Get out of your head and into your coaching session
By Debbie Gainsford | Career Coach for Marketers | March 2026
Debbie Gainsford is a career coach and global marketing leader with two decades of B2B marketing experience. She helps marketers at a crossroads get clear on what they want and build the confidence to go after it.
Getting the most out of a coaching session starts before you log on. The simple act of breaking your day - even for fifteen minutes - and shifting your headspace before a session changes what's possible in it. This post covers practical ways to prepare, whether you're new to coaching or want to make your sessions even more effective.
And if you want a simple framework to bookend the whole thing, check out the 15/15 rule - fifteen minutes before, fifteen minutes after. It's the habit that makes everything else stick.
Why do you need to prepare for a coaching session?
Coaching only works when you're actually in it. If you jump straight from a meeting, a school run, or a scrolling spiral directly onto a coaching call, your brain is still running the previous programme. You'll spend the first part of your session just arriving and that's expensive time.
A few minutes of intentional preparation signals to your brain that something different is happening. You show up present, focused, and ready. The session goes further.
How long before a coaching session should you prepare?
Fifteen minutes is enough. You don't need a long ritual, just something that creates a genuine break between what you were doing before and the conversation you're about to have. Pick one or two things from the list below that work for you.
How to get ready for your coaching session
Change your location
Don't just stay at your desk and click the link. If you're at work, book a meeting room and close the door. At home, find a spot that feels calm and make it yours for the session. And if you share your space with people who will absolutely interrupt you the moment you get on a call? Stick a sign on the door. Make it fun. "Do not disturb: main character moment in progress."
A different space tells your brain something different is happening. It works.
Move your body
Shake off whatever came before — the morning rush, the afternoon slump, the end-of-day fog. It doesn't need to be a workout. Here's a fun two-minute option. Go on. No one's watching.
Put your anthem on
Not a podcast. Not the news. Something that actually makes you feel like you. My personal go-to for an instant energy shift: Straight Lines by Silverchair. Three minutes of music you love does something genuinely useful to your nervous system. Science agrees.
Light a candle
Small thing. Big shift. A scent you love, a flame you chose, it signals that this time is intentional. Ritual matters more than people give it credit for.
Have a drink
Starting your day? Have a glass of water before the caffeine kicks in. Midday session? Make something you actually enjoy. End of day? You've earned a cup of tea. Whatever it is, make it deliberate - not something you grabbed on autopilot.
Kill the noise
Phone on silent. Notifications off. Every tab that isn't your coaching session - gone. The emails will survive. The group chat will cope. For this time, you don't need to be available to anyone or anything else. Give yourself permission to disappear.
Take two minutes to breathe
Here's a short meditation that'll help you land before you log on. Just enough to go from "running at full speed" to "actually here."
Grab your notepad and pen
An actual notepad. An actual pen. Things come up in coaching sessions - realisations, ideas, shifts you didn't expect. Write them down while they're fresh. Your future self will thank you.
What should you think about before a coaching session?
Before you click the link, ask yourself one question: what do I most want from this session? It doesn't have to be profound. It could be clarity on a decision, space to think something through out loud, or simply "I don't know, something just feels off." All of it is a perfect place to start.
What should you do after a coaching session?
Don't close the laptop and immediately open your inbox. Give yourself fifteen minutes to sit with what came up - go for a walk, make a drink, write a few notes. Let it land before life rushes back in. That processing time is where a lot of the real value sits.
I call it the 15/15 rule — fifteen minutes before your session to prepare, fifteen minutes after to process. It's simple, it costs you nothing, and it changes everything. Read more about the 15/15 rule here.
You've invested in yourself. Now show up for it.
Book a free discovery call with Debbie →
Debbie Gainsford is a career coach and strategic advisor for marketers and founders, based in Sydney, Australia. She works with clients locally and globally.
