Primarily Coaching is all about working with present and future. It is more outcome-focused with emphasis on identifying and applying the plan of action to achieve the desired outcome.
Though Coaches are trained to help clients focus on the present and work towards the desired future, they are not really equipped to help clients deal with intense negative emotions or issues coming from the past.
Therapists, on the other hand, are expected to focus more on past and negative emotions as opposed to any specific goal that the client may wish to achieve. Classically, therapy would also include developing a deeper understanding of the cause of the problem and may majorly revolve around resolving emotional baggage coming from the past. Work with any kind of disorder or addiction will also fall within the realm of therapy.
Having said that, this distinction between coaching and therapy is more applicable to coaches than to therapists. Most successful therapists, if not all, knowingly or unknowingly do help the clients move towards their goals.
As we see it, coaching is a subset of therapy. All therapists who use a solution-focused approach, coach their clients but coaches can’t take therapies for clients unless they are trained therapists as well.
For further insights into this topic, "The Skilled Helper" by Gerard Egan delves into the distinctions and boundaries between coaching and therapy.
Table showing the Differences between Coaching and Therapy