In this episode of the Empower World podcast, therapist and executive coach Karen Ledger explores why coaches must continually do their own inner work. Grounded in person-centred principles and the influence of Carl Rogers, she emphasises that genuine relationship - built on congruence, empathy and self-awareness - matters more than any model. She also stresses that ongoing reflection through mentoring and supervision enables coaches to support clients with integrity, courage and care.

Coaching and leadership aren't 'simple' anymore. Many leaders and teams are wrestling with uncertainty, pressure, and imposter syndrome, while coaches find yesterday's models don't stretch far enough (especially with AI now replicating process coaching). In this episode, coaching pioneer David Clutterbuck shares why the future is coach maturity: moving from doing coaching to being a coach. Deep impact and effectiveness comes from coach maturity: the ability to work systemically, and create the conditions where individuals, teams, and whole systems can think for themselves and understand the wider implications. The differentiator in an increasingly AI world becomes presence, wisdom and the courage to hold what cannot be neatly solved.

As AI and digital platforms reshape coaching, the key question becomes: what still makes human coaching irreplaceable? Jonathan Passmore highlights that while AI can do things well, such as summarising and reflecting on what has been shared and asking questions, it cannot replicate lived experience, identity, humour or emotional attunement. The future is not human versus AI, but human with AI. When coaches consciously amplify their humanity and use AI as complementary support, coaching becomes more accessible, flexible and impactful without losing its soul.