Book Review: Etica y Coaching Ontologico by Rafael Echeverr

Welcome, coaching friends! In this review, I’ll introduce Ética y Coaching Ontológico by Chilean sociologist and philosopher Rafael Echeverría. I’ll walk you through the main ideas, explore the philosophical underpinnings, and assess the book’s readability, academic rigor, and practical usefulness—from my usual social constructionist and solution-focused lens.

About the Author
Rafael Echeverría is a Chilean sociologist, doctor of philosophy, and internationally respected thinker. Best known in coaching circles for Ontología del Lenguaje (1994), he is also the founder and president of Newfield Consulting and has taught at many universities, including Stanford. Echeverría’s expertise lies in the intersections of sociology, philosophy, and coaching—with a particular influence from Nietzsche, Heidegger, and linguistic philosophy.

Book Overview
Originally published in 2011, Ética y Coaching Ontológico remains relatively unknown in the English-speaking world, yet offers a bold, comprehensive philosophical foundation for coaching. The book is built around 42 sequential chapters—each one dependent on the last—forming a tightly woven argument. You can't skip around; this is a book to read in order.

Echeverría begins with a diagnosis of the ethical crisis in modern humanity, citing three core challenges:

The erosion of life’s meaning

The weakening of personal relationships

The fragmentation of societal coexistence

These crises, he argues, lead to unnecessary suffering and a loss of human potential. His philosophical solution is ontological coaching—a practice grounded in a re-examination of what it means to be human.

Philosophical Foundations
Echeverría draws heavily on Heidegger, contrasting classical metaphysical ontology (focused on immutable being) with phenomenological ontology, which centers the human experience. Drawing also from Socrates, Heraclitus, and Parmenides, he urges us to adopt a fluid view of existence—closer to Heraclitus’s panta rhei (“everything flows”)—and to reject the static, essentialist views of traditional metaphysics.

He critiques five tenets of the Parmenidean metaphysical program:

That reality is unchanging

That being is transcendent and not observable

That truth is accessed through reason

That reason separates us from animals

That humans are fundamentally distinct from other beings

Echeverría then retraces the philosophical trajectory from Spinoza, Feuerbach, Darwin, and Nietzsche, through Buber, Heidegger, and finally to linguistic philosophers like Austin and Searle. These thinkers shape his argument that language is not just descriptive, but world-creating—and that we are constituted through language and conversation.

Key Coaching Concepts
Central to Echeverría’s model is the idea of the observer: who we are shapes what we see, and by changing how we observe, we open new possibilities for action. This concept aligns closely with solution-focused and systemic ideas of perception and affordance.

He also introduces his “Osar model”, which includes feedback loops and second-order observation. When our actions no longer bring desired outcomes, we must reflect on the conditions of our behavior—not to analyze past trauma, but to generate new ways of being.

One important theme is that change is not only internal. Echeverría insists that transformation also involves one’s environment and social systems—placing responsibility not solely on the individual. His ethical framework resists rigid individualism and instead supports co-created realities and shared responsibility.

Echeverría’s view of truth is not absolute but pragmatic: the best interpretation is the one that creates more possibilities, deeper meaning, and greater human connection. Not all perspectives are equal, but validity is judged by utility and ethics, not metaphysical certainty.

On the Soul, Systems, and Ethics
Echeverría reinterprets the human soul not as a metaphysical entity but as the particular mode of being that emerges from our dual relationship with ourselves and our environment. His approach blends Nietzschean and systemic thought: we are shaped by systems, and in turn shape them. This moves coaching away from heroic individualism toward relational humility.

In terms of ethics, he introduces “ethical-emotional axes”—such as arrogance vs. humility, fear vs. trust, or resentment vs. dignity. While I found this section somewhat vague, the overall argument is clear: coaching should be a learning practice aimed at profound personal transformation, not merely skill development or performance enhancement.

Echeverría also stresses the importance of coaching presence: detachment from moral judgment, humility, and deep relational engagement. He beautifully frames love as something built through action and presence. The coach listens, steps into the client's shoes, and creates safety—not through technique, but through human connection.

Coaching Process and Cautions
Coaching, for Echeverría, begins with recognition of a developmental opportunity. The client stands between an old and potential new identity, and the coach partners with them through that transition.

Although he sometimes speaks of “understanding the root of the problem,” which diverges from my solution-focused approach, his overall framing is deeply aligned with narrative and systemic philosophies.

He emphasizes that coaching is not therapy and that the coach must avoid interpreting the client. Instead, the coach offers observations with humility, knowing there is no single truth.

Echeverría is also critical of overly rigid coaching structures and distinguishes between teaching coaching (where structure helps) and doing coaching, which must be fluid and responsive. His quote that “only the coachee can judge whether the coaching was successful” resonates deeply with my own beliefs.

Evaluation
Readability: ★★★☆☆
This is not light reading. The writing is clear and the argument well-structured, but the philosophical depth demands focus—and it’s only available in Spanish. If you’re comfortable with academic texts, it’s rewarding.

Academic Rigor: ★★★★★
Echeverría delivers a highly coherent philosophical foundation for coaching. While formal citations are sparse, the engagement with philosophical traditions is clear and robust.

Practical Usefulness: ★★☆☆☆
This is not a how-to book. It provides a philosophical lens for coaching, which is incredibly valuable—but practical methods must be extrapolated or supplemented with additional material.

Final Thoughts
This is a powerful and rigorous book that deserves much more attention in the coaching world—especially among those interested in the deeper “why” of our profession. It elegantly bridges philosophy, ethics, and practice while challenging rigid paradigms of human nature and truth.

I recommend Ética y Coaching Ontológico for any coach who wants to understand the being behind the doing. If you enjoy the theoretical underpinnings of coaching as much as the tools, this book is for you.

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