Welcome to this edition of Mentoring Moments. Over the years the mentoring discussions with my mentees have revealed such brilliant insights and methods which continue to hone our coaching skills to deliver a higher quality of coaching excellence for our clients. Mentoring emerging or experienced coaches towards their credential or for ongoing development is my absolute favourite component of my coaching practice. So, I’d love to share with you some of those little gems of gold in upcoming editions. 

Reflecting on the 2025 ICF Core Competencies:

Listening, Awareness, and Growth

This March edition completes the three-part reflection on the updated 2025 ICF Core Competencies. Across January and February, we explored the inner discipline of coaching and the lived experience of partnership. In this final edition, the focus turns to Competencies 6, 7, and 8, where coaching supports insight that lasts beyond the session and growth that is sustained over time.

The updated competencies make a clear distinction between activity and impact. They invite us to move away from urgency, clever questioning, or visible ‘doing,’ and instead focus on depth, integration, and trust in the client’s capacity to make meaning for themselves. These competencies ask us to listen more carefully, evoke awareness rather than deliver it, and support growth in a way that fits the client’s life rather than the coach’s preferences.

Competency 6: Listen Actively

Active listening is often described as a foundational coaching skill, yet the updated competency deepens what this truly means in practice. Listening is not limited to hearing words. It includes noticing patterns, emotional tone, energy shifts, and what remains consistent across time.

In my work with clients, I often notice that what is most revealing is not what changes from session to session, but what doesn’t. One client repeatedly used the phrase “I’m falling behind” when speaking about work, relationships, and even personal goals. Rather than questioning the accuracy of that statement, I reflected the pattern back to them.

That reflection created a pause. The client became quiet and then acknowledged that the sense of being behind had been present for as long as they could remember. It wasn’t situational; it was a long-held belief shaping their decisions and driving their anxiety. That awareness emerged not through a series of questions, but through attentive listening and thoughtful reflection.

The updated competency highlights that listening at this level requires patience and restraint. It asks us to trust that meaning will surface when we listen for patterns rather than rushing toward insight.

Action for your practice:
Listen for recurring words, phrases, or themes across sessions and reflect them neutrally, without interpretation or judgment.

Competency 7: Evokes Awareness

One of the most significant shifts in the 2025 update is the clear move away from information-sharing toward evoking insight. Awareness, as defined in this competency, is not something the coach provides. It is something the client discovers through reflection and engagement.

In my coaching, I’ve become increasingly mindful of how I offer observations. Rather than presenting them as conclusions, I offer them as invitations. For example, when I notice a pattern or contradiction, I might say that I’m noticing something and invite the client to explore whether it resonates.

I recall a client who paused after I shared an observation and said, “That feels uncomfortable — which probably means it matters.” That moment didn’t happen because the observation was particularly insightful. It happened because the client had space to engage with it on their own terms.

The updated competency reinforces that awareness deepens when clients are invited to test, explore, and reflect, rather than accept or reject what the coach offers.

Action for your practice:

After sharing an observation, pause and invite the client to reflect on what it brings up for them before moving on.

Competency 8: Facilitates Client Growth

Facilitating growth is where insight meets real life. The updated competency places strong emphasis on integration, sustainability, and client ownership.

In my work, I’ve noticed that clients often disengage when accountability feels imposed or overly structured. One client shared that previous coaching experiences had left them feeling pressured to “do something” after every session, even when clarity was still forming.

In contrast, when clients are invited to design how they want to carry insights forward, growth becomes more natural. This might involve noticing patterns during the week, experimenting gently, or simply sitting with a new awareness. When growth aligns with the client’s readiness and context, momentum builds without force.

The updated competency reframes accountability as partnership rather than enforcement. Growth is supported through curiosity, flexibility, and trust in the client’s capacity to integrate change in their own way.

Action for your practice:

Ask clients how they want to integrate insights between sessions and what kind of support would feel most useful to them.

Holding the Bigger Picture

Competencies 6, 7, and 8 invite us to trust deeply — trust in the client, trust in the process, and trust in our ability to hold space without over-directing. They remind us that coaching impact is not measured by how much happens in a single session, but by how insights are lived and embodied over time.

As you reflect on these competencies, consider this question:

Where might doing less as a coach allow your client to take greater ownership of their growth?

I warmly invite you to share your reflections or questions with me as you sit with this edition. Your engagement, insights, and curiosities help keep these Mentoring Moments alive, relevant, and grounded in real coaching practice.

Sharing these mentoring moments with you,

Gaye