Demonstrating the first 4 competencies at an ACC level

3. Establishes and Maintains Agreements

At Navgati, we refer to this competency as contracting . This begins by inviting the client to identify the change they want to bring about. Clients often describe their situation in terms of a problem: “I'm having difficulties with my manager” or “I'm feeling stressed.” The coach's role is to help them shift from describing the problem to identifying the outcome they want.

Questions such as “How would you like to be instead?”, “What would a successful change look like?” or “How would you like to respond differently?” all serve this purpose. There is no prescribed way of asking the question. What matters is helping the client move from problem orientation to solution orientation.

Once the broader goal is clear, the next step is to agree on the outcome for the current coaching session. What would make this conversation valuable? What would help the client move one step closer to their larger goal? This shared understanding becomes the foundation for the session.

Contracting does not end there. Throughout the conversation, continue to show curiosity about the client's relationship with their goal. Explore why it matters, what it means to them and what might be getting in the way. Finally, keep returning to the agreement you created together. If the conversation begins to drift, check in with the client and invite them to decide whether to continue on the new path or return to the original focus.

• Did you explore the client's topic with the client?
• Did you attempt to reach an agreement on what the client wants to accomplish as a session outcome?
• Did you explore the significance of the coaching outcome to the client?
• Did you stay with the client’s agenda throughout the session?

4. Cultivates Trust and Safety

One of the most important aspects of coaching is creating an environment where clients feel safe enough to explore thoughts they may not be comfortable sharing elsewhere. When clients experience that sense of safety, they are more willing to reflect honestly, examine difficult situations and discover new perspectives. Ways to do it: 

• Acknowledge what the client is doing well. One of the simplest ways to build trust is to acknowledge the client's insights, strengths and self-awareness as they emerge during the conversation.
  If a client says, “It was a difficult fight with my sister. She said some awful things, but I also wasn't very polite when I brought up the issue,” you might respond by acknowledging their willingness to recognise their own contribution to the conflict.  Similarly, if a client shares that they stood up for a colleague who was being treated unfairly, acknowledging the courage that took reinforces an important strength the client may not yet fully recognise.
  These acknowledgements are not about offering praise for its own sake or using standard phrases. They should arise naturally from genuine empathy and appreciation for what the client is revealing about themselves.
• Show genuine interest, not judgement . Trust grows when clients sense that you are genuinely interested in understanding their experience. This means exploring their thoughts, feelings, beliefs and concerns with curiosity rather than judgement. The way questions are asked matters just as much as the questions themselves. Clients should feel that they are being invited to explore their experience, not defend it.
  Imagine a client says, “I wasn't able to follow through on the actions I committed to after our last session.”
  A judgemental response might sound like, “Why weren't you able to do that?” or “How do you expect coaching to work if you're not putting in the effort?” Although these are framed as questions, they communicate criticism rather than curiosity.
• Show respect for the client’s situation/way of thinking/feeling through empathy: At the ACC level, empathy is expressed in the context of the challenge the client brings to the session.
  For example, if a client who wants to plan the next week says they have been working twelve-hour days to meet an important deadline and are completely exhausted, a response such as, “That sounds really intense. I can hear how demanding this project has been for you. What might make the next few days a little easier?” demonstrates empathy while staying connected to the client's immediate concern.
  As coaches develop towards the PCC and MCC levels, their empathy often extends beyond the presenting issue to a deeper exploration of the client's overall experience. However, for the ACC assessment, it is entirely appropriate to express support within the context of the challenge the client has chosen to explore.