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