Question about coaching clients and not jumping the pool: Would laughing with a client about a problem be jumping in the pool? I watched a replay of me coaching a client and noticed that she would laugh about some behaviors that her child was having but laugh as she was talking about these behaviors that were causing her frustration in her model. Throughout the session while she was describing what was going on for her and her child she would occasionally laugh, maybe to make light of a stressful/frustrating situation. I noticed that I was nodding and smiling or laughing along with her. It made me think, “Maybe by laughing or smiling with her as the coach I was jumping in the pool with her in an unspoken way?” I’m worried that by me mirroring her facial expressions and behaviors I was not being neutral. Is this true? Do you as coaches struggle with this? Would I get “dinged” or “points off” if I were being graded as a coach for laughing or smiling with a client while they were describing their issue. Thank you for your time!