out.
Supervision, mentoring, and coaching all have a place in leadership. The key is knowing which hat you’re wearing. This table clarifies the differences:
👥 Leadership Roles Compared
|
Supervising |
Mentoring |
Coaching |
|
Directs day-to-day work |
Shares wisdom from experience |
Facilitates growth through inquiry |
|
Focuses on compliance and performance |
Focuses on career development |
Focuses on performance within current responsibilities |
|
Gives instructions and monitors outcomes |
Offers advice and guidance based on past success |
Asks questions to spark awareness and action |
|
Typically hierarchical |
Often peer-to-peer or senior-to-junior |
Can be peer-to-peer, manager-to-employee, or external |
|
Measures success by task completion |
Measures success by relationship and insight gained |
Measures success by growth, clarity, and follow-through |
|
Time-bound to a role or project |
Long-term, developmental |
Ongoing or situational, depending on goals |
|
“Here’s what to do.” |
“Here’s what I did.” |
“What do you think you should do?” |
We use a tool called FRIES to keep coaching focused and effective. You can learn more and download the free worksheet to guide you through your conversations.
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