There’s no question about it: coaching can be a life-altering experience for your clients. But what are the specific moments that make the biggest impact?
Every coach wants to help their clients break through something that is holding them back from living their best lives. Consistently facilitating transformative breakthroughs is the mark of an amazing coach.
We asked eight coaches to share their biggest client breakthroughs, and the results were inspiring! They shared stories about how they helped their clients get through their toughest moments, how their lives were changed, and what methods or tools they used to help them get the job done.
Love a good coaching breakthrough story? Us too! Whether your clients are facing a personal or professional challenge, these stories will show you how powerful coaching can be.
So read on and be inspired!
8 Breakthrough Moments That Prove The Power of Coaching
Here, eight coaches share their biggest client breakthroughs – proving that when it comes to coaching, anything is possible!
1. Clearing emotional trauma so they can be themselves again.
“Keith came into my practice with major PTSD. He had been through five months of therapy following an assault by police officers. He was unable to drive his car without panic attacks and bursting into tears of terror from the event.
His anxiety level was a 9 out of 10. I had four sessions with him in 30 days to work through his anxiety, panic attacks, and anger bursts, so he could be ready for his trial. After just four sessions, we cleared the major emotional trauma from the assault and helped him come into alignment, energetically, with his true loving nature.
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He was able to stay in the trial absolutely calm for the first time and had been able to forgive and let go of what happened on the subconscious level.”
– Veronica Parks, Holistic Health & Wellness Coach
2. A happier lifestyle resulting from healthier habits.
“A gentleman came to me to help him lose weight. He was 39 years old and found himself with a belly like his father. Not wanting to end up with a body like his older father, he decided to start living a healthier lifestyle.
During our conversation, I discovered it was normal for him to drink 10 cans of soda a day. The goal for him was to slowly cut down on his soda consumption while increasing his water intake. The plan consisted of weekly goals to decrease the number of soda cans he drank each week.
With support and accountability, he started to slowly consume fewer cans of soda per day. It certainly was a struggle, but he knew what his goals were. As the weeks went by, he slowly began to drink less soda and drink more water. He no longer craved soda and preferred to drink water.”
– Anthony Treas, Men’s Leadership Coach
3. Learning how to work smarter & not harder.
“My client was a clinical therapist who went full time as an Entrepreneur in 2020. Her business grew too quickly. Though grateful for the work, she was consumed with having many patients at a low rate. She started feeling anxious about money and the idea of charging more for her time. She needed help with personal development and getting organized in life and business.
Now, she has learned to manage herself instead of trying to manage time, developed the confidence and mindset to start a new offer: business consulting for therapists and social workers and even got 2 new clients in less than one month since launching! To ease this process my project manager and I created the system for the workflow. This has increased her income while taking more time out for herself, including making time for lunch!”
– Joselyn Martinez, Lifestyle & Online Business Designer
4. By identifying what they don’t want, they can secure what they do want.
“The biggest breakthrough I have seen with not just one but many clients is helping them get clear on what they want to get away from. In order for people to really step into the change they want n their lives, they have to get clear on what they never want to see again.
For example, it’s not until someone has grown absolutely tired of not being able to meet their bills will they really do anything about it. I present it as the difference between momentum and motivation. Like a competitive swimmer diving into a pool, the momentum begins with pushing away from the pool edge. Motivation sustains momentums.
One client was tired of not completing tasks. She referred to herself as a “half-asser”. Once we got her clear on never wanting to feel that way again, she became, also in her words, a ‘rockstar completer’.”
– Jeffrey Shaw, Coach for Self-Employed
5. Breaking through fear of sales calls.
“One of my biggest client breakthroughs was helping my client Dawn to get over her fear of making sales calls. Every business stands and falls with sales.
Before working together Dawn was putting off making calls because she had a lot of subconscious resistance. Now Dawn picks up the phone excited and is having sales conversations with ease.
She has also quadrupled her fees. The impact on her business and her ability to help others are immeasurable.
I took Dawn through a process based in neuroscience where we dismantled her subconscious bias to bring it in harmony with her conscious desire to make sales with ease. We then created an action plan and she learned how to be a confident leader in the sales conversation.”
– Simona Ksoll, Business Strategist & Mindset Mentor
6. Sometimes the simplest advice leads to the biggest breakthroughs.
“My client went from struggling to post content on Instagram to going viral on Tiktok multiple times, receiving over 200 applications, and landing a massive partnership deal with a bank.*
My client, a brand new money coach, would consistently get blocked on writing the perfect hook and caption to the point where she was completely paralyzed.
One of our calls ended up completely transforming her business with the simplest of advice;
‘You love Tiktok right? Do you have fun recording videos? It feels like less pressure?’ I asked.
‘Yes, it’s so much easier.’
‘Focus on that then. Let go of Instagram captions.’
Within a couple of weeks, she went viral for the first time on Tiktok (1 million+ views) and received 200+ applications for her offer (and sold it out). This was followed by multiple brand deals, an offer for a book deal, and even an interview with Vogue Singapore.”
– Jessica Sealey, Sales & Success Coach
7. Getting in touch with their inner child.
“Due to the pandemic and some revolving life goals, my client was reassessing his career as a very successful Advertising executive. We spoke in depth about his vision and as he liked to call it, the 2.0 version of himself.
I asked him a singular question: what would life look like if you got what you wanted? Using a combination of Positive Psychology and Motivational Interviewing, we traced back to his somewhat lonely childhood, and his aha moment came when I asked him simply ‘what was your favorite TV show at that time?’
It was in that instance that he realized that he used commercials as a form of escapism and a way to manipulate a glossier reality. It was a revelation for him because he was mostly following a path that was dictated by external means vs. internal ones.”
– Savio P. Clemente, Wellness Coach
8. Developing a holistic perspective on life.
“Often, clients seek coaching when feeling stuck. My most inspirational moment came from Brett, who felt trapped in a role he was no longer passionate about just to provide for his family.
We had two key breakthroughs during our coaching sessions. The first came through the use of a Wheel Of Life and talking about the holistic self. Brett had always thought providing financially for his family was the goal. He had undervalued the importance of also providing himself holistically and being truly present – not just for them, but for his own well-being.
Brett’s second AHA! came after exploring his work passions. We unpacked what he loved about his dream job, and a simple conversation with his leader then allowed him to replace less-inspiring tasks with the facilitation and coaching opportunities he had longed for.
Brett is now a senior leader in charge of training for that organization.”
– JP Gaston, Life, Business and Mental Wellness Coach
Final Thoughts
So what can we learn from these amazing coaches? First and foremost, it’s possible to help our clients through their biggest challenges and see real change in their lives.
As coaches, we have the opportunity to be there for our clients every step of the way, supporting them as they grow into their best selves.
Secondly, we can see that there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to coaching – each client’s journey is unique and deserves individualized attention.
Finally, effective coaching relies on a combination of empathy, intuition, and knowledge – using the right tool at the right time can make all the difference in helping our clients achieve success.
Leave us a comment below and let us know which story was your favorite – or if you have your own story of client success to share. We would love to hear from you!
About The Author
Hey! I’m Stina, the Content Manager here at Lovely Impact, a website template shop for coaches. Here on our blog, my content focuses on sharing the stories of coaches as well as inspiration to help you grow your coaching business.