Have you ever wondered if the day of your professional coaching session could make or break your goal progress? Most people don’t realize that when you have your coaching sessions could be just as important as what you discuss. Through my research with hundreds of coaching clients, I’ve uncovered a surprising truth: the day you schedule your session can directly impact how quickly and effectively you move toward your goals. It’s interesting to see that very few people talk about it or even research it in the coaching business. Not even time management coaches share much about the topic. That’s why I took the reigns on the matter and decided to start researching and connecting the dots myself.
In this post, we’ll explore the fascinating connection between timing and success in coaching, why it matters, and how you can make simple adjustments when using your valuable tools to maximize your results. Curious to learn more? Let’s dive in.
The Impact Of Coaching Time And Days On Results
Having an experienced executive or life coach who truly understands your overarching goals is incredibly valuable. But no matter how skilled your coach is, they can’t do the work for you. Coaching is a partnership — 50% of the success comes from the coachee. You, as the client, are expected to take the insights, learning, and strategies from each session and apply them in real life. That’s how you move faster and more effectively toward your achievable goals.
What Is The Best Time For Coaching?
One key factor that can significantly impact your progress is timing. No, I’m not just talking about time management skills. I’m talking about time management strategies to make your valuable time more effective. My research uncovered that the day of the week you choose for your coaching session can influence how effectively you apply what you’ve learned. According to my research with hundreds of clients, the timing of your coaching session can be just as important as the content, and the best day for coaching depends on what you are working on – in other words, your coaching objectives.
For instance, Mondays and Tuesdays are perfect for clients working on professional development. Whether it’s leadership skill-building, resolving executive challenges, or improving decision-making or executive presence, the momentum from early-week sessions often carries through, helping you take action throughout your workweek.
On the other hand, Thursdays and Fridays are best for personal goals like wellness, family priorities, or even side projects. Clients working on these topics benefit from reflecting on their progress as they head into the weekend, making it easier to take action when personal time is more available.
Wednesdays are ideal for emotional regulation, fighting a bad habit, confidence-building, and self-reflection. It’s a mid-week reset that allows you to check in with yourself, plan for upcoming decisions, and prepare for next week’s big meetings or conversations.
Finally, any day works well when you’re reflecting on past situations and trying to find insights for future actions or a more balanced life. The key is to align your coaching day with your overarching goals, as this makes all the difference in your ability to apply what you’ve learned.
Why Coaching Time Makes Sense (The Psychology Behind It)
Why does the day you schedule your individual coaching session have such a big impact on your success? The answer lies in psychology, particularly in the work of Robert Cialdini and his concept of Pre-Suasion. According to Cialdini, we tend to give more importance and attention to whatever is in our immediate focus. This idea is especially relevant when it comes to coaching.
Think about Mondays and Tuesdays. These are the days when most professionals are gearing up for the week ahead. Their focus is sharp and centered on work-related tasks, strategies, and responsibilities. This means they’ll dedicate their quality time to these areas. Clients who schedule their coaching sessions at the start of the week are primed to take action on work-related goals. The urgency of the week’s demands keeps their attention on those topics, making it more likely they’ll follow through on the insights and actions discussed in the coaching session. This even impacts that coaching relationship, because as they work and apply the insights from the coaching process, they become more confident in themselves and in their trust relationship with their coach.
For example, if a client is working on improving their leadership skills or making better business decisions, having a Monday or Tuesday session allows them to apply their learnings almost immediately. The momentum and energy levels from these early-week sessions carry through, embedding the actions into their daily routines.
On the other hand, scheduling a coaching session on Friday to focus on work-related goals poses a challenge. By the time Friday arrives, most professionals are winding down and shifting their attention toward the weekend. Their focus naturally starts to drift away from work-related administrative tasks and toward personal time, family, or relaxation. If a client sets work-related goals during a Friday session, the likelihood of taking immediate action diminishes because the weekend serves as a natural break and distraction from the workweek. By the time Monday rolls around, the urgency and motivation to act on those goals might have faded.
