Coaching methods
Coaching competency 4: Cultivates Trust and Safety
The fourth competency focuses on creating trust and safety. A coach needs to be empathetic, respectful and accepting in order to lay the foundation for trust.
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The fourth competency focuses on creating trust and safety. A coach needs to be empathetic, respectful and accepting in order to lay the foundation for trust. In coaching conversations the coach will, in most cases, encourage the client to look deeper into themselves, into their world of thoughts, feelings and emotions, in order to uncover the limiting beliefs that the client has formed about themselves, about relationships or about the world, and that stand in the way of their goals.
When working with their inner world, clients often meet content that they have not been aware of until now or have not been able to accept. For the client to feel safe working with this often challenging or even emotionally painful content, the coach has to be able to create a psychological space in which the client can feel secure. This kind of supportive environment is needed to encourage and support the client in bringing the challenging content out of the “shadow” (the unconscious) and in integrating it into their life. In this way the client gains a better inner balance and recovers hidden energy, which can be directed towards their goals.
When working with their inner world, clients often meet content that they have not been aware of until now or have not been able to accept. For the client to feel safe working with this often challenging or even emotionally painful content, the coach has to be able to create a psychological space in which the client can feel secure. This kind of supportive environment is needed to encourage and support the client in bringing the challenging content out of the “shadow” (the unconscious) and in integrating it into their life. In this way the client gains a better inner balance and recovers hidden energy, which can be directed towards their goals.
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The competency in short
Cultivates Trust and Safety is the fourth ICF Core Competency. In short, the coach works with the client to create a safe, supportive environment in which the client can share freely, and keeps a relationship of mutual respect and trust.
In practice this means seeking to understand the client in their own context and respecting who they are; adapting the coaching to the client’s style and way of expressing themselves; acknowledging the talents, insights and work the client brings to the process; showing support, empathy and care; accepting what the client expresses, including feelings, concerns and beliefs; and being open and transparent enough to show one’s own vulnerability, as a way of building trust.
The 2025 review left this competency unchanged.
This article is based on my Latvian article “Kouča kompetence – veicina uzticēšanos un drošību”, published on 27 April 2021. It was translated into English and its facts were updated in October 2026. In place of the full ICF text quoted in the original, it gives a short summary and a link to the official version.
In practice this means seeking to understand the client in their own context and respecting who they are; adapting the coaching to the client’s style and way of expressing themselves; acknowledging the talents, insights and work the client brings to the process; showing support, empathy and care; accepting what the client expresses, including feelings, concerns and beliefs; and being open and transparent enough to show one’s own vulnerability, as a way of building trust.
The 2025 review left this competency unchanged.
This article is based on my Latvian article “Kouča kompetence – veicina uzticēšanos un drošību”, published on 27 April 2021. It was translated into English and its facts were updated in October 2026. In place of the full ICF text quoted in the original, it gives a short summary and a link to the official version.
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