Boundaries in Coaching: Building Trust Through Clear Expectations
Setting and holding boundaries isn’t about saying “no”—it’s about creating trust and consistency that makes your coaching more effective.
When coaches talk shop, they usually talk about programming, teaching, and business strategies. But this week, Andrew highlighted an essential skill that doesn’t come up very often but that can make or break your coaching career: boundaries.
No matter what kind of coach you are, boundaries are critical for setting and meeting expectations and, therefore, building trust. Too often, we erase boundaries because we think holding to them will limit our services, but we forget that boundaries are a key part of building trust. Without them, both coaches and clients end up frustrated or confused.
Why Boundaries Matter
Andrew broke it down using what he calls the trust equation: demonstrating ability, integrity, and benevolence. Boundaries connect directly to your integrity. “[I]ntegrity,” Andrew says, “is doing what you say you will do.” When coaches fail to set and hold expectations or boundaries, it can quickly become a problem: “It’s this black box, this mystery expectation, that both parties are filling in without actually saying it out loud.” Once set, the challenge then becomes holding the boundary and communicating in such a way that clients want to respect it.
Common Pitfalls Without Boundaries
Andrew outlined some of the most common boundary breakdowns coaches face:
- 24/7 Access – Promising clients they can reach you anytime sounds generous, but it’s a recipe for burnout.
- Constant Program Hopping – Allowing endless tweaks erodes consistency and progress.
- Scope Creep – Slipping into therapist or life coach mode can blur professional lines.
- “Emergency” Requests – Last-minute travel workouts or panicked schedule changes often pull coaches into unproductive cycles.
“A lot of these situations that gradually build up resentment over time are not because one or the other party is trying to do something malicious. Actually, in a lot of cases, it’s because one or both parties are trying to please the other end of the relationship, trying to go over and above. And what happens in many of those cases is subconsciously over time [it] becomes this resentment that builds up and then, left unchecked, they often rupture.”
Boundaries Build Better Service
The pushback on boundaries is that coaches want to help. It’s why they got into the business, which makes saying “no” difficult. Consider, however, the difference between immediacy and consistency:
- Telling a client you’ll respond within 24 hours builds more trust than replying instantly some days and taking 18 hours other days.
- Clarifying what counts as an “emergency” prevents constant reactive programming.
- Defining check-in limits creates service levels you can deliver reliably.
When coaches communicate these limits clearly, clients relax. They know what to expect, and coaches can deliver consistently without burning out.
How TurnKey Coach Helps
Boundaries become even more critical in online and hybrid coaching, where natural “office hours” don’t exist. Andrew highlighted several TurnKey Coach features designed to help:
- Set Check-In Limits – Define how many workouts or nutrition logs you’ll review each week per client.
- Review Preferences (Coming Soon) – Choose your workdays and response windows, so clients know exactly when to expect feedback.
- Structured Notifications – Prevent over-delivery by aligning feedback frequency with the client’s service tier.
These tools enable coaches to professionalize their expectations, scale their services, and avoid the resentment trap.
Key Takeaway for Coaches
Boundaries are important trust builders. By clearly defining what you offer and holding to it, you create a stronger, more professional relationship with your clients. Watch the full presentation to learn more about setting and communicating boundaries and how we’ve built boundaries into TurnKey Coach to help coaches enforce them. The result is happier clients, healthier coaches, and better long-term success.
This material was recently covered in the Business of Coaching Workshop, a series designed to help coaches grow their businesses by mastering key principles like trust, pricing, and delivering value. Each session dives into actionable strategies to build better client relationships and drive success. Want to take your coaching practice to the next level? Join us for the next workshop—it’s free.
