The Coaching Crowd® Podcast with Jo Wheatley & Zoe Hawkins

What if the pressure to prove our value as a coach is getting in the way of the space our client needs?
In this episode, we explore a question that comes up frequently in coaching supervision: "Am I adding value as a coach?" Whether we are beginning our coaching journey or have years of experience, that question can bring uncertainty, self-doubt and a strong desire to know we are doing meaningful work.
We begin by looking beneath the question itself. Are we wondering whether our client is making progress, whether we chose the right intervention, or whether we are good enough? Wanting to do our work well is natural. But when our attention shifts towards securing reassurance, we can lose connection with the person in front of us.
Together, we reflect on who gets to decide what valuable coaching looks like. As coaches, we might look for a breakthrough, a decision or a clear action. Our client might value something quieter: uninterrupted thinking time, the chance to say something aloud for the first time, or a question that leaves them seeing their situation differently. Coaching effectiveness is not always visible within the session.
One story brings this uncertainty into focus. Early in our coaching experience, a client finished an engagement describing the conversations as interesting but struggling to identify what they had gained. The experience left a sense of disappointment and questions about whether enough had been done. Around ten years later, that client made contact and described the coaching as the single biggest influence on a significant life change. The impact had developed beyond the time we shared.
We also explore why greater experience does not necessarily remove coaching self-doubt. Previous client transformations, recommendations and a growing toolkit can create pressure to deliver something equally significant every time. Non-directive coaching asks us to notice that pressure and remain responsive to the client's agenda.
There are practical ways to stay connected with client learning. Regular coaching check-ins can help clients recognise what is emerging, rather than leaving all reflection until the final moments. We discuss how to use these questions in service of the client, alongside noticing our own urge to strive, taking a breath and returning to coaching presence.
Our conversation also considers people pleasing, pride in our work, relationship dynamics and the feelings that can surface when we begin charging for coaching.
We finish with a different question: are we creating the conditions in which something valuable can happen? That shift invites us to trust the coaching process, recognise the client's contribution and bring our uncertainties into supervision.
Timestamps:
·         00:00 Welcome and introduction
·         00:06 Am I adding value as a coach?
·         00:51 Taking the question into supervision
·         01:45 Using check-ins to support client learning
·         03:06 Who decides what counts as value?
·         04:29 When coaching value is not immediately visible
·         05:25 Why experienced coaches can question their impact
·         08:07 Introducing tools for the client's benefit
·         09:20 A client story: discovering the impact ten years later
·         11:42 What would change if you had nothing to prove?
·         12:32 Exploring approval, pride and people pleasing
·         15:09 Returning to presence when striving appears
·         15:48 Exploring relationship and systemic dynamics
·         16:53 Creating the conditions for value
·         17:47 How clients contribute to the value of coaching
·         18:57 Session length, expectations and trusting the time available
·         20:08 Charging for coaching and feelings of worthiness
·         21:08 Supervision, coach training and further development
Key Lessons Learned:
·         Value can emerge after the coaching ends. A client may need time to process an experience before recognising its influence.
·         A breakthrough is one possible outcome. Thinking space, being heard and exploring uncertainty can also be valuable.
·         Check-ins should support the client's learning. Asking what is emerging helps clients recognise their own discoveries.
·         Experience can bring additional pressure. Recommendations and previous successes can increase our expectations of what each session should achieve.
·         Our toolkit needs to serve the client's agenda. Before introducing an activity, we can consider whether the client needs it or whether we are seeking reassurance.
·         Self-awareness helps us return to presence. Noticing an urge to prove ourselves gives us an opportunity to pause, breathe and reconnect with the client.
·         Value is co-created. The client's goals, engagement and willingness to explore shape what becomes possible.
·         Supervision offers space to examine the question. We can explore how approval, professional pride, money and relationship dynamics influence our practice.
Keywords:
Am I adding value as a coach, coaching supervision, coaching effectiveness, coaching self-doubt, non-directive coaching, client learning, coaching check-ins, coaching presence, client transformations, trust the coaching process, charging for coaching, people pleasing, The Coaching Crowd Podcast,
 Links & Resources:
·         Website: igcompany.com

