Purpose
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to describe the purpose of a coaching agreement and name its key required components.
Lesson Explanation
A coaching agreement is an explicit understanding, established before formal coaching begins, connecting directly to the informed consent principle covered in Part 1, Lesson 4. It typically covers several specific components:
Logistics — session frequency, length, and format Confidentiality — what stays private, and the narrow exceptions Scope — what coaching will and won't address, connecting to Part 1's scope-of-practice boundary Responsibilities — what the coach commits to, and what the client commits to Fees and cancellation — cost and policy, stated clearly upfront
A genuinely important, specific reason this agreement is established upfront, not assumed informally: it prevents a genuinely common problem where a client and coach have different, unstated assumptions about what coaching actually involves — for example, a client who unconsciously expects direct advice (more like consulting, Part 1, Lesson 1) may feel unsatisfied by a coach who consistently, appropriately, asks questions instead.
Establishing this agreement explicitly, rather than leaving it implicit, directly reduces the risk of this kind of mismatched expectation derailing the coaching relationship later.
Practice Questions
1. A new client assumes their coach will also help them work through past childhood trauma. What component of the coaching agreement, if established clearly upfront, could have prevented this mismatched expectation?
View Answer
Scope.
2. What earlier lesson’s concept does the “scope” component of the coaching agreement connect to?
View Answer
Scope of practice, from Part 1, Lesson 4 (Ethics and Professional Boundaries).
3. A coaching agreement specifies that the client is responsible for completing agreed-upon action steps between sessions. Which component does this reflect?
View Answer
Responsibilities.
4. A coach never discusses cancellation policy upfront, and a client is confused and frustrated after being charged for a missed session. What component of the agreement was likely missing or unclear?
View Answer
Logistics.
5. Should fees and cancellation policy be stated clearly upfront, or addressed only if a problem arises, according to this lesson?
View Answer
Stated clearly upfront.
6. A coach and client both loosely assume they understand the working relationship, without ever explicitly discussing it. Is this consistent with the approach recommended in this lesson?
View Answer
No – the agreement should be established explicitly, not left implicit, even if both parties seem to already understand each other.
7. What field, covered in Part 1, does the mismatched-expectation example (a client expecting the coach to address past trauma) resemble?
View Answer
Therapy.
8. True or False: a coaching agreement is optional and can be skipped if the coach and client seem to already understand each other.
View Answer
False.
9. A coach writes up an agreement covering scope, responsibilities, confidentiality, logistics, and one more component. What is this fifth likely component, based on this lesson’s framework?
View Answer
Something like duration/term of the coaching relationship, or goals – any reasonable fifth structural element consistent with the lesson’s five-component framework.
10. Why is establishing the coaching agreement explicitly, rather than leaving it implicit, genuinely important, according to this lesson?
View Answer
It prevents mismatched expectations and misunderstandings that could otherwise disrupt the coaching relationship later.
11. A client is surprised to learn mid-relationship that the coach expects the client to initiate scheduling each session. What component of the agreement should have addressed this upfront?
View Answer
Responsibilities.
12. What does the “logistics” component of the agreement cover?
View Answer
Practical matters like fees, scheduling, and cancellation policy.