Positive psychology coaching

1. Introduction

Version followed: the five-phase positive psychological coaching (PPC) process framework (three continuous processes run alongside it) from van Zyl, Roll, Stander & Richter (2020, Frontiers in Psychology). The phases are filled with the tools and interventions that Boniwell & Kauffman describe (2017 French adaptation of their PPC chapter) and with Biswas-Diener, Kashdan & Minhas's (2011) strengths-development approach. Biswas-Diener & Dean (2007) and Biswas-Diener (2010) are founding practitioner books, but only their publisher tables of contents are drawn on, so no procedure here is attributed to their chapter content unless a secondary source cites it [uncertain].

Positive psychology coaching is an approach, not one manualised method. It is coaching (goal-focused, collaborative, for people who are not severely impaired) that draws its tools from research in positive psychology: character strengths, positive emotions, hope, goal theory, well-being and meaning. The core idea of change: people develop faster by identifying, using, regulating and building their strengths and resources than by repairing deficits alone. Positive states (positive emotion, hope, self-efficacy) widen thinking and build resources. A vivid picture of the client's "best possible self" turns into strength-based goals that are tracked over time [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; Boniwell & Kauffman 2017]. Biswas-Diener and Dean frame it as a strengths-based alternative to a medical model, written partly for mental-health practitioners who want to add coaching to their work [source: Wiley page for Biswas-Diener & Dean 2007].

For a psychotherapist: PPC is a separate service with its own contract. It is not a psychotherapy protocol. Section 3 and the referral material in Section 5 set out how to keep the two apart [synthesis].

2. Framework

[source: van Zyl et al. 2020 for phases and continuous processes; session data from Theeboom et al. 2014 as cited there; transition criteria are synthesis]

Format. One-to-one, short to medium term, face-to-face or remote, sometimes in groups or teams. The review found no agreed number or length of sessions. A meta-analysis it cites suggests that five or more sessions of at least 45 minutes over about six months help most with coping and goal-directed self-regulation, and that four or fewer may be enough for work attitudes or specific skills. Many single exercises are done as homework over one to four weeks [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].

Phase 1: Creating the relationship. Goals: build rapport; clarify what the client and any sponsors (employer, HR) expect; understand the client's environment; agree scope, confidentiality and its limits. Exit criteria [synthesis]: a signed coaching agreement that states coaching is not therapy; agreed outcomes; the client is screened as suitable (no severe psychopathology, see 5.1).

Phase 2: Strengths profiling and feedback. Goals: identify strengths with psychometric tools, interviews and self-reflection; give constructive feedback; assess well-being and quality of life as a baseline. Exit criteria [synthesis]: the client can name and give examples of a few core strengths in their own words, and you have baseline well-being data.

Phase 3: Developing an ideal vision. Goal: build a "best possible self" picture that stretches the client's current limits. Exit criteria [synthesis]: a concrete, motivating vision that the client owns and can describe in sensory and behavioural terms.

Phase 4: Strength-centred goal setting, strategy and execution. Goals: a gap analysis between now and the vision; SMART goals; an implementation plan that uses strengths; tracking of execution. Usually the longest phase. Exit criteria [synthesis]: goals met or revised, and the client can keep the plan going on their own.

Phase 5: Concluding and re-contracting. Goals: compare outcomes with the original objectives (repeat measures, possibly 360 feedback or a portfolio of evidence), then end or renegotiate a new contract.

Continuous processes across all phases:

Learning transfer: practice between sessions, homework, self-administered positive psychology activities.
Action tracking and continuous evaluation: goal and well-being monitoring, about monthly.
Empowerment: reframing and reinforcement.

Session template inside phases: Boniwell & Kauffman use the GROW sequence (Goal, Reality, Options, Will/Way) to structure a session. They also attend to the client's stage of change (Prochaska) [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017]. A typical session [synthesis]: review homework and tracking → set the session goal → explore reality and resources with a strengths lens → generate options → agree a strength-based action and homework.

