The 37 PCC Markers in Three Practical Movements

Episode Overview

How do you keep 37 PCC markers in mind without turning a coaching conversation into a checklist? In this solo episode of The Coach Approach Ministries Podcast, the host reflects on mentor coach specialist training and organizes the markers around three practical movements: establish an agreement, explore the issue and the person, and land the plane. Drawing comparisons to driving and preaching, he considers how clear direction, personal discovery, and client ownership shape effective conversations. Coaches and Christian leaders will find helpful questions for supporting growth while leaving responsibility with the person doing the work.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

• See the larger movements. The 37 markers can feel overwhelming when considered individually. Grouping them into agreements, exploration, and growth offers a practical way to recognize what a conversation needs while remaining familiar with the individual markers.

• Confirm what you're talking about. Establishing an agreement means clarifying the topic, the desired outcome, why it matters, and how the client will recognize progress. When the conversation feels murky, asking for clarity is a professional move—even when it means admitting you don't yet understand.

• Explore the person alongside the problem. Understanding an issue or identifying a solution doesn't tell you everything about someone's ability to move forward. Beliefs, emotions, confidence, and past experiences may need attention; the host connects this to preaching about forgiveness while also exploring why people struggle to forgive.

• Help clients hear themselves. Seeing something about a client doesn't mean explaining it will help them learn. Listening for words, emotions, energy, and perspectives creates opportunities for clients to examine their experience and reach their own conclusions.

• Connect learning with action. Facilitating client growth involves more than producing a plan. Help clients identify what they've learned about themselves and their situation, then explore how that learning can strengthen their next steps and accountability.

• Leave ownership with the learner. In coaching, clients need responsibility for what happens next. In preaching, the host challenges the impulse to keep talking, create guilt, or make the preacher the center of accountability, pointing instead toward personal responsibility and trust in the Holy Spirit.

• Celebrate discovery and share the ending. Greater understanding deserves recognition, even when a situation turns out to be harder than expected. Invite clients to choose how they want to complete the session rather than deciding the ending for them.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

• "We're here to grow and mature and support people."

• "Helping the client to listen to themselves."

• "You have to let the person land their own plane."

• Celebrate clearer understanding—even when it reveals a more difficult situation than the client expected.