Getting Practical About Depth Coaching

Some people think coaching is about doing more. Setting sharper goals, pushing harder, keeping clients on track, and measuring progress at every turn. That kind of coaching can look productive on the surface, and I certainly found it exciting back when I first started coaching in 2009. I remember being stunned by how quickly people could reach their goals in just a few sessions.

But in an AI-driven world, where apps and algorithms can already remind us of our goals and track our steps, that kind of coaching doesn't offer anything truly human. If anything, when someone pushes me to be more productive and wants to micro-manage my next steps, I find it exhausting and I feel resistant.

I've gone to coach bots for some of my big-picture questions, and they tried to push me into action when I was still in the dreaming phase. Yuck.

That's why, in my opinion, the future of coaching is depth, not doing.

What I've Learned About Depth Coaching

• Depth coaching is about creating space where silence is full of universal love. It's where clients can feel seen in their wholeness, not as problems to be solved but as people to be known.
• Presence cannot be replicated by technology. Machines can calculate, track, and even mimic empathy, but they cannot embody soul, love, or presence.
• You don't have to "do" so much as a coach. You don't have to fix, or push, or prove your value by filling the space with clever insights or coaching tools.
• Your role is to bring the presence that allows transformation to happen. The quieter you get inside, the more your clients discover their own depth.
• Transformation emerges naturally when people feel safe enough to pause. The next step reveals itself with clarity and ease when every part of them is welcomed into the conversation.

What Depth Coaching Actually Looks Like in Practice

I had a coaching session just today. The person told me about a steady internal shift going on in their life, and the loneliness and sadness that's part of having such a different way of being. A process of slowing down, of awareness of what fits and no longer fits in their new way of experiencing life.

The coaching I did wouldn't have passed anyone's assessment, if an assessor was looking for me to engage in goal-setting, measurements of success, accountability, and action steps. Did I ask any "powerful questions?" Probably not.

Yet, the slowness happened. We were both breathing more deeply, both inviting awareness of "what's wanting to happen." The client was poised for exquisite awareness to deepen with some gradual noticing after the session was over.

When you slow down and hold space for depth, something remarkable happens. Your presence allows the client to touch their own wisdom, the part of them that is deeper than the noise of tasks and to-do lists.

That's not something an app or AI can replicate.

Five Practical Ways to Coach at Depth

So what does depth coaching actually consist of in practice? Here are five foundational practices you can begin using in your coaching sessions today:

1. Silence: Allowing Space for Deeper Wisdom to Emerge

In a depth-oriented coaching session, silence isn't awkward or empty, it's expected, powerful, and filled with presence. Those pauses give the soul time to rejoin with the mind and body.

It's not even the kind of silence that the coach is actively pouring into. It's more that Loving Intelligence is invited to fill the space and offer more than either coach or client could know.

Often, the deep knowing the client has been chasing shows up precisely when you stop filling the space.

How to practice this: After your client shares something significant, resist the urge to immediately respond. Take a breath. Let the silence hold both of you. Count to seven if you need to. Notice what emerges when you're not filling space.

2. Somatic Awareness: Noticing the Body's Signals and Wisdom

A depth coach may invite you to notice what's happening in your body: the tightness in your chest, the flutter in your stomach, or the breath you didn't realize you were holding.

These signals often hold more wisdom than racing thoughts. I might invite you to move your spine, ribs, hands, or face, without needing to explain why.

How to practice this: When your client describes a challenge or decision, ask "Where do you feel that in your body?" or "What does your body know about this that your mind hasn't caught up to yet?" Follow the somatic thread with curiosity.

3. Slower Pace: Creating Safety by Lingering in the Present Moment

Instead of rushing to solve the problem, a depth session lingers in the moment. Many problems soften or even dissolve when there's no problem-solving pressure, just recognition of what is.

This safety and grounding allows a deeper awareness of what's really going on to emerge.

How to practice this: When you feel the impulse to move to action steps or solutions, pause. Ask "What else is here?" or "What wants more attention?" Stay with the moment a little longer than feels comfortable.

4. Wholeness Over Fixing: Affirming the Client's Innate Goodness and True Self

Depth coaching is about creating space where clients can feel seen in their wholeness, not as problems to be solved but as people to be known.

It's about welcoming every part of them into the conversation and trusting that, when they feel safe enough to pause, the next step reveals itself with clarity and ease.

How to practice this: Notice when you're tempted to "fix" your client or offer solutions. Instead, reflect back what you see in them: their wisdom, their courage, their capacity. Trust that they already have what they need.

5. Trust in Emergence: Letting the Next Step Reveal Itself in Its Own Time

You don't have to "do" so much as a coach. You don't have to fix, or push, or prove your value by filling the space with clever insights or coaching tools.

Your role is to bring the presence that allows transformation to happen. The quieter you get inside, the more your clients discover their own depth.

How to practice this: Release your attachment to outcomes for the session. Instead of pushing toward action or resolution, ask "What's wanting to emerge here?" Trust that clarity will emerge when it's ready.

An Example from My Own Journey

I remember a generative coaching session in which I was the client. I was invited to envision my deepest desire, place it on the far side of the room, and silently ask it to speak.

What emerged was the phrase "Communities of Grace." I still remember the rush of power as that visual and those words called to me.

As I literally took steps toward it, without knowing what those steps would hold, more instructions arrived: things like having tons of fun with my kids, and inviting support. None of it made logical sense, but each step unfolded into the next.

That's exactly how Awaken Coach Institute was born, from my own sense of fun, community, and being held. And creating that space for others.

What Would This Look Like for You?

If you're a coach, what would it be like for you to release some of the "doing" in your coaching, and instead become a presence that invites depth?

If you're not a coach yet, how can you invite slowness, allowing, and awareness to show up more for you?

