Originally Posted on The Coaching Tools Company as 3 More Ways to Use the Coaching Wheel: Find Calm, Be a Better Parent & Get a Promotion!
1) A Calming Wheel for Your Clients
![Delaney-3-Keys-to-Motivation-shutterstock_215948584_1200x628 Client or Coach building motivation by sitting on desk meditating](https://natureconnectedcoaching.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Delaney-3-Keys-to-Motivation-shutterstock_215948584_1200x628.jpg)
Stress is endemic in modern life. It’s easy to use a Blank Life Wheel to help clients make a plan that calms them—and reduces their stress.
INSTRUCTIONS:
- First ask clients identify and label a blank wheel with 8 things that they find calming.
- Ask something like: What do you do to find calm in life? (Include things you do regularly to calm yourself)
- What are the strategies, actions and techniques they use?
- We’re looking for things they can do (or not do!) that calms them—or helps reduce their stress.
- These may be things that make them feel better in the moment, but these can be longer-term habits or activities too.
- Ask them to think broadly. If they’re struggling to come up with 8 things you can ask them to:
- Consider the 5 senses (sight/sound/touch/smell/taste).
- Think back in time. What has worked in the past? What was calming when they were small? What did they do as a teenager? As a young/er adult?
- Imagine a time recently when they were particularly stressed. What did they do (or not do?)
- Ask something like: What do you do to find calm in life? (Include things you do regularly to calm yourself)
- TIP: Some clients may not know what calms them, and will find it hard to come up with 8 things for the wheel. If so, this is a great coaching opportunity.
- Once your client has a list of 8 items, next ask your client to score out of 10 how powerful each item is as a stress-reducer.
- Then review and discuss the resulting scores. Ask questions like:
- What surprised you?
- Which technique or strategy do you use most often? Why is this one used the most? How is that working for you (or not)?
- So which technique actually works the best and why?
- What works the least? And why do they think that is?
- Which technique would they like to do more of? And less of?
- How could they adapt each “calming” item to increase the scores?
- Finally, wrap-up by brainstorming an action plan,
- Identify 1-3 actions your client can commit to that’ll reduce their stress.
- TIP: This may mean choosing a new core strategy!
Examples of adapting our calming techniques:
TIP: Remember, we don’t suggest these ideas! These examples are just to give you an idea or alternative ways your clients could implement calming activities for themselves. |
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BLANK Coaching Wheel
One of our most popular coaching exercises, this blank wheel of life is a powerful, fully customizable free coaching tool! Read More…
Also Available In: Life Coaching Toolkit
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2) A Parenting Wheel
![Son runs to his father hugs_1200x628_L Child running to father](https://natureconnectedcoaching.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Son-runs-to-his-father-hugs_1200x628_L.jpg)
Use a Blank Coaching Wheel to help clients prioritise which areas of their parenting to focus on.
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Ask clients to label a blank wheel with 8 things they consider important to be a good parent.
- We don’t want our clients simply listing the areas they need to improve.
- Instead what we want here is for them to ponder in a heartfelt way, the 8 things the client thinks make up being a good parent.
- If it helps, you can ask them to consider what their own parents did well—and didn’t do well—when they were growing up.
- Next, ask your clients them to score how well they think they’re doing in each area.
- IMPORTANT: Ask your clients to be kind and patient with themselves as they consider their scores. This is simply a tool to identify and prioritise areas to focus on.
- TIP: Do not allow your client to use this as an opportunity to ‘judge’ themselves! If it helps, ask them to imagine that an extremely kind and understanding parenting expert is doing the scoring.
- TIP: If necessary, remind clients that being here and working with you is a wonderful example of being a good parent (eg. being willing to learn and wanting to improve!)
- Review and discuss the resulting scores. Ask questions like:
- So, as you look at your completed parenting wheel, how do you feel?
- What surprised you? And what didn’t?
- Which area most needs your attention?
- And which segment would you be most excited to work on?
- Finally, develop an action plan.
- One option is simply to focus on the areas that have the lowest scores. But my recommendation is to choose 3-4 areas to work with:
- First ask them to choose 1-2 areas with a high score and then ask how they could boost this area they’re good at!
- Then ask them to choose 1-2 areas with low scores, and come up with an action plan to raise these scores as well.
- One option is simply to focus on the areas that have the lowest scores. But my recommendation is to choose 3-4 areas to work with:
Love this? Get Your Free Blank Wheel of Life below:
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BLANK Coaching Wheel
One of our most popular coaching exercises, this blank wheel of life is a powerful, fully customizable free coaching tool! Read More…
Also Available In: Life Coaching Toolkit
Learn More
Free!
3) Get a Promotion at Work Wheel *
![9-Things-Career-shutterstock_552201991_1200x628 Happy Woman in Office with Colleagues for New Career Coaching](https://natureconnectedcoaching.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/9-Things-Career-shutterstock_552201991_1200x628.jpg)
Help your clients get that promotion with a Blank Coaching Wheel!
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Ask your client to label the wheel “My Promotion Wheel” (or similar).
- Next ask your client to identify 8 key areas they need to be competent in (eg. knowledge/skills) to get their promotion.
- TIP: Your client may first need to do some pre-work to identify the skills/knowledge needed for the promotion.
- This might mean some homework like online research, talking to the HR department and/or their boss and reviewing the job specification.
- Now ask your client to score how competent they are currently in each area out of 10.
- Review your client’s competency scores and make an action plan.
- Clarify whether each ‘gap’ is a skill or knowledge gap. This will help when it comes to choosing actions!
- As they look at their wheel scores, what most surprises them? Excites them? Scares them?
- Next, explore action ideas!
- If a competence is 7/10 or less:
- How can they raise their competency levels in the areas where they are 7/10 or less?
- If a competency is 8/10 or more:
- How can they highlight their competence and strengths in these areas where they already excel?
- If a competence is 7/10 or less:
- Finally make an action plan and identify next steps or actions
* If you like this Promotion Wheel idea, check out our Career Wheel below:
We also turned this popular Promotion Wheel idea into a done-for-you Career Wheel Tool with instructions. Use this exercise to help your clients get a new job or promotion. Now also in our Career Coaching Toolkit!
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Career Wheel (Get a Job or Promotion)
Use this powerful yet simple career wheel coaching exercise to help your clients bridge a skills gap at work, or get that new job or promotion! Read More…
Also Available In: Career Coaching Toolkit
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$9.95
OPTIONAL EXTRA:
There may be a difference between how competent your client is seen to be and their actual competence. And, of course, what matters when it comes to getting a promotion is how competent others think they are. So, if you think your client has some work to do to help others see they are competent and ready for that promotion, then:
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Wrap-up
So, that’s just a few more ways you can customize the Wheel of Life Exercise for specific types of clients and get the most from this incredibly powerful tool!
If you’re new to the Wheel of Life, try this popular:
And here are some more Coaching Wheel customisation ideas:
- Evaulate Relationships: Use the coaching wheel to raise awareness of what qualities matter most in a potential partner. Or to evaluate a current relationship or discover who energises and drains us. Like this idea? Try 3 Ways to Use the Wheel to Evaluate Relationships!
- In Career and Executive Coaching: Help clients make a decision, get stronger after a disappointment or gain deeper understanding of a situation! For more on these ideas read 3 New Ways to Use the Wheel of Life in Career, Executive or Business Coaching!
- And for even more ways to customise the Coaching Wheel: See our extremely popular article: 12 Awesome New Ways to Use The Wheel of Life Exercise in your coaching practice.
Finally, you may also like: 54+ Wheel of Life Coaching Questions to Rock Your Coaching Sessions!