Purpose
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to describe the four-part structure of a typical individual coaching session.
Lesson Explanation
A single coaching session typically follows a specific four-part structure, distinct from the multi-session GROW model arc (Part 3, Lesson 1), which can span many sessions:
1. Check-in — brief update on progress since last session, and current state 2. Session focus — the client identifies what they specifically want to work on today 3. Exploration — the core working time, using questioning and the frameworks covered in Part 3 4. Close and commitment — summarizing insight and confirming a specific next action
A genuinely important, specific point: the session focus step is chosen by the client, not preset by the coach’s own agenda from a previous session — even if the coach expected to continue last session’s topic, the client’s actual current priority takes precedence.
The close and commitment step directly connects to the GROW model’s Will stage (Part 3, Lesson 1) — every session should end with something specific the client is committing to, not just insight without a next step, since insight alone rarely translates into change without a concrete committed action.
Practice Questions
1. A session opens with the coach briefly asking how the client’s week went and whether anything has shifted since last time. Which of the four session parts is this?
View Answer
Check-in.
2. A coach walks into a session with a fixed agenda from the previous week, regardless of what the client actually wants to discuss today. Is this consistent with how “session focus” should work, according to this lesson?
View Answer
No – the client, not a preset agenda, chooses the session focus.
3. A session moves into using GROW-model questions and powerful questioning techniques to dig into the client’s chosen topic. Which part of the session structure is this, and what earlier lesson’s frameworks does it draw on?
View Answer
Exploration; it draws on frameworks like the GROW model (Part 3, Lesson 1) and powerful questioning (Part 2, Lesson 2).
4. A session ends with the client stating a specific action they will take by a specific date. Which part of the session structure is this, and what earlier lesson and stage does it connect to?
View Answer
Close and commitment; it connects to the Will (W) stage of the GROW model from Part 3, Lesson 1.
5. A coaching session ends with the client having gained real insight but no specific next action identified. What does this lesson say is missing, and why does that matter?
View Answer
A specific commitment is missing; this lesson emphasizes that a session should end with a specific commitment, not just insight, since insight alone doesn’t guarantee follow-through.
6. How does a single session’s four-part structure differ from the multi-session GROW model arc?
View Answer
The four-part structure organizes a single session’s flow, while GROW can span multiple sessions as a client works through goal-setting, reality, options, and will over time.
7. True or False: the coach’s own agenda from a previous session should always determine today’s session focus.
View Answer
False – the client determines today’s focus.
8. Which of the four session parts comes immediately before “close and commitment”?
View Answer
Exploration.
9. A client arrives to a session visibly distracted, and briefly mentions a stressful event from that morning before settling in. Which part of the session structure allows space for this?
View Answer
Check-in.
10. A coach notices thirty minutes have passed in exploration with no clear direction toward a next step. What later part of the session should the coach be mindful of moving toward?
View Answer
Close and commitment.
11. A client wants to discuss a completely different topic than what was planned from last session’s notes. Based on this lesson’s principles, what should the coach do?
View Answer
Follow the client’s chosen focus for today’s session, since the client – not a preset agenda – determines session focus.
12. What happens during the “check-in” step, according to this lesson?
View Answer
A brief opening that surfaces how the client is doing and whether anything has shifted since the last session.