What can happen when a coach resists the urge to fix, reassure or move the conversation along, and stays fully present with the client instead?
In this episode, we explore witnessing in coaching: the practice of being with a client as they encounter an emotion, insight or change, without needing to direct what happens next.
We explain how witnessing is related to deep listening, but distinct from it. Listening communicates, "I hear you"; witnessing communicates, "I'm here with you while you encounter this part of yourself."
We discuss the moments when witnessing can matter most: a client's emotion rising as they speak, a realisation they have never voiced before, or a new perspective that is only beginning to take shape. These moments can involve grief or fear, but also relief, freedom and excitement. The coach's silence and presence can give the client room to let the experience settle and find its own meaning. We reflect on how quickly a coach's wish to be useful can turn into action, questions or solutions, and how stepping back can help the client stay with their own learning.
We also explore the difference between witnessing and validation, and how the two can sometimes follow each other in a coaching conversation. Witnessing can help clients feel safe enough to bring more of themselves into the room, including the uncertainty that comes with a changing identity. Whether someone is becoming a new leader, adjusting to a different family role or moving on from a business, the coach can offer space to explore who they are becoming without defining it for them. We reflect on the care and courage this asks of both coach and client, and why presence can be a powerful coaching skill in its own right.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introducing witnessing in coaching
01:47 What witnessing looks like in an emotional moment
04:01 How witnessing differs from listening
06:18 Giving new insights time to settle
08:30 Staying present without rushing to solutions
10:39 Witnessing across the emotional spectrum
12:41 Witnessing, validation and client experience
13:57 Why witnessing helps clients pay attention
15:59 Seeing and accepting the whole person
17:59 Witnessing identity shifts and emerging change
20:08 Tolerating discomfort and staying present
20:38 Developing witnessing as a coaching skill
Key Lessons Learned:
Witnessing means staying present with a client's experience without rushing to change it.
Deep listening and witnessing are connected, but witnessing also communicates that the coach is with the client as they encounter something within themselves.
Silence can give a new insight or emotion time to settle and develop.
Coaches can notice whether their urge to act comes from what the client needs or from their own need to feel useful.
Witnessing can hold many emotions, including joy, relief and freedom, as well as sadness or fear.
Witnessing an emotion does not mean agreeing with the client's interpretation of events.
A calm, accepting coaching space can help clients explore identity changes and build self-trust.
Coaches need to be comfortable enough with their own reactions to remain present with the client.
Keywords:
Witnessing in coaching, coaching skills, coaching presence, deep listening in coaching, emotional coaching, coaching conversations, client centred coaching, coach training, continuing professional development for coaches,
Links & Resources:
https://igcompany.com/, including coach training programmes and the Emotions Coaching Practitioner Training.

What could change in a coaching conversation if we asked a different opening question?
We often fall into familiar habits when a coaching session begins. In this episode, we explore how the first question can shape a client's focus, the direction of the conversation and how present they feel. We share a range of coaching questions designed to help clients notice what matters to them, rather than relying on the same opener every time.
Some questions help a client sort through competing priorities. Others invite them to notice what feels most alive, what they might need to leave outside the room, or where they could make progress. We also explore questions that make room for uncertainty, unresolved issues and the parts of a person that may not yet have had a voice. As we discuss each one, we reflect on how a question might land differently depending on the client and what they bring to the session.
We found ourselves returning to the importance of curiosity, choice and partnership. Questions about courage and possibility can open up new ways of thinking, while asking what the coach should be mindful of can strengthen the coaching alliance. We also discuss the power of a small word like "yet" to ease pressure and invite a sense of possibility.
These questions are invitations, not a checklist. We talk about using them thoughtfully, in the context of the client's goals and the work already underway. Our hope is that coaches and people developing coaching skills will find a question that helps them listen differently, create space for reflection and support meaningful progress.
Timestamps:
00:00 Why coaching openers matter
01:47 Sorting through competing priorities
03:22 Asking what feels most alive
05:15 Making space to be present
06:48 Inviting courage into the conversation
08:29 Focusing on progress
09:43 Making room for the unresolved
11:22 What someone has been trying to resolve alone
12:10 Giving a part of the client a voice
14:10 Exploring what has not yet been discussed
15:04 The possibility in the word "yet"
15:30 What the client wants the coach to be mindful of
19:38 Asking what is possible today
20:31 Exploring an avoided conversation
22:51 Choosing questions with care
23:56 Coaching course information
Key Lessons Learned:
The opening question can influence the focus and tone of a coaching session.
A question about energy or what feels alive may reveal more than asking only about the most urgent problem.
Clients can choose what to bring into a session and what to leave outside.
Questions about courage, uncertainty and possibility can create space for deeper reflection.
Asking what the client wants from their coach can strengthen partnership and the coaching alliance.
A question is an invitation, not a tool to apply automatically. Its value depends on the client and the context.
The word "yet" can reduce pressure and help a client see that change remains possible.
Keywords:
Coaching questions, types of coaching questions, powerful coaching questions, coaching conversation, coaching session, coaching skills, coaching clients, coaching alliance, coaching practice, coach training,
Links & Resources
mycoachingcourse.com, mentioned as a place to take a quiz and explore coaching courses.