3. Guiding principles

[source: the eight PPC components from van Zyl et al. 2020 unless marked; stance items from van Zyl et al. and Boniwell & Kauffman 2017]

Coach relatively well-adjusted clients. PPC is for people without severe psychopathology. In practice, screen at intake and refer when clinical problems dominate (see 5.1).
Develop strengths rather than fix weaknesses. In practice, spend most session time on what works. Use weaknesses only when they block a goal.
Keep a balanced view of strengths and development areas. In practice, do not ignore problems. Name development areas, and frame them in proportion to strengths. (The review cites the Fredrickson & Losada 3:1 positivity ratio. That ratio has been publicly challenged and the reviewers did not resolve this, so treat any exact ratio as [uncertain] and use "mostly positive, honestly balanced" as the working rule [synthesis].)
Develop the whole person. In practice, map work, family, health and other life domains, because growth in one domain affects the others.
People have an inherent capacity to grow (growth mindset). In practice, describe strengths as capacities that can be developed, not fixed labels [also Biswas-Diener et al. 2011].
The client owns their growth. In practice, the client chooses goals and actions. The coach supplies structure, resources and support, and does not prescribe.
An ideal-self vision drives goals. In practice, every goal should trace back to the client's best-possible-self vision and be written in SMART form.
Listen actively and offer continuous support, listening especially for strengths. In practice, reflect back strengths the client shows but has not named.
Be collaborative, Socratic and facilitative. In practice, ask open questions rather than give advice. The coach facilitates; the coach is not the expert on the client's life.
Unconditional positive regard, empathy, authenticity, non-judgement. In practice, the same relational conditions as person-centred work apply.
Curiosity about what goes right. In practice, ask what worked, what the client enjoys and what they value. Help clients tell stories in which they are survivors, not victims.
Hold positive expectations of the client. In practice, sincerely believe in their potential, because expectations shape performance [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Support autonomy, competence and relatedness (self-determination theory). In practice, the client decides, actions build on strengths, and the relationship is empathic [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Respect context in strengths use. In practice, ask when to use a strength more and when to use it less, not only "use it more". Wisdom regulates the other strengths [source: Biswas-Diener et al. 2011].
Fit the intervention to the person. In practice, an unsuitable technique can make a person's state worse, so choose and adapt to the individual [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Never deny or minimise negative experience. In practice, acknowledge what went badly before you turn to what went well [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Be a "local scientist". In practice, measure outcomes, gather honest client feedback (anonymously if possible) and adapt [source: Biswas-Diener et al. 2011].
Stay inside the coaching scope. In practice, coaching is not counselling, psychotherapy or medical intervention. Work within your competence, refer when needed, and use supervision [source: Global Code of Ethics (EMCC/AC), ICF referral guidelines].

4. Intervention inventory

The items are grouped by the phase where they are mainly used. Most can be used in any phase. All example language is illustrative unless quoted. Copyrighted instruments (VIA, CliftonStrengths/StrengthsFinder, Realise2) are named, and their items are not reproduced.

4.1 Contracting and relationship building (Phase 1)

Purpose: set expectations, scope and confidentiality; build rapport; screen for suitability [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; ICF referral guidelines; Global Code of Ethics].
Steps: (1) Explain what coaching is and is not, how you work, fees and duration, and your supervision arrangement. (2) Put in writing that coaching is not therapy and that you will suggest other help if it seems needed (the ICF guide offers a sample clause to this effect). (3) State the limits of confidentiality, such as danger to self or others and illegality, and get agreement. (4) If there is a sponsor, run a three-way meeting on goals and on what will be reported back. (5) Map the client's context: work, family, health, demands. (6) Screen lightly for current mental-health treatment, recent crises and impaired functioning [synthesis on the screening content].
Example language (illustrative): "Coaching looks forward. We'll work on goals you choose and build on what already works for you. It isn't therapy. If something comes up that would be better served by another kind of help, I'll tell you, and we'll talk it through together."
Watch for: sponsor goals that conflict with the client's; a client who arrives mainly to process distress or a recent trauma (consider whether therapy is the better fit).

