Over the years, Katrijn and Youri have worked closely with dozens of aspiring nondual coaches, many of whom hesitated to call themselves coaches. This led to the question: Can coaching exist without the label of a coach? Is it possible for the ‘coach’ to step back entirely, allowing coaching to unfold naturally?

Traditional coaching often addresses conflicts by reinforcing separation—between the problem and the solution, the coach and the coachee, the current state and the desired state. This framework, though helpful at times, may perpetuate the very divisions that cause conflict in the first place.

In nondual coaching, there is no coach, no client, and no separation. It’s not the coach’s responsibility whether the client ‘gets it’ or how deep their understanding is. The role is simply to point to what is already the case. Preaching or pushing toward an outcome only reinforces separation, creating more barriers to true understanding.

But let’s be honest: many of us became coaches because we wanted to help. We learned to say things like, “I’m only the mirror,” or “I’m not helping; the client helps themselves.” Yet, deep down, the desire to help remains.

Instead of repressing this desire, nondual coaching encourages us to become aware of it. This awareness allows us to let be (not get rid of) our self-centered desires, needs, and expectations as coaches. By noticing these, we can drop the pressure to achieve outcomes and realize that true coaching isn’t about helping in the way we might think.

Coaching from a nondual understanding means recognizing that we’re not the coach and are not actually doing the coaching. Coaching happens without us. When we let go of trying to help, we see that we can never “help” anyone in the traditional sense.

Paradoxically, this complete letting go is exactly what makes us most helpful. It allows coaching to happen in the present moment—effortlessly and naturally. There is no need for premeditation or reflection; just being in the moment is enough. If at any point it doesn’t feel effortless, it means the ego has stepped in.

Ultimately, coaching unfolds without labels or effort. It transcends the role of the coach and the client, addressing the mechanism of separation at its core and pointing back to the wholeness that is always present. When we embrace this, we allow coaching to happen as a natural expression of what is, free from the need to help or fix.