What Can You Expect From A Coaching Session

Coaching is one of those things that’s easier to experience than explain.

If you’re considering working with a coach for the first time, you might wonder:

Is it like therapy for professionals?
Do I need to come with a big goal?
Will the coach tell me what to do?

Let’s take the mystery out of it. Below, you’ll find a clear picture of what coaching is, how a session is structured, and what makes it different from other forms of support.

First Thing First: What Coaching is Not

Coaching is often confused with mentoring, consulting, advising, or therapy. While each plays a meaningful role in growth, coaching is distinct in several important ways:

• Mentoring is about learning from someone who’s walked your path. Coaching is about helping you walk your own.
• Consulting brings expert solutions. Coaching helps you find your own best answers.
  
• Advising offers specific recommendations. Coaching stays non-directive—meaning we don’t tell you what to do.
  
• Therapy focuses on healing the past. Coaching is future-focused and designed to move you forward.

Think of coaching as a structured, thought-provoking conversation that helps you gain clarity, uncover insights, and take meaningful action.

Who Chooses The Topic?

You do. One of the most important distinctions in coaching is that the client always brings the topic.

You might bring something from...

The Past:
Perhaps something happened recently (or even a while ago) that’s interfering with your ability to move forward. You’d like more clarity, to find a new perspective or seek a resolution, so it’s no longer occupying your thoughts or getting in your way. 

For example, a recent client felt stuck. She couldn’t figure out why she wasn’t giving one of her direct reports feedback. As a result of the coaching session, she uncovered that she felt sheepish giving a Director who reported to her feedback around lack of accountability, as she herself hadn’t held that individual and others on the team accountable. 

The Present:
What’s in front of you and weighing on your mind right now? It could be a decision you have to make, a situation you need to deal with, or an obstacle you want to focus time on so that you can move forward.

For example, given market changes, one of our clients knew he needed and wanted to create a new strategy for his function. It was at the forefront of his mind. He brought this work into our session and made significant progress identifying some key elements. He felt coaching around the topic was helpful because he had dedicated time to work on a solution, and he appreciated that there was someone else to help structure the conversation. Echoing what we heard him say, we encouraged him to explore additional viewpoints and aspects of the situation, leading to new insights and great options.

The Future:
What’s on the horizon? Perhaps you’d like to think through, consider or prepare for something coming up. It could be a strategy, conversation, presentation, or decision. 

For example, after one of our clients decided to sell his company, he scheduled a one-on-one session to talk through his messaging. He wanted to share the information in a way that honored the team and let them know how valued they were as they moved forward into this new opportunity. He also wanted to reassure the team that the parameters he had put in place protected their jobs and that the new owners had no intention of shaking things up, given how successful the business had been. We used our time together to identify an approach, prepare talking points, and outline his 360-degree communication strategy. And we checked back in at the end of the session to ensure his values and goals were met.

How Is A Coaching Session Structured?

GETTING STARTED...

We always begin by connecting personally, whether it’s our first session or our fifteenth. Then you decide if you want to dive straight into coaching or begin by sharing any updates, learnings, or progress on homework.

When you’re ready, we’ll ask what you want to focus on for today, why this topic is important to you, and most importantly, what success looks like by the end of the session. We’ll even identify what is in or outside of scope to ensure we aren’t taking on more than we can tackle in one session. 

DIVING IN...

Coaching isn’t linear, it’s an exploration. But you won’t get lost.

We’ll coach around the situation and also you, the person. Your personal and professional life is on the table because we are whole people and bring our whole selves to everything we do. That means we might discuss beliefs, values, perspectives, thoughts, feelings, and even identity. Often, the insights we learn from coaching can be applied to more than one area of life.

A coach is here to ask questions, provide feedback and help you arrive at your own conclusions. And if there’s a model we think might be helpful, we’ll offer it to you as a possible resource.

WRAPPING UP...

In the last 10–15 minutes, we’ll begin to close the loop. That includes:

• Reflecting on what you learned
• Identifying next steps or actions
• Co-creating a practice or experiment to try between sessions
• Anticipating anything that might get in the way
• Celebrating your progress
  

The goal? Leave feeling clear, empowered, and supported.

What if I Don't Know What to Focus On?

You don’t need to arrive with a polished topic. You just need to show up with a willingness to explore something that matters to you.

If you’re unsure where to begin, we’ll help you uncover what’s worth exploring. Here are some guiding questions:

Explore Current Challenges

• What's weighing on your mind?
• Where are you feeling stuck?
• What decision are you avoiding?

Reflect on Recent Experiences

• What happened recently that's still sitting with you?
• What feedback (formal or informal) is lingering in your mind?
• What keeps circling back in your thoughts?

Look Ahead

• What's coming up that you want to be more prepared for?
• What change or transition is on the horizon?
• What skill, habit, or way of being would you like to strengthen?

Deepen Self-Awareness

• How do you want to grow as a leader or decision-maker?
• What's something you know, deep down, that it's time to face?
• What patterns keep showing up?

Navigate Relationships

• Is there a relationship at work you want to improve?
• What do you wish your team or colleagues better understood about you?
• How do you want to show up differently with others?

And if nothing jumps out right away, we’ll give it a minute. Trust that something meaningful will surface.

What Happens Between Sessions?

Coaching doesn’t end when the session ends.

We’ll co-design a practice or small experiment based on the insight you uncovered. This could look like:

• Trying a new approach in an upcoming meeting
• Noticing how you show up in different situations
• Asking different types of questions
• Practicing a new habit or mindset
• Reflecting on your experience through notes or journaling

These aren’t checkboxes, they’re invitations. And if something isn’t working, we adjust together.

What if I Need More Than Coaching?

Coaching is powerful, but it’s not the right fit for every situation.

If something comes up that’s outside our scope, like deep emotional healing, therapy, or specific business consulting, we’ll name it. And we’ll talk about the kind of support that might be more appropriate.

Coaching works best when you’re ready to take action, grow your awareness, and lead with intention.

Is Coaching Confidential?

Yes. Everything we talk about stays between us, unless you give permission to share something or there’s a legal or ethical obligation to disclose (e.g. safety concerns).

Confidentiality is part of what makes coaching such a trusted, transformative space. You’re free to explore openly, think boldly, and shift your perspective without judgment.

Let's Quickly Recap!

A coaching session is...:

• Focused on a topic that matters to you
• A structured, exploratory conversation—not a directive or advice session
• A safe, judgment-free space
• Centered on you as a whole person
• Designed to create insight, action, and momentum

A coach asks questions you may not have considered yet, offers feedback based on observation, and helps you design a path to your goals. It’s up to you to decide what actions spring from the insights you gain during coaching and what changes you want to implement in your work - and life.

Now that we’ve taken the mystery out of coaching, all that’s left for you is to experience a session for yourself! If you’ve already signed up for coaching with us, we’re looking forward to our first call.