4.2 Psychometric strengths profiling and feedback (Phase 2)

Purpose: give the client a shared language for their strengths and a starting point for goal work [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Instruments named in the sources: the VIA Inventory of Strengths (24 character strengths under six virtues; free online; gives top "signature" strengths), Realise2, StrengthsFinder 2.0, and assessment-centre style simulations. Boniwell & Kauffman describe the VIA-IS as 240 items. Shorter current versions exist, so check the current version on the publisher's site [uncertain].
Steps: (1) The client completes the measure before the session. (2) In session, look at the top strengths first. (3) For each one, ask for a recent concrete example. (4) Ask which results feel most "like me" and which feel surprising. (5) Agree two or three strengths to work with. (6) Give constructive feedback that connects strengths to the coaching goal [steps 2–6 synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Of your top five, which one feels most like the real you? When did you last use it, and what was that like?"
Watch for: treating the results as fixed labels or a "top five" list cut off from context. Biswas-Diener et al. warn that labelling without a growth mindset can stall development. Present strengths as potentials that can be developed [source: Biswas-Diener et al. 2011]. It is working when the client starts to notice their strengths in daily events without prompting.

4.3 Strengths-based interviewing, guided reflection and strengths cards (Phase 2)

Purpose: find strengths through stories of success, as an alternative or complement to questionnaires [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 (strengths cards, Boniwell 2015); Cook, ICF Coaching World].
Steps: (1) Ask for two or three peak or successful episodes. (2) Have the client tell each one in detail: what they did, thought and felt. (3) Name the strengths you hear and check them with the client. (4) Optional: use strengths cards so the client sorts which strengths showed up in the success. (5) Cook's variant: take one top strength, list past situations where it helped move a difficult situation forward, and keep the list to draw on in future challenges.
Example language (illustrative): "Tell me about a time you were at your best at work. Walk me through it step by step." … "I noticed persistence and a lot of curiosity in that story. Does that fit?"
Watch for: energy, fluency and animation while telling the story. These are cues that a strength is genuine [synthesis]. Clients may brush strengths aside as "just normal".

4.4 Strength-spotting questions

Purpose: deepen awareness of how a strength works in practice [source: Biswas-Diener 2010 as cited in Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Steps: ask in turn: in which situations the strength appeared; what stops the client using it; what they could change to use it more; how it helped them reach a goal; when combining two strengths gave a better result.
Example language (illustrative): "What tends to get in the way of you using your humour at work?" "When have your organisation and your kindness worked together?"
Watch for: answers that stay abstract. Press gently for specific episodes [synthesis].

4.5 Strengths development: proficiency, frequency and regulation

Purpose: go beyond "identify and use" to skilful, context-sensitive use of strengths [source: Biswas-Diener, Kashdan & Minhas 2011].
Steps: (1) For a chosen strength, review three dimensions: proficiency (getting better at it), frequency (using it more often where it fits) and regulation (knowing when and how much). (2) Look at situations where the strength helped and where it may have been too much. (3) Strengths tilt: link the strength to the client's values and interests. (4) Constellations: look at how strengths combine, rather than at single strengths. The authors' case shows two strengths that seemed contradictory combining into one effective style. (5) Strengths blindness: look for strengths the client takes for granted. (6) Strengths sensitivity: prepare the client for being hard on themselves when they fail or are criticised in a strength area. (7) Outside-in view: ask how their use of the strength affects other people, and gather feedback. (8) Talk openly about possible downsides and how you will handle them together.
Example language: the authors suggest asking how the client would know when to use a strength more and when to use it less, and what impact their strength use has on others (paraphrased). Illustrative: "Your directness got the project moving. Where might it have cost you goodwill?"
Watch for: overuse (applying a strength regardless of what is wise) and social costs. It is working when the client describes adjusting a strength to the situation, not only using more of it.

4.6 Well-being and life-domain assessment (Phases 2 and 5)

Purpose: get a baseline and track progress; widen the focus beyond the presenting goal [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Tools named: validated scales for life satisfaction, meaning in life, optimism, hope, self-efficacy and emotions (via Lopez & Snyder 2003); Boniwell's integrated well-being dashboard, which maps hedonic and eudaimonic well-being (overall life rating, satisfaction with health, work and relationships, current positive and negative emotions); the Wheel of Life; Frisch's Five Paths to Happiness / CASIO exercise from quality-of-life therapy and coaching. (The expansion of the CASIO acronym is [uncertain].)
Steps: (1) Give the measures at intake. (2) Go through the profile with the client. Boniwell's follow-up questions ask which indicator feels most relevant today and what question the client would ask themselves to raise their happiness (paraphrased). (3) Choose a domain to target. (4) Repeat the measures about monthly and at the end.
Example language (illustrative): "Looking at this picture, which part of your life is asking for attention right now?"
Watch for: very low scores, or any item showing hopelessness or thoughts of death. These call for a clinical conversation and possible referral (5.1), not coaching exercises [synthesis].

