One of the distinctions between the ethics of counseling and those of coaching addresses this very question. Licensed clinicians are taught and even legally required to not have dual relationships with their clients; this means that you cannot be a "friend" with a therapy client. In small

Coaching is powerful; it helps clients say what they have not said, think what they have not thought, and dream what they have not dreamed…and share it with their confidant, their coach.

This allows clients to realize that if there are things they want to be different in their lives,