The same principle applies in reverse for personal goals. If you’re working on wellness, quality of life, spending more time with family, or developing a side project, having a Monday session may not be as effective as your weekly schedule for coaching. Your mind is already consumed with work tasks during the week, making it harder to focus on personal goals that won’t come into play until later in the week. Scheduling these sessions on Thursdays or Fridays is far more effective because your focus is naturally shifting toward the weekend, which is when you have adequate time to act on your plan of action for personal goals.
This is why choosing the right day for your coaching session matters. It’s not just about convenience or availability; It’s strategy: it’s about aligning the session with where your focus is during the week. When your coaching session is timed correctly, you are much more likely to act on your insights, take immediate steps toward your goals, and see results faster. I’ve also seen stress levels reduce significantly. The key is to ensure that the focus of your session aligns with the natural flow of your week, maximizing your ability to follow through and make progress.
An Additional Executive Coaching Success Factor – Taking Notes
While choosing the right day for your executive coaching session is crucial, there’s another equally important factor that can significantly enhance your progress: taking notes. Throughout my experience coaching executives, I’ve found that clients who take detailed notes during and after their sessions achieve far greater success than those who rely solely on memory.
Why? Because when you take notes, you’re actively engaging with the material. You’re not just passively listening—you’re processing the information, identifying key takeaways, and making a plan to implement the insights you’ve gained. The act of writing helps solidify the lessons from the session and provides a concrete roadmap for action.
Clients who write down their insights, their action steps, and the timeline for when they’ll execute those actions are far more likely to follow through. These notes act as a reference point that keeps them accountable throughout the week. Instead of relying on a vague recollection of the session, they have a clear plan in front of them, making it easier to stay on track and avoid distractions.
It’s not enough to trust that you’ll remember everything from the session. Even if the coaching conversation feels profound at the moment, the insights can quickly fade amidst the daily grind of work and life. By taking notes, you’re capturing those fleeting moments of clarity and making them accessible whenever you need to revisit them. This is especially helpful when tackling long-term goals that require consistent effort over time.
Another benefit of taking notes is that it encourages reflection. Reviewing your notes between sessions allows you to assess your progress, adjust your strategies, and come prepared for the next session with specific challenges or successes to discuss. This creates a continuous loop of improvement, where each session builds on the last. Over time, this habit fosters a deeper level of self-awareness and enables more effective coaching because both you and your coach have a clear understanding of what’s working and what needs further attention.
Additionally, note-taking helps clients track patterns and identify areas where they might be getting stuck. By documenting your actions and outcomes, you’ll start to notice recurring themes that might otherwise go unnoticed. This insight can lead to breakthroughs, as you and your coach can address these patterns directly and find solutions more efficiently.
In short, taking notes is a powerful yet simple habit that greatly enhances the coaching process. It holds you accountable, keeps you focused, and provides a written record of your journey. If you’re serious about making the most out of your coaching experience, this is one success factor you can’t afford to overlook.
Two Case Studies – Real-Life Examples Of Coaching Time In Action
To bring all of this into perspective, let’s explore two real-life case studies that demonstrate how choosing the right coaching time made a tangible impact on the success of my clients.
✍️ Case Study 1: Gaining Decision-Making Autonomy
I worked with a client who faced a significant challenge when it came to making business decisions. She lacked confidence in her choices and escalated nearly 100% of her decisions to her boss, seeking approval for every move she made. This not only slowed down her productivity but also caused friction between her and her boss, who felt she should be more autonomous in her role. None of the well-regarded decision-making books helped her in this process, and when she came to me, she felt pretty defeated.
We decided to schedule her coaching sessions on Mondays. The logic behind this was simple: by starting the week with a structured framework for decision-making, she would have the rest of the week to apply what she learned in real-time business situations. Together, we created a custom decision-making framework — one she could refer to every time she faced a tough choice. In fact, she was so committed to improving that she laminated the framework and kept it at her desk as a quick reference guide.
Every Monday, she would bring to our session a list of decisions she needed to make that week or challenges she was anticipating. We would go through each decision using her framework, practicing together during the session. This allowed her to build confidence while having the support of a coach to validate her thought process. Afterward, she would apply the framework in real-life situations, taking action based on the decisions we discussed.
