Client-Centered Coaching: A Holistic and Client-Centered Approach

According to Joseph & Bryant-Jeffries (2019), a client-centered approach holds that clients are their own best experts and that people are intrinsically motivated to become independent individuals, with a desire for personal growth and self-discovery. This allows for the integration of the client’s identity, environment, values, and beliefs into the coaching process, paving the way to self-actualize, the ability to be congruent with what the client is feeling, and the expression of that feeling (Joseph & Bryant-Jefferies, 2019).

By employing a holistic, whole-person approach, the coach can more readily assist the client in aligning their authentic selves with their goals while recognizing the impact of external variables such as work, relationships, cultural norms, and environment. 

Using the Body as an Anchor

As a personal trainer and wellness coach, I ask my clients at the start of each session how they feel mentally and physically as they arrive in our collective space. This is always an efficient and effective way to create a container of safety as it invites the client to become aware of how they are feeling and the healthy expression of that feeling (Joseph & Bryant-Jefferies, 2019; Williams & Menendez, 2015). This attentive, person-centered approach aligns with the positive psychology perspective because it acknowledges both the negative and positive experiences of being human (Joseph & Bryant-Jefferies, 2019). This simple yet foundational question provides the necessary and sufficient conditions for a constructive change, allowing me to offer an empathetic understanding of my client’s internal frame of reference while reflecting back to them their lived experience (Joseph & Bryant-Jefferies, 2019).

This approach, asking how an individual feels in their body, allows for a deeper expression of self and provides an opportunity to passively communicate to the client that this is a safe space and that vulnerability is celebrated and encouraged. Often, when people can more easily identify how they are feeling in their bodies, they better understand the emotions connected to those feelings and how those feelings may be influencing their thinking and choices. This also allows the client to shift their awareness to the body and begin recognizing that their subconscious feeling states can very much influence their conscious choices. This approach also allows the client to keep returning to their body as an anchor, a grounding tool. 

Integrating Identity, Environment, and Values

Understanding my client’s identity and values helps me gain insights into their motivations and behaviors. This ensures that the goals my client seeks to achieve align with their current values and how they see themselves (Joseph & Bryant-Jefferies, 2019). While environmental factors, external variables, contribute to overall stress and the client’s day-to-day wellness. 

References:

Joseph, S., & Bryant-Jefferies, R. (2019). Person-centered coaching psychology. In Palmer, S. & Whybrow, A. (Eds.), The handbook of coaching psychology: A guide for practitioners. (pp. 131-143). Routledge.

Williams, P., & Menendez, D. S. (2015). Becoming a professional life coach: Lessons from the institute for life coach training (2nd ed.). Norton.

— First published for Saybrook University, COA 5628: Evidence-Based Coaching, January 23, 2025.