4.7 Positive diagnosis (Biswas-Diener 2010)

Purpose: a structured intake assessment that focuses on strengths, values, future orientation and satisfaction, not on symptoms [source: Wiley description of Biswas-Diener 2010, chapters 5–6 "Positive Diagnosis" and "Positive Assessment"].
Steps: the chapter itself is not drawn on here [uncertain]. A workable outline built from the four named areas [synthesis]: ask about (1) strengths in use now, (2) core values and whether current life reflects them, (3) hopes and expectations for the future, and (4) satisfaction across domains. Then summarise these back as a profile of resources to draw on.
Example language (illustrative): "What matters most to you, and where is your life already in line with that?"
Watch for: a future orientation that is flat or hopeless. This is a possible clinical flag (5.1).

4.8 Best possible self / ideal-self vision (Phase 3)

Purpose: build an energising, stretching vision that goals can be derived from. It raises optimism and clarifies priorities [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Sheldon & Lyubomirsky 2006].
Steps: (1) Ask the client to imagine a future in which things have gone as well as they realistically could and their goals have been reached. (2) The client writes about it in detail across life domains. Boniwell & Kauffman describe repeating this as homework over about four weeks and then discussing it. (3) In session, pull out themes, values and the strengths the client uses in that future. (4) Check the vision stretches current limits but still feels motivating. (5) Carry it into the gap analysis (4.12).
Example language (illustrative): "Picture yourself three years from now, after things have gone really well. What are you doing on an ordinary Tuesday? Who's around you? What are you proud of?"
Watch for: visions borrowed from other people's expectations ("should" language); distress when the gap to the vision feels too large. Normalise this and shrink the time frame if needed [synthesis].

4.9 Appreciative Inquiry 4-D cycle (Phases 3 and 4)

Purpose: move from what works to a designed future. Named in PPC models for individuals and teams [source: van Zyl et al. 2020, citing Gordon 2016; Gordon & Gucciardi 2011; Stander 2016].
Steps: Discovery: explore peak experiences and what gives life to the person or team. Dream: imagine what could be. Design: decide what should be, including structures and plans. Destiny: commit, act and sustain the change, with hope as a target in this phase.
Example language (illustrative): Discovery: "When has this team worked at its best?" Design: "What would need to be in place for that to happen every week?"
Watch for: skipping straight to Design without enough Discovery, which makes plans less grounded in real strengths [synthesis].

4.10 SOAR framework

Purpose: a strengths-based alternative to SWOT for strategic or career planning [source: van Zyl et al. 2020, citing Cole & Stavros 2019].
Steps: look in turn at Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations and Results. (The expansion is standard in the SOAR literature but was not shown in the review [uncertain].) Use each area to frame a goal and how it will be measured [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "What results would tell you this aspiration is actually happening?"

4.11 Pleasure–engagement–meaning three-question process

Purpose: clarify direction and support big decisions [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Ben-Shahar 2007, after Seligman 2002].
Steps: (1) Ask what gives the client pleasure. (2) Ask where they are engaged and using their strengths. (3) Ask what gives their life meaning. (4) Look for where the three answers overlap. (5) Use the overlap to weigh options. Values prompts can follow: what they aspire to and why, what really matters, whether their work benefits them and their organisation, and whether they are involved in community-oriented work.
Example language (illustrative): "Of the three lists, where do they overlap? What would a job or week built around that overlap look like?"
Watch for: an empty "pleasure" list or a lasting loss of interest. This may point to depression, not a coaching gap (5.1) [synthesis].

4.12 Gap analysis, SMART goals and a strength-based implementation plan (Phase 4)

Purpose: turn the vision into action [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Latham 2000].
Steps: (1) Compare the vision with the current state, domain by domain. (2) Write specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, time-bound goals. Set them demanding but just above current level, and build them on strengths. (3) For each goal, name the strength(s) the client will use and the first concrete step. (4) Agree how progress will be tracked (about monthly). (5) For goals imposed by others, Boniwell & Kauffman suggest reframing the goal, proposing alternatives, or examining the consequences of refusing it.
Example language (illustrative): "Which of your strengths makes this goal more doable for you than for someone else?"
Watch for: too many goals; goals with no visible link to strengths; avoidance-framed goals ("stop being…"). Rephrase these as approach goals [synthesis].