Have you ever felt your mind go blank in a coaching session and wondered what you are supposed to do next?
We explore the moments coaches can experience as panic: a client arrives with an unexpected goal, shares something difficult, asks what we would do, or sits in silence while we search for the perfect question. We reflect on how these moments can show up as anxiety, uncertainty, shock or feeling lost, for new and experienced coaches alike.
We discuss how panic can be information rather than a problem to eliminate. When we rush to fill silence, reach for a model, give advice or steer the conversation towards a solution, we may be trying to manage our own discomfort instead of staying alongside the client. We consider how to recognise whose panic might be present, notice what is happening in the body and mind, and question the expectations we place on ourselves. Coaching does not require us to have an instant answer, and the client remains responsible for their own progress.
We share practical ways to work with a blank mind or a stalled conversation, including asking what feels important, what the client is noticing, or what might happen if we did not try to solve the issue yet. We also explore how coaching supervision and reflective practice can help us understand recurring patterns beneath our panic. The conversation returns to a central idea: the coach's presence, curiosity and capacity to sit with uncertainty can be more valuable than having another tool to use.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introducing panic in coaching
02:47 Treating panic as information
04:52 Whose panic is in the room?
06:57 When interventions ease the coach's discomfort
09:25 Expectations and the fear of not knowing
12:00 Questions to use when a session feels stuck
15:33 Moving beyond problem solving
18:24 Exploring recurring panic in supervision
22:02 Building self-understanding as a coach
23:57 Pausing, grounding and returning to the relationship
25:36 Emotions coaching practitioner training
Key Lessons Learned:
Panic can offer useful information about the coach, the client or the wider context.
Before intervening, ask whose discomfort the intervention is trying to resolve.
A moment of silence or uncertainty does not mean the session has failed.
The client is responsible for their progress; the coach does not need to solve the goal for them.
Simple questions can reopen exploration when a coach feels stuck.
Supervision can help uncover the beliefs and patterns behind recurring coaching anxiety.
Self-awareness helps coaches notice activation and return to curiosity and connection.
Keywords:
Coaching panic, coaching anxiety, emotions coaching, coaching supervision, reflective practice for coaches, coaching skills, client autonomy, managing uncertainty in coaching.
 
Links & Resources
Emotions Coaching Practitioner Training: igcompany.com/emotionscoaching

When does a coaching model help us stay present with a client, and when does it start to get in the way?
In this episode, we explore the relationship between coaching models, confidence and the conversations our clients need. Drawing on our experiences as coaches and coach educators, we discuss why coaching frameworks can be so reassuring when we are starting out. Clients rarely arrive with a neatly packaged goal. Their thoughts, emotions and competing priorities can take us in several directions, and models such as GROW, CLEAR and OSCAR can help us find a useful focus. We reflect on the importance of understanding why we ask a question, rather than concentrating only on which question comes next.
We also share how structure continues to support our coaching practice as we gain experience. A framework held in the background can help us notice a missing goal, an unexplored emotion or a conversation that has lost its direction. Sometimes, explaining a structured activity and asking whether it would be helpful gives the client a clearer sense of what we are offering. We reflect on how this transparency can build trust and reduce cognitive load for both people. Referring to notes can be part of thoughtful, effective coaching, and we do not need to perform expertise by pretending that support is unnecessary.
The tension emerges when completing the model becomes more important than responding to the person. We explore what happens when a client discovers something significant, such as recognising that their career has been shaped by a desire to please a parent. Moving immediately to options or actions could miss their need to pause and understand that discovery. This brings us back to the wider coaching skills that make a difference: listening, silence, intuition, ethics, safeguarding and contracting. For us, coaching mastery involves developing the judgement to stay with a structure, adapt it or step away, according to the client and the moment.
We finish by reflecting on how coach development moves from learning models to choosing, adapting and integrating their principles into our own coaching style. Our IKEA furniture metaphor reminds us that skipping the learning process is not the same as mastering it. We also explore why models are never neutral: every framework directs attention towards particular aspects of a client's experience. Whether we are using emotions coaching tools or another approach, we hold responsibility for what we introduce. This conversation invites us to become more deliberate about how we use structure, while remaining curious and responsive to the person in front of us.
Timestamps:
·         00:00 Welcome and the coaching models question
·         01:14 Why frameworks help new coaches
·         02:57 GROW, CLEAR and OSCAR
·         04:31 Using models to refocus a conversation
·         05:29 Offering structured activities to clients
·         06:50 Transparency, trust and cognitive load
·         07:45 Learning and integrating a model
·         09:50 Helpful structure and knowing when to step away
·         11:18 Responding to significant discoveries
·         13:19 Coaching skills beyond models
·         14:31 The journey towards coaching mastery
·         15:58 The IKEA furniture metaphor
·         18:03 Why coaching models are not neutral
·         19:44 Exploring further coach training
Key Lessons Learned:
·         Understand the purpose behind the question. A model becomes more useful when we understand what its questions invite the client to explore.
·         Structure can serve the client as well as the coach. Explaining an activity and checking whether it would help can create clarity, trust and a sense of direction.
·         Using notes does not undermine credibility. How we introduce a framework matters more than whether we remember every step.
·         A discovery may need space before action. The next question in a model may be less useful than pausing with what the client has recognised.
·         Models are one part of effective coaching. Listening, silence, intuition, ethics, safeguarding and contracting all shape the conversation.
·         Mastery includes choice. Developing as a coach means learning when to follow a framework, adapt it or work more emergently.
·         Every model directs attention. We need to consider what our chosen approach brings into focus and what it may leave unexplored.
·         Learn before letting go. Practising and understanding a model gives us a stronger foundation for integrating its principles into our own style.
Keywords:
Coaching models, coaching frameworks, GROW, CLEAR, OSCAR, coaching practice, effective coaching, coaching skills, coaching mastery, coach development, coaching style, emotions coaching, cognitive load, coach training, The Coaching Crowd,
Links & Resources
https://igcompany.com/