CPC Coaching Techniques & Communication Skills 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which listening level is characterized by the coach being aware of the client, the environment, and subtle energetic shifts all at once?
- Level 1 — Internal Listening
- Level 2 — Focused Listening
- Level 3 — Global Listening (Correct answer)
- Level 4 — Empathic Listening
Correct answer: Level 3 — Global Listening
Level 3 or Global Listening in the Co-Active model encompasses awareness beyond the client's words to the wider field of information.
Question 2: When a coach uses 'championing,' they are:
- Celebrating past victories with the client
- Firmly believing in the client's potential even when the client doubts themselves (Correct answer)
- Challenging the client to compete with a peer
- Publicly recognizing the client's achievements to a third party
Correct answer: Firmly believing in the client's potential even when the client doubts themselves
Championing means the coach holds unwavering belief in who the client is and what they are capable of, especially at moments of self-doubt.
Question 3: In motivational interviewing adapted for coaching, 'rolling with resistance' means:
- Persistently pushing the client past their stated objections
- Avoiding conflict by changing the subject
- Acknowledging the client's ambivalence without arguing against it (Correct answer)
- Documenting the client's resistance as a coaching barrier
Correct answer: Acknowledging the client's ambivalence without arguing against it
Rolling with resistance means the coach accepts and explores ambivalence rather than confronting it, which reduces defensiveness.
Question 4: A client achieves a major milestone but immediately minimizes it. The most effective coach response is to:
- Agree and quickly move on to the next goal
- Acknowledge the achievement and invite the client to sit with the success (Correct answer)
- Tell the client they should feel proud
- Ask why the client has low self-esteem
Correct answer: Acknowledge the achievement and invite the client to sit with the success
Inviting the client to acknowledge and internalize success builds self-efficacy, a core coaching outcome.
Question 5: The technique of 'powerful questioning' in coaching is best characterized by questions that:
- Can be answered quickly with yes or no
- Evoke exploration, reflection, and new awareness (Correct answer)
- Are challenging enough to create discomfort
- Direct the client toward a solution the coach already sees
Correct answer: Evoke exploration, reflection, and new awareness
Powerful questions are open-ended and designed to expand thinking rather than confirm existing assumptions.
Question 6: A coach working with a client on time management should primarily:
- Teach the client a proven time-management system
- Help the client identify what values and priorities will shape their own approach (Correct answer)
- Provide a weekly schedule template for the client to follow
- Set deadline reminders on behalf of the client
Correct answer: Help the client identify what values and priorities will shape their own approach
Coaching is client-driven; the coach helps the client discover what aligns with their own values rather than prescribing a system.
Question 7: The difference between a coaching 'request' and a coaching 'suggestion' is that a request:
- Comes from the coach's expertise, while a suggestion comes from the client
- Invites a specific committed action, while a suggestion is offered more loosely (Correct answer)
- Is binding, while a suggestion is optional
- Focuses on attitude, while a suggestion focuses on behavior
Correct answer: Invites a specific committed action, while a suggestion is offered more loosely
A coaching request asks the client to commit to a specific action, whereas a suggestion is a lighter invitation with no expectation.
CPC Coaching Techniques & Communication Skills 3
Which listening level is characterized by the coach being aware of the client, the environment, and subtle energetic shifts all at once?