4.13 GROW session structure

Purpose: a reliable shape for each session [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Whitmore 2002].
Steps: Goal for the session and overall; Reality: circumstances, resources and obstacles, with strengths and past successes included as resources [PPC emphasis per Boniwell & Kauffman]; Options; Will/Way: motivation and concrete next steps.
Example language (illustrative): "What would make today's hour really useful?" … "What resources, including your own strengths, do you already have for this?"

4.14 Strengths bridges

Purpose: link signature strengths to a desired outcome as concrete routes. This is the authors' own practice tool [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017].
Steps: (1) The client pictures the desired outcome on the far side of a river. (2) Using the most relevant top strength first, they build a "bridge": a route or roadmap that uses that strength to reach the outcome. (3) Repeat with each of the top five strengths until there are five bridges. (4) Choose the most promising bridge or combine them.
Example language (illustrative): "If creativity were the only bridge across, how would you get there? Now try the bridge made of persistence."
Watch for: bridges that are vague. Ask for the first plank, the first step this week [synthesis].

4.15 Hope coaching: pathways (waypower) and agency (willpower)

Purpose: raise goal-directed hope by building several routes and the motivation to use them [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Snyder; Biswas-Diener 2010 includes a decision tree based on hope theory [uncertain]].
Steps: (1) Clarify the goal. (2) Generate several pathways, not only one, because the first route may fail. (3) Identify likely obstacles and a backup path for each [synthesis]. (4) Strengthen agency by connecting to reasons, past successes and strengths. (5) When the client is blocked, decide with them whether they need a new pathway, more agency, or a revised goal (goal revision is a topic of Biswas-Diener 2010 per its publisher description).
Example language (illustrative): "If that route closed tomorrow, what would plan B be? And plan C?"
Watch for: many pathways but no energy (an agency deficit), or energy but only one rigid path (a pathways deficit).

4.16 Self-efficacy building

Purpose: increase confidence for specific actions [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Bandura and Maddux].
Steps: (1) Design early, achievable successes (mastery). (2) Use vicarious experience: models similar to the client who succeeded. (3) Use imagined experience: the client vividly rehearses acting effectively. (4) Treat verbal persuasion as weak on its own. Pair encouragement with actual experience.
Example language (illustrative): "Who do you know, a lot like you, who has pulled this off? What did they do first?"

4.17 Matching to stage of change

Purpose: pace challenge and support to the client's readiness [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Prochaska et al. 1994].
Steps: estimate the stage (precontemplation, contemplation/clear vision, preparation, action, maintenance). Early stages: explore and use the vision work. Preparation: plan. Action: track and reinforce. Maintenance: relapse planning and consolidation [stage-specific tactics synthesis].
Watch for: pushing action plans on a client who is still ambivalent.

4.18 Three good things ("what went well") and its variants

Purpose: shift attention towards positive events and build positive emotion; a standard learning-transfer activity [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Seligman et al. 2005; Cook, ICF Coaching World].
Steps: (1) Each evening for one week, the client writes three things that went well that day. (2) Bad-day variant: name three good things and what the client themselves did to make them happen. (3) Variant for clients who ruminate: ask "When was I at my best today?" (4) Review in session: patterns, the client's own part in good events, and the strengths involved.
Example language (illustrative): "Before bed, jot down three things that went well, however small, and what you did to help them happen."
Watch for: early difficulty finding three items is common and tends to ease within the week [Cook]. Do not use it to deny or minimise real difficulties [Boniwell & Kauffman]. A client who still cannot find anything after a week may need a clinical check (5.1) [synthesis].

4.19 Using a signature strength in a new way

Purpose: broaden how a strength is used and raise engagement [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Seligman et al. 2005].
Steps: (1) Choose a signature strength and note where it is already used. (2) Brainstorm new uses, including for a current difficulty such as public-speaking nerves. (3) Use it in a new way every day for one week. (4) Debrief what happened and the effect on others (link to 4.5 regulation).
Example language: the authors' case question asked how the client could use the strength with the people she is responsible for, including herself (paraphrased). In that case it helped an executive coach stop over-giving to colleagues.
Watch for: novelty fading by mid-week. Agree daily cues in advance [synthesis].

