What is a financial coach and why might you want one?

Do you find that money brings more stress than peace of mind? Many people do. You might be earning a good income but still feel unsure about whether you are making the right financial choices. It’s quite possible that you know what you should be doing, but life gets in the way and it never quite happens. In the past few years, more people have begun to wonder, “what is a financial coach and could I benefit from working with one?”

This article explains what financial coaching is, how it differs from financial advice and therapy, and why it could be the missing piece of the jigsaw that helps you feel more in control of your money.

What is a financial coach?

A financial coach, or a money coach, is someone who helps you build a healthier relationship with money and take practical steps towards your goals. Think of it as having a personal trainer for your finances. A coach won’t lift the weights for you, but they’ll encourage, support and guide you to build good habits that stick.

Crucially, a financial coach should be:

• Independent: no ties to banks, investment companies or product providers
• Non-judgemental: you should feel safe to be completely open without fear of being criticised
• Supportive and practical: it’s about helping you take action, not just giving you theory

Unlike other professionals in finance, coaches don’t sell products or manage your money. They can certainly help you understand the pros and cons of different financial products so you can make an informed choice, but really, the focus is on you. Your situation, your goals, your habits and your relationship with money.

How does a financial coach differ from an adviser or therapist?

Financial coaches, advisers and therapists can all be valuable but they support people through different challenges.

Here’s a simple breakdown:

Financial Coach

• Focuses on your behaviours, emotions and habits around money
• Helps you set goals, build plans and stay accountable
• Works on everyday decisions and long-term habits
• Provides education and tools but doesn’t sell products
• Collaborative and forward-looking
• Can sometimes help with long-term financial planning

Financial Adviser 

• Gives regulated advice on financial products (pensions, investments, insurance)
• Recommends where to put your money and can manage it on your behalf
• Technical and product-driven, often focusing on tax planning and wealth management
• Usually paid through fees, most commonly as a percentage of assets under management
• More about strategy and solutions than behaviour.

Therapist (in relation to money) 

• Explores the deeper psychological roots of your money patterns
• Works with past experiences, trauma, and emotions that shape your relationship with money
• Helps you process feelings and understand “why” certain patterns exist
• Clinical and therapeutic, not financial in a practical sense
• Can be more centred in the past and healing-focused, rather than future action-focused

Broadly speaking, coaching sits between therapy and advice. It can help you move from awareness to action. For example:

• An adviser may tell you how to invest your pension
• A therapist may help you understand why you overspend when stressed
• A coach helps you put a plan in place to stop that overspending and build up your pension, with practical steps and accountability

Each role has value, and in some cases, they can complement each other beautifully.

What’s the difference between financial coaching and financial education?

Another common misunderstanding is to confuse coaching with financial education.

Financial education

This is about building knowledge. It helps with an understanding of things like pensions, investments, tax bands and how mortgages work. It’s very important, but knowing the “what” doesn’t always mean you’ll do the “how”.

Financial coaching

This is about empowerment and action. It develops the journey beyond knowledge and into implementation. A coach helps you explore your mindset and behaviours, uncover what’s holding you back, and then put systems in place to keep you moving forward.

Education is learning the rules of the game. Coaching is actually getting on the pitch and playing.

Common problems financial coaching can help with

You don’t need to be “bad with money” to benefit from financial coaching. Many coachees have solid financial knowledge and behaviours, but lack clarity for the future. There comes a point in life where you want to know if you’ll be ok as you get older.

Here are some of the problems that coaching can help resolve:

• Feeling anxious about money – constant worry, even if the numbers look fine
• Struggling to save consistently – good intentions fall away after a few months
• Overspending – the bank balance never quite reflects your income
• Underspending – creating the confidence and ‘permission’ to enjoy your money more
• Procrastination – avoiding paperwork, ignoring reminders, delaying decisions
• Arguments with a partner – money becoming a source of tension in relationships
• Earning well but lacking control – high income but no sense of progress
• Life transitions – separation, career change, moving towards retirement
• Wanting financial freedom – but not sure how to start or what it looks like

For some people, coaching provides the accountability they’ve been missing. For others, it’s a safe space to talk about money without judgement. And often, it’s simply the structure and encouragement needed to change something.

What to expect when working with a financial coach

Every coach has their own style, but the general process usually looks something like this:

1. Initial chat: an informal call to explore your situation and goals. No commitment, just a chance to see if coaching feels right and crucially, are you and the coach a good match.
2. Goal setting: clarifying what you really want from your money and life. This is when you also might agree what a successful outcome would look like from the coaching itself.
3. Regular sessions: regular meetings (most likely online) to work through challenges, create plans, and prioritise actions.
4. Practical tools: sharing of things like spending plans, exercises to explore your relationship with money, or accountability check-ins to keep you on track.
5. Ongoing support: some coaches will offer email or message support between sessions for questions and accountability.

A good coach won’t tell you what to do. Instead, they’ll ask the right questions, help you see things clearly, and support you as you make decisions that fit your values. It’s a collaborative relationship where you should remain firmly in the driver’s seat, but feel supported.

Do you need a financial coach?

Financial coaching is not the answer for everyone and even if it could be of benefit, the timing needs to be right. Remember, you do the work, so you need to have time and headspace. It doesn’t need to be onerous though. Amazing progress can be achieved though tiny, intentional steps.

Some people are quite content managing money on their own. Others like to hand over the management of their money to a regulated adviser. In some cases, a therapist might be best if financial struggles are rooted in trauma.

But you might find coaching helpful if:

• You know what you should be doing, but struggle to follow through
• You feel stressed, stuck, or guilty about money
• You want support to make financial decisions with confidence
• You’d like someone independent to hold you accountable
• You want to improve communication about money with your partner
• You just want an independent sounding board to talk things through without judgement or patronising “mansplaining”!

And remember, financial coaching isn’t only for those in crisis. Many coaching clients are doing “fine” financially, but they want to move from fine to flourishing. Coaching is about unlocking potential as much as solving problems.

Summary

Financial coaching is about more than numbers. It’s about personal goals, habits, emotions, and the confidence that comes from finally feeling in control.

Some of the most amazing outcomes from financial coaching have nothing to do with money. During their work with me, clients have changed careers, re-ignited relationships, taken up musical instruments and one has even stopped smoking. Freeing up headspace from money worries can lead to so many positive changes.

If this stuff resonates, I’d love to chat. My free initial chat is a relaxed way to see if coaching could help you.