An Introduction to Coaching Skills
A Practical Guide
Fourth Edition
- Christian van Nieuwerburgh - Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland, ICCE Ltd. (International Centre for Coaching in Education)
Additional resources:
October 2025 | 256 pages | SAGE Publications Ltd
This bestselling book introduces you step-by-step to the key skills needed to become a successful coach. Focusing on the main coaching skills of listening, asking powerful questions, playing back and noticing, this practical book supports you to become more self-aware and confident as you support others to learn, grow and develop. Supported by a suite of video examples and practical activities, this book is an invaluable companion for novices and trainee coaches.
Now in its fourth edition, this book is more aligned to the competencies of the leading professional associations of coaching and has been revised and updated to take into account developments in the field.
New to Fourth Edition:
- New learning features, including “What the professional associations say”, “Reflect on your practice”, and “A question for you”
- New suite of 30 online video examples displaying a range of key coaching skills in action
- New chapter on “coaching in context” on the implications of coaching in different contexts, such as education and health settings
- Increased focus on online coaching
Part I: Context
Chapter 1: First Things First
Chapter 2: Becoming a Coach
Part II: Coaching Skills
Chapter 3: Noticing
Chapter 4: Listening to Encourage Thinking
Chapter 5: Playing Back
Chapter 6: Asking Powerful Questions
Part III: Coaching Process
Chapter 7: Conversational Frameworks
Chapter 8: Ways of Thinking
Chapter 9: Positive Bias
Part IV: Tools and Techniques
Chapter 10: Body Language and Emotional Intelligence
Chapter 11: Inspiring Creativity
Part V: Coaching Way of Being
Chapter 12: Being Human
Chapter 13: Inspiring Others
Part VI: Next Steps
Chapter 14: Coaching in Context
Chapter 15: Reflecting on Practice
Supplements
Click for Online Resources
Student Resources
- 30 video clips of key coaching skills in action (hosted on YouTube)
Student Resources
- 30 video clips of key coaching skills in action (hosted on YouTube)