4.20 Gratitude visit and its workplace adaptation

Purpose: build gratitude and relationships; a named self-administered PPC activity [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Seligman 2002 and Emmons; van Zyl et al. 2020].
Steps: (1) Choose someone the client is grateful to and has not properly thanked. (2) Write a letter saying specifically what the person did and how it affected the client's life. (3) Arrange a meeting. (4) Read the letter to them. (5) Prepare for this in session beforehand and debrief afterwards. Workplace adaptation: a manager irritated with an employee first lists that employee's notable contributions before addressing the issue. This calms the anger and supports a fairer resolution.
Example language (illustrative): "Who has made a real difference to you that you've never fully thanked? What exactly did they do?"
Watch for: relationships where contact could be unsafe or unwelcome. In that case write the letter without delivering it [synthesis]. Grief reactions if the person has died.

4.21 Savouring

Purpose: deliberately notice, prolong and appreciate positive experiences; close to mindfulness [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Bryant & Veroff 2007].
Steps [details synthesis]: (1) Pick one ordinary daily pleasure. (2) Slow down and attend to it with the senses. (3) Notice and name the feeling. (4) Optionally share it with someone or recall it later. (5) Review in session.
Example language (illustrative): "This week, choose one moment a day, a coffee or a walk, and give it your full attention for a minute longer than usual."

4.22 Acts of kindness

Purpose: strengthen relatedness and positive emotion, individually or in teams [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017 citing Lyubomirsky 2008; Passmore & Oades technique series title "Random acts of kindness and consistent acts of kindness and empathy"].
Steps [synthesis; the Passmore & Oades paper is not drawn on]: plan a set of kind acts (for example several on one chosen day), carry them out, note your own and others' reactions, and debrief. Consider making them consistent rather than only random.
Watch for: clients who already over-give. For them, regulating kindness (4.5) may matter more than doing more of it.

4.23 Active constructive responding (ACR)

Purpose: a listening and feedback style that combines active listening with enthusiastic, constructive responses to good news. It shows empathy and builds positive self-regard. Usable by the coach and teachable to clients for their relationships [source: Passmore & Oades, Coaching Psychologist technique series, abstract only; full text [uncertain]].
Steps [synthesis]: (1) When the client, or someone in the client's life, shares good news, respond with genuine interest and energy. (2) Ask questions that let the person relive it (what happened, how it felt, what it means). (3) Avoid passive, dismissive or deflating replies. (4) As homework, the client practises with one or two people and notes their reactions.
Example language (illustrative): "That's great news. How did you hear? What was the moment like?"
Watch for: responses that sound forced. Genuineness matters more than technique.

4.24 Learning transfer (continuous)

Purpose: carry change from sessions into daily life [source: van Zyl et al. 2020].
Steps: agree between-session practice in every session (a strength experiment, an activity from 4.18–4.23, or a goal step); check it at the start of the next session; adjust. Boniwell & Kauffman note that validated activities can also be used without a coach.
Watch for: homework that is not done (5.4).

4.25 Action tracking and continuous evaluation (continuous)

Purpose: keep goals and well-being visible [source: van Zyl et al. 2020; Biswas-Diener et al. 2011 on "local scientist" data].
Steps: monthly goal-progress ratings and repeat well-being measures; review trends with the client; revise goals or methods if progress stalls; ask for honest, ideally anonymous, end-of-engagement feedback.
Watch for: well-being scores falling while goal progress rises, which may mean strain or burnout [synthesis].

4.26 Empowerment: reframing and reinforcement (continuous)

Purpose: strengthen ownership and a growth narrative [source: van Zyl et al. 2020 (process named); content synthesis].
Steps: reflect back the client's agency in successes; reframe setbacks as information and as chances to use a strength; reinforce effort as well as outcome; support survivor-not-victim retelling of difficulties.
Example language (illustrative): "That didn't go to plan, and you still came back with three options. That's your resourcefulness at work."
Watch for: reframing that comes too fast and invalidates the client. Acknowledge first.

4.27 Team and group applications

Purpose: help teams notice and use positive emotions and shared strengths for relationships and problem solving [source: Boniwell & Kauffman 2017; van Zyl et al. 2020 on group coaching].
Steps [synthesis]: team strengths mapping (shared profiles), Appreciative Inquiry (4.9), team acts of kindness, ACR norms, and review of what the team does when it works at its best.
Watch for: confidentiality of individual profiles, and a sponsor using strength results for selection without consent.

