What to Talk About in a Coaching Session

It can be hard to know what to talk about in therapy. The same goes for coaching, which, believe it or not, might be more impactful for you than traditional therapy. 

So, why choose coaching over therapy, you ask?

Coaching sessions can help skyrocket your personal and professional growth. Unlike therapy, coaching is “future-forward,” which means your coach will focus more on the thinking required to reach your upcoming goals than getting tied up in the challenges of your past. If you’re looking to improve your career, your love life, your financial situation or simply your day-to-day outlook, coaching is probably right for you.

Here are some things to talk about with a coach when you sign up for your first session. 

What to talk about in coaching

1. Identify your goals 

During your first coaching session, think about your biggest dreams, goals and objectives. Think big—VERY big. This might feel uncomfortable, but it’s important not to hold back, because you’ll only be hampering your own progress if you do. 

What do you want to achieve through coaching? What are your personal and professional priorities? What do you want from your romantic relationship or your creative life? What do you value most in life? Getting super specific about your dreams now will help your coach identify what’s been getting in your way.

2. Share your roadblocks

Things to talk about with a coach vary for everyone, but most people will want to share their challenges and concerns with their personal coach. It might be that you’re struggling with a specific problem at work. Maybe you’re feeling stuck in your personal life. You might even be knee-deep in family problems. 

Whatever the case, be open and honest with your coach. It might feel awkward, painful or embarrassing, but hiding your true problems from your coach will only increase the amount of time it takes to move past your setbacks, and coaching is a judgment-free zone to address said setbacks. 

3. Look for feedback, not a roadmap

Coaches offer support and guidance, not a list of rules to live your life by. In order to reach your goals successfully, you’ll need to do the heavy lifting of setting and achieving your dreams without constant direction from a coach. 

Why? Because if you rely too heavily on your coach to tackle your challenges, you won’t know how to set and achieve your own goals without a coach at your side. Instead, use your coach as a source of inspiration and feedback to learn more about your natural skills and potential blindspots. 

4. Think about how you might fail

Yes, you read that right. With your coach, it might help to think about all the ways you’re willing to fail. Are you willing to try new things that you may not be good at? Are you willing to take risks in business that may or may not pay off? Are you willing to really put yourself out there?

This might be the hardest part about coaching—but once you learn it, you’ll reach much greater heights than before. Being at peace with potential failure and rejection opens the door to greater happiness, success and peace. 

5. Come prepared 

People who get involved with coaching are usually high-achievers. They’re usually prepared in their personal, professional and creative lives. They like doing well, and they like to be ready for anything. 

If that’s you, lean into that sense of preparation. Before a coaching session, write down your thoughts and questions in a personal journal, and bring the journal to your coach. You’ll be thankful that you wrote everything down, and your coach will be thankful to have more data in order to coach you effectively and efficiently. 

There are countless things to talk about with a coach 

The truth is, you can talk to your coach about virtually anything. To get the most out of a coaching experience, however, it’s helpful to come with the right mindset and different topics to discuss. By naming your goals, finding personal roadblocks, being open to feedback, accepting the occasional failure and keeping a journal, your coaching experience will exceed your expectations.

If that sounds doable to you, then it’s time to get started. Contact us now for information about our coaching process, our amazing team of coaches and more.