What does the future of coaching look like… and what can we learn from those who helped build it?

Ruth Rochelle returns to The Coach’s Journey Podcast to reflect on how the coaching world has evolved over the past four decades and where it might be heading next.

Prompted by a listener’s question, Ruth shares stories from the early days of coaching - when it was more movement than industry - through the professionalisation of the 1990s to today’s fast-changing, tech-enabled landscape. Alongside the history, she offers her vision for what’s emerging now: deeper work, greater humanity, and a renewed sense of trust.

Ruth and Joey explore how coaching has shifted from performance to presence, from achievement to wholeness, and from certainty to curiosity. They discuss scepticism in the early days (and now), the rise of coaching bodies such as the ICF and EMCC, the impact of technology and AI, and why compassion and simplicity remain at the heart of great coaching.

In this episode, Ruth talks about:

Why the earliest coaching approaches focused on the inner game and self-belief

How the field grew from informal practice to global profession

The evolution from performance and achievement to whole-person coaching

Why trust, compassion, and presence still matter most for coaches today

Ruth also invites every coach to listen inwardly and lead the way forward for the profession.

If you’ve ever wondered how the coaching profession began - or where it’s going next - this conversation offers wisdom, warmth, and hope for coaches building meaningful, sustainable practices in a fast-changing world.

For more information about Ruth, visit https://www.ruthrochelle.com/

For more information about host Joey Owen, visit http://www.joeyowencoaching.com/

Read more about The Coach's Journey at www.thecoachsjourney.com.

Music by My Good Man William: listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KmeQUcTbeE31uFynHQLQg

To support the Coach's Journey, visit www.patreon.com/thecoachsjourney and to join the Coach's Journey Community visit www.thecoachsjourney.com/community.

THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT THAT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN:

FREE Ebook: An Introduction to The Coaching Business Flywheel: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/thecoachingbusinessflywheel

Ruth Rochelle on The Coach’s Journey Podcast (previous episode) https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/78-ruth-rochelle-insight-seminars-systems-theory-and-the-path-to-our-current-truth

International Coaching Federation (ICF) https://coachingfederation.org/

European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) https://www.emccglobal.org/

Tim Gallwey – The Inner Game of Tennis https://www.amazon.co.uk/Inner-Game-Tennis-Classic-Performance/dp/1447288505

Robert Kegan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Kegan

Suzanne Cook-Greuter https://www.linkedin.com/in/susanne-cook-greuter-60056322b/

Bill Torbert https://gla.global/team_member/professor-bill-torbert/

For more on Adult Development on The Coach’s Journey, see our interview with Jennifer Garvey Berger https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-42-jennifer-garvey-berger-the-answer-to-either-or-is-both

Sir John Whitmore – Coaching for Performance https://www.amazon.co.uk/Coaching-Performance-Principles-Personal-Professional/dp/1473658128

The Coach’s Journey Podcast with Ruth Rochelle and Joey (video version) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kby9-D_5JwA

BIOGRAPHY FROM RUTH

For more than 25 years Ruth has been a coach – an executive and team coach, workshop facilitator, transformational coach and coach supervisor – with private clients and with organisations.

Ruth is an Accredited Master Executive Coach with APECS, an IFS (Internal Family Systems) Practitioner with the IFS Institute and a Coaching Constellations Practitioner, and her clients have included creative professionals, start-up founders, senior managers, young emerging leaders, celebrities, coaches, and many more.

Ruth supports her clients to create and achieve their visions, enrich their relationships, navigate changing circumstances, embark on new life directions, start and grow businesses, address specific challenges, experience greater wellbeing and connect to a meaningful purpose.