4.28 Concluding and re-contracting (Phase 5)

Purpose: evaluate, consolidate and close well [source: van Zyl et al. 2020].
Steps: (1) Repeat the baseline measures. (2) Review goals against the original objectives, possibly with 360-degree feedback or a portfolio of evidence. (3) Have the client name the strengths and strategies they will keep using. (4) Plan for setbacks [synthesis]. (5) End, or agree a new contract with new objectives.
Example language (illustrative): "Looking back at where you started, what are you most proud of, and what will you keep doing without me?"

5. Handling problems

5.1 The coaching–psychotherapy boundary and when to refer

How the bodies and authors draw the boundary

ICF: Coaching focuses on vision, success, the present and the future, and usually aims at performance, learning or development with well-functioning people. Therapy focuses on psychopathology, emotions, and the past as a way to understand the present; it addresses deep-seated emotional issues, healing and trauma recovery. A coach does not diagnose or treat. The coach refers when a need goes beyond their qualifications, experience or contract. The guide's analogy: an athletic trainer who sends an injured athlete to the team doctor. ICF competencies and Code require coaches to tell coaching apart from other support professions, to know when to refer, and to suggest other professionals when a client would be better served [source: Hullinger & DiGirolamo 2018, ICF].
EMCC / AC Global Code of Ethics: coaching "is not counselling, psychotherapy or medical intervention". Members work within the limits of their competence, refer to a more suitably qualified practitioner where appropriate, encourage ending the relationship if the client would be better served by another form of help, state the limits of confidentiality (such as danger to self or others), follow safeguarding law, and use supervision [source: Global Code of Ethics v4, 2021/2025]. (The copy cited did not list its signatories. That EMCC and the Association for Coaching co-sign it is based on search listings, not the document itself [uncertain].)
PPC authors: PPC is for relatively well-adjusted clients without severe psychopathology. Clients with problems such as depression or anxiety gain little from coaching and should be referred to counselling or therapy. Therapy aims to restore functioning; coaching aims to optimise it [source: van Zyl et al. 2020 citing Seligman and Green & Palmer]. Boniwell & Kauffman warn that an unsuitable technique can worsen a person's state.

Concrete signs a coachee needs clinical referral [source: ICF guidelines unless marked]

Daily functioning impaired for weeks (self-care, work, home, leisure, social life). ICF calls this the most important indicator.
No progress after a reasonable time because of an underlying issue; the same past issues recurring; a stuck pattern or repeated victim framing; continuing effects of trauma.
A need to process feelings endlessly in sessions without gaining insight; self-defeating behaviour.
Distress signs: marked mood change (irritability, anger, anxiety, sadness), declining performance, withdrawal, changes in weight, appearance or hygiene, disturbed sleep.
Possible depression: persistent sadness, emptiness, hopelessness or loss of interest for more than two weeks; worthlessness; thoughts of death. In PPC terms, also an inability to produce any "good things", an empty pleasure list (4.11), or a flat future orientation (4.7) [PPC-specific signs synthesis].
Possible anxiety disorder: excessive, hard-to-control worry most days, with physical symptoms.
Possible eating disorder: life organised around food, cutting out food groups without medical reason, obsessive thoughts about food.
Possible trauma-related disorder: intrusions, nightmares or flashbacks, avoidance, hypervigilance, persisting for a month or more after an event.
Possible substance problem: rising tolerance, daily reliance, secrecy, neglected obligations, inability to stop.
Suicide warning signs: hopelessness, no reason to live, giving possessions away, making a will, seeking means, reckless behaviour, withdrawal, talk of rage or revenge. These trigger emergency procedures.
Thought disorder: paranoia, delusions, hallucinations, disorganised speech.
Signals in the coach: feeling responsible for the client, pressure to solve their problems, dread before sessions, the client becoming over-dependent.
ICF stresses these are for recognition, not diagnosis. Look at clusters of signs, and at their duration, frequency and intensity.

