What are some best practices for maintaining professional boundaries and integrity in career coaching?

From my experience, I have come realize that one for the best ways to establish trust with clients is through being genuine, authentic, and providing a safe space for communication. Just as importantly is truly getting to know them. What exactly do I mean by a safe space? Actually communicating this with your clients is what I see take the 1:1 coaching experience to another level where true discovery and exploration happens with the only boundary being time—the literal time allotted per session. I try to communicate something to affect of, “this is a safe space so please feel free to express anything that’s on your mind during our calls, no matter where you’re at with your career journey, I meet you there.”

As a coach you earn trust through creating a safe space for the client, never judging, and being their greatest supporter and champion. Want their goals just as much or more than the client.

You’re not the expert in the room. The client is, and even then they may need to be guided towards challenging beliefs. Even if you know something and you’re asked for advice, it’s still an opinion. Always preface your remarks and ask permission.

In regards to accountability. The coach doesn’t force or pressure a client to do anything that the client doesn’t want to do. The coach only highlights that this was something the client said they wanted to do, check for alignment, interest, potentially new strategies and see where the conversation goes.

In my experience, clients don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. It’s important to always show examples of how you hold yourself accountable along with what has proven to be successful for clients you’ve worked with. Yes, it is important not to promise or guarantee but instead motivate! Speak directly to their unique strengths to naturally ignite their goals into action. Being a motivational coach is about also being an authentic accountability partner. As long as they know you have their back, you communicate that you want the best for them, and they feel how much you want to see them succeed—it’s amazing how much that can contribute to their journey in a powerful way.

Set expectations and standards during the sales call and onboarding. Then, you need to be consistent and aligned with the rules that you set at the start. Clients may try to test your boundaries. Staying true to them builds trust and respect from your client.