Sankofa Leadership's Person-Centered Coaching Approach:
A Pathway to Transforming Lives
The Reality of Poverty in America
According to the 2021 U.S. Census, 37.9 million Americans are experiencing poverty. This staggering number means that 11.6% of people in this country face financial trauma every day, with children making up more than one-third of those affected. Despite the support provided by programs like Medicare, Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Unemployment Insurance, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Social Security Income (SSI), many participants struggle to achieve true economic self-sufficiency. Hardworking individuals and families are paying the price of a broken financial system that promotes prosperity for some while perpetuating poverty for others. This harsh reality is prevalent in urban and rural communities nationwide.
However, there is hope. A growing number of organizations and practitioners in the human services sector are embracing person-centered approaches to enhance their service delivery models. These approaches are rooted in the belief that people are capable, creative, and resourceful and know what is best for themselves and their families. This shift in perspective paves the way for transformative and collaborative partnerships, significantly increasing the likelihood that individuals can achieve and maintain economic stability.
The Philosophy: What is Person-Centered Care and Coaching?
Person-centered care is about more than just providing services; it’s about the mindset and environment that an organization creates to truly support the people it serves. Rooted in trauma-informed principles, this approach recognizes that persistent lack and poverty are not just economic states but traumatic experiences that impact every aspect of a person’s life. Person-centered care is intentionally centering the client’s experience in how services are designed, delivered, and evaluated, with every team member embracing a culture of dignity, respect, and agency for those they serve.
Check out, The Person-Centered Coach ebook, now available for purchase.
Person-centered coaching builds on this foundation by providing collaborative, strengths-based support that helps clients achieve their goals. Unlike traditional, authoritative approaches, person-centered coaching guides the formation of trusting, nonjudgmental relationships where clients are viewed as the experts in their own lives. Coaches are not there because clients can’t achieve their goals on their own—they’re there because they know that, with the right support, clients can and will succeed.
Our Framework: Four Phases of Person-Centered Coaching
Our Person-Centered Coaching framework is designed to support individuals through every step of their journey, from goal discovery to the practice of achieving those goals.
The framework includes four key phases:
Goal Discovery: Helping clients articulate what they truly want to achieve.
Establishing the Coaching Relationship: Building a foundation of trust and collaboration.
Goal Planning: Breaking down broad goals into actionable steps.
Goal Practice: Supporting clients as they implement their plans and make progress.
This approach is grounded in 2GEN principles, recognizing that supporting an individual also means empowering them to become a coach within their household. By focusing on these phases, we create conditions where clients are not just recipients of services but active participants in their journey toward economic independence.
The Person-Centered Coaching approach helps practitioners:
Recognize and navigate their own biases. Lead a curious coaching conversation.
Create the conditions for their clients to achieve long-term change
Balance holding space for the client's humanity and holding the client accountable to their goals
Give control of the session to the client.
Includes elements of
An exploration of trauma-informed practices
Discussions of historical biases and systems of discrimination
Equitable scaffolding
De-centering and self-care in human services
Ready to Learn More?
We invite you to explore our Coaching for Change videos and participate in our specialized learning experiences, where we dive deeper into the Sankofa Leadership Person-Centered Coaching Toolkit, which includes over ten conversation goal practice tools designed to facilitate super-curious, transformative interactions with clients. And we’re continually expanding our toolkit with new resources to help clients clarify, plan for, and execute their goals. Together, we can build a movement that puts people at the heart of everything we do and transforms the landscape of human services
Reach out to schedule a time to talk with us!
Interested in learning more?
Sign up for our upcoming Introduction to Person-Centered Coaching cohort now! Learn more here.