The following Monday, we would debrief the outcomes — what worked, what didn’t — and fine-tune her approach for the coming week. This weekly rhythm of planning, acting, and reviewing created a continuous improvement loop. Over time, she became more confident in her decision-making. After six months of consistent weekly coaching, she knew the framework by heart and rarely needed to refer to the laminated sheet anymore. Her boss noticed the improvement too, commenting on how much more independent and decisive she had become.
By aligning her coaching sessions with the start of the workweek, she had the entire week to practice making decisions and refine her skills. This process not only improved her confidence but also strengthened her relationship with her boss, who saw her as a more autonomous and empowered leader within the company.
✍️ Case Study 2: Completing An MBA With Focused Coaching Sessions
Another client I worked with was struggling to complete her MBA. She was a driven professional and a self-proclaimed workaholic. However, her dedication to her job was interfering with her ability to focus on her studies. It was not about knowing effective time management strategies or even using a time-tracking app to support her. She was a pro on time management and project management and used ClickUp as her main app for project goal tracking. It was about her belief that business efficiency and work productivity levels came first in her daily tasks.
She originally scheduled her coaching sessions on Tuesdays, but we quickly realized that this wasn’t the best fit for her. Throughout the week, her focus was so consumed by work-related tasks that, by the time the weekend arrived, she had little mental space or energy left for her MBA.
She confided in me that by Friday, she was often still on fire with new ideas and work projects, which meant she would head into the weekend with her mind still on work, rather than her studies. This made it difficult to make meaningful progress on her MBA assignments, essays, and exam preparation.
We decided to shift her coaching sessions to Thursdays and occasionally Fridays, for a period of time, for testing purposes. This change made a significant difference. On Thursdays, we would plan out her weekend tasks related to her MBA — a comprehensive activity, whether it was studying, completing assignments, or preparing for exams. We would create a structured, actionable plan that allowed her to focus on her academic responsibilities once the weekend began.
The Thursday sessions gave her just the right amount of pre-weekend preparation. By discussing and planning her academic goals on Thursday, she was mentally primed to transition from her workweek into her weekend studies. Over time, this shift in coaching time allowed her to gradually gain momentum, and bit by bit, she completed all her MBA requirements. After months of focused coaching and planning, she graduated with her degree. It didn’t require any essential skill other than timing her hours for coaching better and using her already high personal leadership skills with the right focus.
This case demonstrates how choosing a day like Thursday or Friday for personal goals — such as completing a degree — can make all the difference. By shifting her focus from work to her studies just before the weekend, she was able to successfully balance her job and academic pursuits without letting one overshadow the other.
Both case studies highlight the importance of aligning your coaching time with your specific goals and responsibilities. Whether it’s building professional skills or tackling personal milestones, choosing the right day for your coaching session can have a profound impact on the results you achieve. I share this insight with all my potential clients who have specific professional goals.
Valuable Books With Insights For Good Coaching Sessions
Disclaimer: This section contains product affiliate links. I may receive a tiny commission if you purchase after clicking on one of these links at no additional cost to you. They sponsor my time in researching, curating, and sharing valuable thought-leadership content. This allows me to provide it without any added expense on your part. Thanks for your support! ❤️️
If you want to go a step further to have absolute success during your coaching sessions, consider reading the following books:
Becoming Coachable: Unleashing the Power of Executive Coaching to Transform Your Leadership and Life
By Scott Osman, Jacquelyn Lane, and Marshall Goldsmith (2023)
Quick Description: Becoming Coachable is a guide for executives and leaders looking to unlock the full potential of their coaching experience. The book teaches readers how to adopt a coachable mindset, collaborate effectively with their coach, and leverage executive coaching to transform both their professional and personal lives. With insights from leading experts in coaching, the book provides strategies to maximize the value of coaching sessions, navigate complex leadership challenges, and accelerate personal growth.
