Before knowing the types of coaching it is important to know, of course, what coaching is.

Coaching is a methodology that achieves the maximum professional and personal development of people and that influences their transformation, generating changes in perspective, increasing motivation, commitment and responsibility. Therefore, Coaching is a systematic process that facilitates learning and promotes cognitive, emotional and behavioural changes that expand the capacity for action according to the achievement of the proposed goals. There are different classifications of the types of coaching.

Types of coaching: according to content

The concept of coaching is broad, and to avoid confusion certain limits are set to reduce the scope of action. It is not the same to work for the development of a person as it is to work with an executive of a company. Because of this, there are different types of coaching depending on the area of work :

Personal Coaching

Also called life coach , refers to Life Skills Coaching. It works on life projects, personal mission, objectives, strategies for change, etc. This type of coaching aims at the well-being of the person in the different areas of life.

Organizational Coaching

It can be divided into two different types of coaching:

  • Business Coaching : Aimed at organisations or companies in general and not just at executives. It includes topics such as empowerment, time management, fostering relationships between workers, productivity, customer satisfaction, teamwork, etc.
  • Executive Coaching : Within the types of organizational coaching, this type of coaching is aimed at senior executives. It refers to leadership development and explores management and interpersonal communication skills, staff performance, etc.

Sports Coaching

The Sports Coaching works mainly on the motivation and development of all the potential of the athlete . It also works on empowerment and leadership skills. In case of injury it helps in the recovery process. In addition, it also works with the coach and referees, and improves the work of the group of athletes, setting, for example, short and long-term goals for the athletes.

You can find out more about sports coaching at:

Fitness Coach vs Personal Trainer: Psychology in the Gym

Types of Coaching: according to the method used

In addition to the types of coaching that have been discussed above, below are different types of coaching depending on the methods that the coach uses in his sessions. These types of coaching can be individual or group:

Ontological Coaching

It is a process oriented to the optimization of the language, processes and linguistic tools used by the person. Its purpose is to modify and improve the way individuals express themselves. It is based on language and emotions and uses questions, conversations and body movement to bring about change.

Systemic Coaching

This coaching process considers the person as part of a system, i.e. does not consider him/her as an isolated element . It is useful to analyse the impact that the person’s actions have on his/her environment.

Coaching with Emotional Intelligence

This type of coaching is based on the contributions of Daniel Goleman on Emotional Intelligence. Self-knowledge and the way to regulate emotions is basic to achieve personal development and well-being. Emotional intelligence, if properly managed, is useful for the benefit of oneself and others.

Coercive Coaching

It is based on training seminars that claim to achieve a profound change in the person through their high-impact techniques . This type of coaching has been the object of much criticism for its methods . In our article “Firewalking: psychological benefits of walking on coals (the new trend in coaching)” you can see an example.

NLP Coaching (Neurolinguistic Programming)

It analyzes how the person interprets and faces reality (visual, auditory, kinesthetic) to help modify certain behaviors. This type of coaching combines coaching with Neurolinguistic Programming.

We recommend that you take a look at the interview that Psychology and Mind conducted with an NLP coaching professional:

“Lydia Boschetti: Coaching helps release all the client’s talent”

Cognitive Coaching

This type of coaching allows for the effective transmission of knowledge in the coaching process. It takes into account the training of the cognitive functions ; the expressive and receptive functions, memory, learning and thinking.