You realize you have a problem and you need to fix it. You don’t know exactly what is wrong but you know that your business really needs some help.

Are you unsure if you should hire a coach or a consultant?

It is important to know the differences between the two because there are certainly significant differences between consulting and coaching.

Consultants usually specialize in one particular field of expertise, whether it be accounting, technology, staffing, marketing or any one of many other components of a business.

An independent outside consultant will analyze and look at your business and determine weak spots, strong points and identify missing elements and gaps. They will then propose a plan and a cost. If hired the consultant will either tell you what needs to be done or in many cases do it for you.

What a consultant cannot do is help you transform your business into being successful if the problem is you. Most consultants don’t focus on people and in fact can benefit from a coach themselves.

A coach is a facilitator of growth and change. The role of the coach is to help you and through you they can make a difference in your business and your life.

Hiring a coach doesn’t mean you have serious problems. Hiring a coach means you are aware that if you make certain improvements in your behaviors and core beliefs, your chances of being successful will increase dramatically.

To simplify, a consultant will advise their clients on how to solve the problem while a coach helps guide the client to their own conclusions.

Consultants are focused on the results whereas coaches are focused on the individual.

You hire a consultant to produce a certain outcome and you hire a coach to support and guide you to achieve the outcome yourself.

Metaphorically, a consultant gives you a fish and feeds you a meal, while a coach teaches you to fish so you can feed yourself indefinitely.

There is a time and place for both coaching and consulting. In fact some coaches offer “consultative coaching” which is a subtle combination of both. So as they walk with you along the path to success, sometimes they take the lead.

Which ever road you choose, remember to enjoy the journey.

To your success!

Management consulting is undoubtedly one of the highest paid professions that hold the power to ensure even during economic recession. Be it any time of the year, every company and organization needs management consultants to ensure continuous growth and prosperity of their companies. During the challenging period of recession, these consultants help companies cut down cost of operation and increase profit margins.

Like all industries and fields have their specific roles and requirements, management consulting also has its own specification. The job calls for individuals with special qualities, credentials, and people skills. If you also wish to invade into this highly lucrative profession and gain tremendous success, then here are certain guidelines to help you kick start your career:

• As a management consultant you have to develop strong skills and qualities including the communication skills, problem solving skill, and management skills. These are the most important requirements of becoming a successful management consultant.

• You also need to be strong enough to work under complete stress. Excessive work, over timing, and exhaustion are all the basics of this job and you should learn how to tackle and overcome these issues.

• You should keep yourself updated with the latest news and information about the ongoing business and management issues. You don’t need to have a master degree to be a successful consultant but you need to educate yourself with the latest trends and issues in the business world.

• Learn about the management process and career opportunities. There are various fields in the management sector and you should familiarize yourself with all but select one specialized area depending on your desire and expectation.

• You can give a kick start to your career by accepting a job in some organization, consulting firm, multinational company or any non-profit organization. You can also go for internship and once you gain experience you can switch over to be a self-employed management consultant.

• When you decide to start your own consulting firm, you should have an aptitude for entrepreneurship and basic measures to start up a consulting business. You can then research the market and set your own prices for all the services offered.

As computers, Internet and technology have become increasingly more available and accepted, so have the applications for using them. Online consultations are something that is becoming more widely used by both medical professionals and those seeking medical advice. But how do you know if online medical consultations are right for you? There are some things to consider before you decide to try out online consultations.

The first thing you should consider is the complexity and severity of the medical condition you are hoping to ask about. If you have a complicated medical history and are under a physician’s care for one or more serious illnesses or diseases, you should probably stay in touch with your doctor about new problems. If this is the case, online consultations are probably not a good idea for you. Your personal physician is in tune with your medical issues and has your history at his fingertips.
Online medical consultations rely on the information you provide and those medical professionals – while probably highly competent – aren’t likely to be able to deal with complex medical histories.

There are lots of cases in which the illnesses are only bothersome and finding a source of online medical consultations is a great way to deal with the problem without the expense and time needed to visit your personal physician. In some cases, you may be alerted to ways of dealing with minor medical issues with only over-the-counter medications or even items that are probably already in your medicine cabinet. You can get general online consultations that will help you decide whether a trip to the doctor is warranted or if you can probably get past the problem on your own.

With the wide array of medications that were once prescription-only but are now available over-the-counter, the odds are good that online medical consultations will include suggestions for medicines you can purchase that might help the symptoms. Remember to alert the person performing the online consultation to any medications you are currently taking so that they can consider drug interactions. If you are on an extensive medical regimen, you should probably avoid online consultations and work directly with your personal doctor.

So does that mean that online consultations aren’t ever worth looking into if you have a serious condition? Not at all. There are dozens of websites that have incredible resources for those facing specific health issues. If you’re dealing with diabetes, heart disease, herpes, various forms of cancer or other specific illnesses, you’ll find online sources of information that include online medical consultations. These online consultants typically are knowledgeable about the specifics of these diseases and can offer quality advice.