How to refer [source: ICF guidelines]

Meet privately and unhurried. Open with concern for the client's wellbeing, in a calm, direct, hopeful and non-judgemental tone.
Name the specific behaviours or changes you have noticed. Ask open questions, listen, allow silence.
Ask how the client feels about the suggestion. Give specific resources; keep a list of therapists and their specialties. Offer to help make the appointment.
Expect reluctance, often from stigma, fear of looking weak, cost or past bad experiences. Normalise therapy and frame help-seeking as a strength. Respect the client's choice unless there is risk to self or others. Raise it again if the issue keeps coming back.
Decide about coaching: run it alongside therapy if the client is functioning but stuck, or pause it until the issue is addressed. Revisit the agreement if the client declines and the issue keeps blocking the work.
Imminent danger: contact emergency services, stay with the person, follow lethal-means guidance (ask about access to means and arrange for them to be removed or held safely), and use crisis lines.

Example language (illustrative): "I've noticed over the last few sessions that you've been sleeping badly and that things you used to enjoy feel flat. I care about how you're doing, and I think talking with a therapist could really help alongside, or before, our coaching. How does that sound to you?"

If you are a psychotherapist offering PPC [synthesis]: keep separate contracts, records and fees for coaching and therapy. Do not switch an existing therapy client into "coaching" to avoid clinical obligations; your clinical duties of care and your licensing body's rules still apply. If clinical issues come up in a coaching client, decide openly with the client whether to refer them to a colleague or to re-contract as therapy, considering dual-relationship rules. Raise it in supervision.

5.2 Stuck clients and stalled goals

Go back to the vision (4.8): is the goal still the client's own? [synthesis]
Diagnose with hope theory (4.15): no pathway, no agency, or a goal that needs revising.
Check readiness (4.17). If the client is ambivalent, explore instead of planning.
Move from "use more" to regulation (4.5): a strength may be overused in this context.
If being stuck reflects recurring past patterns or trauma, see 5.1 [ICF].

5.3 Resistance to the positive focus ("this feels fake")

Acknowledge the difficulty first. Never deny or minimise negative experience [Boniwell & Kauffman]. Name development areas honestly within a balanced view [van Zyl et al.].
Present strengths as capacities that can be developed, not flattery [Biswas-Diener et al. 2011].
Use the bad-day variant of three good things or the "best today" question, not forced cheerfulness [Boniwell & Kauffman].
Ask for evidence (specific episodes) rather than asserting strengths [synthesis].
Cultural fit: some clients find self-praise or loud enthusiasm uncomfortable. Adapt the language, for example "what worked" instead of "what you are great at" [synthesis].

5.4 Non-adherence to between-session activities

Co-design the activity and pick a fit with the person; validated activities can be swapped [Boniwell & Kauffman: fit matters].
Make it smaller, cued and time-limited (for example one week). Check it at the start of every session [synthesis].
Treat non-completion as data: on obstacles, on goal ownership, on wellbeing [synthesis].

5.5 Overwhelm and emotional surfacing in session

If strong emotion or traumatic material comes up, slow down, validate, and ground in the present [synthesis].
Do not start memory processing or trauma work under a coaching contract. Note the indicators in 5.1 and discuss referral [ICF; Global Code].
When a stretching vision feels overwhelming, shorten the time horizon and pick one strength and one step [synthesis].

5.6 Ruptures in the coaching relationship

Typical triggers: the coach being too upbeat about a real problem; pushing an action plan too early; sponsor agendas [synthesis].
Respond by naming it, asking for the client's view, owning your part, and re-contracting on focus or pace [synthesis; the relationship is central to change per Boniwell & Kauffman].
Coach-side warning signs (over-responsibility, dread, dependency) belong in supervision [ICF; Global Code].

5.7 Modality-specific difficulties

Labelling and stagnation after strengths feedback: frame strengths as potentials, look at constellations, avoid fixed "top 5" lists [Biswas-Diener et al. 2011].
Strengths overuse and social costs: run the outside-in review (4.5) and gather feedback.
Strengths sensitivity: a client may be harsh on themselves after criticism in their "best" area; prepare them and normalise this [Biswas-Diener et al. 2011].
Positivity-ratio dogma: do not hold clients to exact numerical ratios. The 3:1 figure cited in the literature is contested [uncertain]; aim for an honest balance [synthesis].
Sponsor or organisation misuse: agree in writing what is reported. Do not share individual strength or well-being profiles without consent [Global Code on confidentiality; detail synthesis].
Gratitude visit risks: past relationships may be unsafe or the person may have died; offer the unsent-letter option [synthesis].

Sources

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