This document discusses the origins and roots of coaching. It begins by outlining some of the early influences on coaching from disciplines like philosophy, psychology, education and sports. It then discusses how coaching emerged from various independent sources in the late 19th/early 20th century and spread through relationships. The document also notes that modern coaching patterns are dynamic and contextual, encompassing a continuum of attributes. Finally, it discusses how coaching came into existence to fill an unmet need for change and development as the world became more complex, interactive and subject to rapid change in the late 20th century.