What is Pure Coaching?
- sharewithjasmine
- Jul 1
- 4 min read
Among the many schools of thought in coaching, the Pure Coaching model is the one recognized by the International Coaching Federation (ICF). It is also the model I practice. Today, I'm writing a quick post to share more about it with everyone.
Although coaching has been a professional field for about the last 25 years, this pure coaching model was applied by Dr. Chérie Carter-Scott in the field of human development as early as 1974, and she is known as the "Mother of Coaching."
The pure coaching model always places the client (coachee) in the central, leading role. The entire pure coaching process is a dialogue where the coachee is empowered to set the destination for the session. The coach simply acts as a partner who listens and asks questions to journey with the coachee to their defined destination. In this model, the coach fully immerses themselves in the coachee's circumstances and life to understand the situation, listening with the deepest empathy to the coachee's thoughts, feelings, and actions. This process reminds me of a technique in Marketing used to find customer insights called "customer immersion."
From this process of immersion, the coach asks open-ended and empowering questions ("powerful questions") to help the coachee connect with their inner self and see things that they would not see on their own. This could include:
Values: "What are my core values?"
Deepest Desires: "What do I desire most, now or in the future?"
Beliefs or Self-Imposed Limits that are preventing them from achieving what they want: "What beliefs are motivating me or holding me back?"
Simply uncovering blind spots: "Is there something I'm not seeing in this situation/decision? Is there a lesson I haven't yet learned?"
A unique aspect of a pure coaching session is that the coachee’s sharing takes up the majority of the time and determines the quality of the session. The coach uses the short remaining time to ask questions or offer a perspective.
This listening and questioning process is entirely free of judgment, personal thoughts, or direction from the coach.
The core competencies required for a pure coach align with the ICF's core competencies. The most important among them are:
Presence: The coach's mind and body are fully aligned—unburdened by their own thoughts, personal perspectives, or judgments. They trust in the coaching process and in their coachee.
Deep Listening: Listening not only to what the coachee says but also hearing what is not said or what they don't realize themselves (this could be emotions or underlying thoughts).
Asking Powerful Questions: This isn't just a skill in itself but rather the result of the previous two competencies combined with communication skills. When a coach is truly present and listening, they can see the right questions to ask that will help the coachee find their own answers.
Absolute presence, deep listening, and the right questions help the coachee discover what they really want, the better version of themselves they want to be, and what they want to contribute during their lifetime.
Once these three questions are clarified, the Coach partners with the coachee to design their unique path to achieve what they desire. During this partnership, the coachee will identify the skills and abilities they need to hone, the beliefs they need to change, and the supportive environment they need to build.
Therefore, a coaching conversation is entirely different from a normal conversation in one key aspect: A coaching conversation has a very clear objective, both for each session and for the entire coaching journey.
A pure coach always trusts that their coachees have the answers to their own problems. They simply need a coach to listen and understand, helping them to see things clearly. They do not give personal advice or consultation.
This point shows that coaching is completely different from mentoring, consulting, or training—fields where you receive a lot of advice from others. When you receive advice, you must understand that it is influenced by that person's mindset, perspective, and life/work experience, and it may not be suitable for you. This makes the pure coaching process a truly creative one. At the end of a session, the person "racking their brain" is usually the coachee, not the coach, so be prepared for that! 😊
The final message I want to leave you with is that in life, everyone needs a partner at some stage. There are many services you can turn to, such as therapy/counseling, mentoring, consulting, or coaching. Be aware that many people out there call themselves coaches; they consult, give advice, and try to solve the problems they think you have. But that is not how the International Coaching Federation (ICF) defines coaching. Therefore, do your research carefully before starting with someone.
And to speak about coaching, I just want to share this quote:
"Coaching works because it's all about you. When you connect with what you really want and why - and take action - magical things can happen." — Emma-Louise Elsey
Wishing you a peaceful weekend, Jasmine.
P.S. In this article, I referenced knowledge from several sources: ICF, LCV, Transformation Academy, ALCN.
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