ABC Model

Understand why you react so strongly by mapping Activating events, Beliefs, and Consequences in a proven CBT framework used in wellness coaching.

Framework · 15 min · Print-ready PDF · Free download

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Preview Framework · 15 min

When to Use This Tool

A client reacting strongly to situations and wants to understand why

Tracing how a belief shapes the consequences you experience

Making sense of a specific incident that felt bigger than it should have

How to Introduce This Tool Plus

Walk me through one situation this week where your reaction surprised you — what...

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Interactive Preview Framework · 15 min

Tool Classification

Domain

Wellness

Type

Framework

Phase

Reflection

Details

15 min Mid session As-needed

Topics

Mindset Emotions

For the Coaching Practitioner

Plus

Pathway Builder 🔒

Coaching Scenarios Plus

1 The client who fills in A and C but avoids committing to what they believed

Context

Client can describe what happened (A) in factual detail and can describe the consequences (C) with clarity — often with significant emotion attached. When they reach the Beliefs & Behaviours box, the entry is thin: 'I felt like it wasn't fair,' 'I thought the situation was handled badly.' These are evaluations of A, not beliefs that explain C. The Beliefs & Behaviours box is the hardest to complete honestly because it requires the client to name the interpretation they applied — and that interpretation often reveals something they have not examined before. The client is solving for what to write rather than what they actually believed.

How to Introduce

Frame the Beliefs & Behaviours box as the one that does the most work. 'A and C are relatively easy to fill in — what ha...

2 The client for whom the ABC sequence reveals a pattern across multiple incidents 🔒

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3 coaching scenarios with introduction language, observation guides, debrief maps, and red flags

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For professional coaches and coaching practitioners

Tool Flow Plus

See what this tool requires and produces in a coaching engagement

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