Coaching for Performance, 6th Edition: The Principles and Practice of Coaching and Leadership
By Sir John Whitmore (Revised by Tiffany Gaskell) (2024)
Quick Description: Coaching for Performance is the foundational text for understanding the potential and power of coaching, featuring Sir John Whitmore’s influential GROW model. This international bestseller, now fully revised by Tiffany Gaskell, provides new updates, powerful case studies, and empirical evidence showing how coaching makes a difference and creates lasting impact. The book illustrates why empowering individuals to bring out their best is key to improved productivity, growth, and engagement. It also highlights how fostering a coaching culture within organizations can lead to long-term success and deeper employee engagement. This 6th edition is essential reading for anyone looking to understand or maximize the impact of coaching in their professional life.
Key Takeaways: How To Maximize The Impact Of Your Coaching Sessions
To wrap things up, let’s recap the key points and recommendations for how to maximize the impact of your coaching sessions by choosing the right day and leveraging powerful habits.
- Monday: The best day for week planning, setting goals, structuring your workload, and strategic thinking. If you’re looking to get organized and set a clear direction for the week, Monday coaching sessions give you the perfect head start.
- Tuesday: Ideal for productivity-related coaching, whether that’s optimizing workflows, managing stakeholders, preparing for difficult conversations, or developing global leadership skills. Tuesdays work well for handling executive challenges and team management topics when you need the momentum to carry you through the week.
- Wednesday: The perfect mid-week reset for emotional regulation, stress management, confidence-building, networking, and self-reflection. Wednesday coaching sessions allow you to pause, reflect, and refocus on your mental clarity and emotional well-being. (By the way, don’t forget to check out my blog post on the 5 Powers of Clarity for more tips on boosting mental clarity!)
- Thursday: This day is excellent for focusing on personal goals like physical health, personal organization, and long-term life planning. If you’re thinking about future milestones such as retirement or major life transitions, Thursday sessions help you think big picture and plan ahead.
- Friday: A great day for wellness, mental health, and focusing on personal matters like family, hobbies, and relationships. Friday coaching sessions help you nurture what’s most important in life outside of work, ensuring your personal well-being is prioritized.
In addition to choosing the right day for your coaching sessions, don’t overlook the power of note-taking. Writing down key insights, actions, and timelines immediately after your sessions keeps you accountable and focused on what matters most. This is one of the most important success factors in coaching. If you want to use note-taking as an additional tool for success in coaching, this blog post will teach you a famous note-taking methodology to spice up your note-taking skills and personal accountability. If you want to learn more about the other success factors, be sure to watch my video, The Key to Success in Coaching Part I, for deeper insights. And if you are an HR executive seeking to learn this and other success factors in coaching programs to maximize your coaching program’s ROI, you can download our extensive white paper and research on the topic.
Finally, remember that coaching is a partnership. A great coach brings expert skills, valuable insights, customized resources for your self-learning between sessions, and deep topical experience to guide you with actionable steps, tackle leadership challenges, and help you close efficiency gaps. But that alone isn’t enough. As a client, it’s up to you to take notes, track your progress, and—most importantly—take action in the real world. This combined effort between coach and coachee is what truly accelerates your progress and moves you closer to your goals.
Final Remarks Regarding Coaching Time
Coaching is more than just showing up for a session and hoping for change — it’s about intentionally aligning your actions with your goals and making space for growth. Choosing the right day for your coaching sessions and committing to practices like note-taking are small adjustments that can lead to profound shifts in how you approach your personal and professional development.
Whether you’re focused on navigating high-stakes decisions, refining your leadership skills, or finding a better work-life balance, your success in coaching depends not only on the guidance of your coach but also on your willingness to implement and take action between sessions. That’s where the real transformation happens.
As a global executive or leader, you have unique challenges and opportunities. Leveraging the right tools and strategies, like those discussed here, can make all the difference in how effectively you lead and grow. I invite you to explore what executive coaching can do for you and your organization. By working together, we can create a tailored plan that supports your goals and ensures you have the structure and insights you need to succeed. Have a Free Strategy Call with me.
If you are interested in developing specific global leadership skills, personally or team-wise, check out our online Global Executive Leadership program. As your chief training instructor, I will go over all The Global Leadership Pillars™ during 9 online modules, specially meant for global leadership development. It’s a unique leadership training methodology that will change the way you think, relate, and strategize as a global leader. You can also subscribe to our global leadership podcast, The Leadership Nest.
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