NBC-HWC (NBHWC) study plan

Map each element of the coaching structure (agreement, agenda-setting, session flow, closure) to a specific exam-relevant competency

Draft a one-page comparison of coaching versus advising, therapy, and consulting using only your own words

Practice opening and closing a 20-minute mock session with a peer, timing each phase

Define the coach's scope of practice and list three situations requiring referral

Demonstrate three active-listening techniques (reflection, paraphrase, summary) in a recorded 15-minute practice session

Identify and correct at least five habits that slip into advice-giving

Write four open-ended questions for each stage of a coaching session

Explain how to co-create an agenda with a client who arrives with multiple concerns

Distinguish affirmations from praise and generate five client-centered affirmations

Practice reflecting change talk versus sustain talk in a role-play

Describe how to handle strong emotion in session without shifting into counseling

Summarize the difference between empathy, sympathy, and agreement with examples

Compare at least four behavior-change models (e.g., stages of change, self-determination theory, social cognitive theory, motivational interviewing spirit) on core constructs

Match coaching strategies to each stage of change

Explain the role of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in sustaining behavior change

Identify two communication moves that support client self-efficacy

Design a goal-setting conversation that produces SMART-plus client-owned goals

Distinguish process goals from outcome goals and justify when each is appropriate

Outline a relapse-prevention plan including triggers, coping strategies, and follow-up

Evaluate when to introduce health education versus when to elicit the client's own ideas first

Apply evidence-informed guidance on physical activity, sleep, nutrition, and stress to three sample client scenarios

State the boundaries of a health coach's role when a client asks for clinical or dietary advice

Identify three red flags that require escalation to a licensed professional

Describe how to document a referral conversation ethically

Apply core ethical principles (autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice) to five short ethical dilemmas

Explain confidentiality, its limits, and how to disclose them at the start of coaching

Describe informed consent, record-keeping, and data-handling obligations in a coaching agreement

Identify conflicts of interest and dual-role situations and state an appropriate response

Complete two full-length timed practice exams and review every missed item by domain

Re-teach your three weakest sub-topics aloud in under five minutes each

Rehearse the opening, agenda-setting, and closing of a session until it is fluent

Build a one-page review sheet of high-risk facts across all four domains