Help, hype or hustle?

A growing number of Singaporeans are engaging life coaches to navigate personal and professional challenges. The Straits Times looks at how the field differs from counselling or therapy.

- Jessica Novia

About a year ago, logistics professional Felice Neo, 43, came across a Facebook advertisement that caught her attention.

The video featured a bespectacled Chinese woman offering advice on relationships: "When a relationship isn't working out, don't be stubborn and keep holding on."

Intrigued, Ms Neo visited the page Athena's Truth and watched more videos. At the time, she was struggling with her marriage of 10 years.

Her husband had wanted to file for divorce, but one month later changed his mind and told her that he wanted to salvage the marriage. Ms Neo was unsure whether to stay or leave, and how to handle custody of their two children.

The woman in the videos was life coach Tan Yan Mei, who also said: "The more you focus on a specific outcome, the more you might be getting it wrong."

The post invited viewers to join a coaching programme focused on living a fulfilling life and finding true love through the law of attraction. Seeing this as a sign, Ms Neo contacted Ms Tan. Over a Zoom call, she explained her marital issues and the coach explained her services and packages.

Ms Neo signed up for four sessions over six months. "At that time, Yan was the guidance I needed when I was feeling down and unsure about my marriage."

She also attended family counselling with her husband, but their marriage did not work out in the end.

Ms Neo is among a growing number of Singaporeans engaging life coaches to navigate personal and professional challenges, from relationship troubles to workplace conflicts.

But what exactly is life coaching, and how does it differ from counselling or therapy?

"YES, I HAVE A LIFE COACH"

The concept of coaching has evolved significantly over the past century. Originally associated with tutoring and athletics, it expanded into the realm of personal development in the early 20th century, influenced by psychoanalysis pioneers like Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung.