Coaching During Periods Of Grief: An Opportunity For Awareness, Choosing and Care

Grief is one of the most universal human experiences, yet it is also one of the most individual. People might move through grief in different ways and at different paces. As coaches, we sometimes work with clients who have to navigate loss while continuing to lead teams, run organisations, and manage the many demands of life. In these moments, it is vital to acknowledge the reality of grief and to support clients in ways that respect both their humanity and their responsibilities.

Understanding the stages of grief

Many of us are familiar with the five stages of grief introduced by psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross: Denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. It is important to recognise that these stages are not linear. People may circle back, skip stages, or experience them in different forms. There is no right or wrong way to grieve.

For many of us, this complexity is compounded by the expectation to keep functioning in our roles while carrying a heavy emotional load. For a client to recognise the stage they might be in can bring a valuable moment of awareness. That awareness alone can shift how they are being with their grief. 

The role of coaching alongside therapy

Coaching is not therapy. Therapy provides essential care for mental health and healing, while coaching can complement that work. It can offer a safe, forward-focused space where clients can reflect on where they are at, clarify what is in their control, and take conscious steps forward.

In a recent coaching session, a client realised that they had been staying in denial. For them, denial felt safer than facing the pain of the other stages. By the end of the session, they recognised that while grief is not optional, how we move through it can also involve choice. For them, it was not about bypassing their emotions, but about regaining agency in the face of something that otherwise felt overwhelming.

Awareness and choice

At the heart of coaching lies a simple but profound process:

1. Becoming aware

2. Making a choice

When clients pause to notice where they are at, they create an opportunity to choose what comes next. Sometimes the choice is to seek further therapeutic support. Sometimes it is to adopt small daily practices that help them regain balance. Sometimes it is simply to give themselves permission to rest.

An ecosystem of care

Supporting someone through grief is not the work of one professional alone. Doctors, therapists, coaches, colleagues, friends and family can all contribute to a network of care. Coaching can be a meaningful part of that ecosystem, particularly for people who are expected to keep showing up for others even in the midst of personal loss, such as leaders.

Closing thoughts

Grief will touch all of us at some point. As leaders, as colleagues, as family members and friends, as human beings; it matters that we recognise its impact and offer each other space to process it. Coaching does not replace therapy, it can walk alongside it. By raising awareness and empowering choice, coaching can help individuals navigate grief in a way that honours both, their humanity and their responsibilities.

At Abilitise, we offer leadership coaching that can support individuals at any stage of work and life.

Feel free to reach out to us anytime, info@abilitise.com.au

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