Going Deeper: The Philosophy Behind These Practices

These five practical approaches are grounded in a deeper philosophy about the nature of transformation and what it means to be human.

If you want to understand the full framework behind depth coaching, I invite you to read The Future of Coaching Is Depth, Not Performance, where I explore the seven principles that distinguish this approach and why I believe depth coaching represents a quiet revolution in our field.

You might also appreciate 6 Core Practices of Spiritual Coaching That Create Transformation With Clients, which explores the spiritual dimensions of coaching from a place of wholeness and Great Love.

How We Teach Depth Coaching at Awaken

At Awaken Coach Institute, depth coaching isn't an add-on or advanced technique. It's woven into every aspect of our ICF-accredited coach certification programs from day one.

From your very first session, you'll experience what it feels like to be coached at depth. To be met with presence instead of performance pressure. To be trusted as whole rather than treated as a project. And then you'll learn to offer that same quality of presence to your clients.

Our transformational coach training integrates these five practices, and more, into every module:

You'll learn to use silence as your coaching partner, practicing in real time with feedback and support until holding space feels natural instead of awkward.

You'll develop somatic awareness in yourself first, learning to notice your own body's signals so you can guide clients into that embodied wisdom with confidence.

You'll practice slower pacing in a culture that rewards speed, discovering how lingering with what's present creates safety and allows insight to arrive.

You'll coach from wholeness, learning to see each client as already complete, already wise, already connected to their own knowing.

You'll trust emergence, developing the capacity to release your agenda and follow what wants to unfold in each unique session.

This isn't coaching that stays at the surface of goals and action steps. This is spiritual life coaching that touches identity, values, purpose, and the deeper dimensions of being human. It's empowerment coaching that creates lasting transformation because it honors the truth of who someone already is.

Whether you join us virtually or at our intimate Spain retreat on the Camino de Santiago, you'll be part of a small cohort of no more than twelve people where depth is practiced, not just discussed. Where you're supported to become the kind of coach, and the kind of person, who can hold space for what really matters.

I explore more about what transformational coaching looks like in practice in this video: What Is Transformational Coaching? Becoming an Aligned Coach, part of our Coaching Mastery and Growth series on YouTube.

An Invitation

If you're longing to coach, and live, from a place of depth, presence, and authentic alignment, I'd love to invite you to explore our coach certification pathways.

Awaken's ICF-accredited programs are designed for coaches who want to go deep. For those who sense that real change begins not with strategies, but with presence. Not with fixing, but with wholeness.

Join one of our live Q&A conversations. It's a warm, spacious way to experience our approach, ask your questions, and explore which pathway might support your next season of growth, whether that's our All-in-One Coach Certification (virtual or in Spain) or our Group Coaching Certification Course.

Book an Intro Call & Join Our Next Q&A

About the Author

Christi Byerly, MCC, is the founder and CEO of Awaken Coach Institute. Her coaching process motivates you to build a community of empathy and grace around you, and to live your mission as part of something bigger than you are. With over 15 years of coaching experience, Christi has trained hundreds of new coaches and maintains a thriving practice focused on depth, presence, and authentic transformation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is depth coaching and how is it different from regular coaching?

Depth coaching is a transformational approach that focuses on being rather than doing, presence rather than performance. While some coaching focuses primarily on goals, action steps, and accountability, depth coaching creates space for clients to access their own inner wisdom through practices like silence, somatic awareness, and trust in emergence. It honors clients as whole rather than treating them as problems to be solved.

Can I use these depth coaching practices if I'm not certified yet?

Yes. These five practices, silence, somatic awareness, slower pace, wholeness, and trust in emergence, can be applied in any conversation where you're supporting someone. However, professional coaching requires training in ethics, boundaries, and the full range of ICF competencies. If you're drawn to coaching at depth, consider pursuing ICF-accredited coach certification training that integrates these approaches.

How long does it take to learn depth coaching?

Learning to coach at depth is both immediate and lifelong. You can begin practicing these five approaches in your very next conversation. However, mastering the presence, self-awareness, and capacity to hold space for transformation typically requires structured training, mentoring, and your own inner work. Awaken's All-in-One Coach Certification programs provide 125 hours of ICF-accredited training plus mentor coaching to support your development.

Do I need to be spiritual to practice depth coaching?

Depth coaching honors the spiritual dimension of being human, meaning, purpose, connection to something larger than yourself. You don't need to hold specific spiritual beliefs, but you do need to be open to exploring the deeper questions of who you are and what matters most. At Awaken, we understand spirituality as a co-creative relationship with life itself, not doctrine or dogma.

What's the difference between depth coaching and spiritual life coaching?

There's significant overlap. Depth coaching emphasizes the quality of presence and the practices that create space for transformation. Spiritual life coaching explicitly names the sacred dimensions of the work and the belief that each person is already whole and connected to Great Love. At Awaken, we integrate both approaches in our transformational coach training, teaching coaches to work with depth, presence, and spiritual awareness.

Will depth coaching help my clients reach their goals?

Yes, though perhaps not in the way you might expect. When clients connect with their deeper wisdom and move from that place of alignment, the goals they choose and the actions they take tend to be more meaningful, sustainable, and successful. Depth coaching doesn't ignore goals, it grounds them in something truer than external expectations or pressure.

How does Awaken teach depth coaching in your certification programs?

Depth coaching is woven into every aspect of our ICF Level 1 & Level 2 accredited training from day one. You'll learn to embody these practices as a coach through our live classes, supervised practice, peer coaching and mentor coaching. Our small cohorts and experiential approach mean you're not just learning about depth coaching, you're living it in real time. We teach silence, presence, somatic awareness, coaching at the identity and values level, and trusting emergence as foundational capacities, not add-on techniques.