First and foremost, advice-giving offers a technical solution to a problem rather than exploring the client's thinking, which is the main purpose of coaching. If we are pursuing a behavioral change in the client’s demeanor, the client has to understand first what to change and why is that important for them. Therefore, a given solution overlooked all this process.
Secondly, giving advice or telling the client what to do is not persuasive from the perspective of taking actions toward a behavioral change. Our advice can be unconsciously taken as a threat since we are violating the client’s autonomy to make their own decisions. In other words, advice can be considered as trying to take control of the situation. Being told what to do, usually comes with defensive reasoning.
Finally, even well-meant, warm, and sincere, advice-giving will probably push the person to an uncomfortable situation. Giving advice places the coach in the role of a rescuer and the client as a victim, implying that the client is not resourceful. Commitment to action implementation is more persuasive if the solution comes from the client’s ideas.
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