Free Coaching Exercises: Online and on Paper

Here are nine free coaching exercises you can run with a client today: the wheel of life, logical levels, SMART goals, the GROW model, limiting beliefs, the wheel of emotions, the Eisenhower matrix, the decision matrix and a personal SWOT. Each one has a free online version on CoachPro Tools, with no sign-up, and below you'll also find how to do it on paper if your client would rather write by hand.

You'll find plenty of "50 life coaching exercises" PDFs out there. This list is shorter on purpose, and it's sorted by goal, because that's the useful question when you plan a session: does the client need to see where they stand, set a goal, question what they tell themselves, or make a call? For the full map of tools and when each one fits, see the guide to coaching tools. Self-discovery exercises (Johari, values, strengths, life timeline) get their own article; everything else is here.

Open notebook with the word Notes written on it, a fountain pen and a pair of glasses on a wooden table

Which coaching exercise fits which goal?

Use the table as a one-minute cheat sheet.

Goal	Exercise	When to use it	Online version
See the big picture	Wheel of life	First session, or to track progress midway and at the end	8 areas scored 1 to 10, with an instant reading
Find where the block is	Dilts' logical levels	When the client keeps trying and nothing changes	6-level pyramid that flags the weakest level
Turn a wish into a goal	SMART goals	When the goal sounds like "I want to feel better"	Goal built letter by letter, plus a plan of up to 5 steps
Structure a whole session	GROW model	When there's a goal but no first step	4 phases, an options chart and a summary
Question what they tell themselves	Limiting beliefs	When they know what to do and don't do it	Iceberg, evidence scale and a new belief
Name what they feel	Wheel of emotions	When all they can say is "I feel bad"	Up to 3 emotions with intensity and where they sit in the body
Prioritize the week	Eisenhower matrix	When they spend the week putting out fires	Tasks dragged into 4 quadrants
Choose between options	Decision matrix	When they go round in circles	Up to 4 options against weighted criteria
Decide with the context in view	Personal SWOT	Job changes, projects, a business	4 weighted quadrants and cross strategies

Which coaching exercises help a client get clarity?

Wheel of life

What it's for: it puts into one picture something the client struggles to put into words. That's why it shows up in so many first sessions.

How to run it: the client rates their satisfaction in eight areas from 1 to 10, without overthinking. Then you look at the wheel together, pick one area and agree on a small step for the week. In the online Wheel of Life you score by tapping the wheel or the boxes, and once all eight areas are done you get a reading with the highest score and the area that may need attention.

On paper: a circle cut into eight slices, 1 at the center and 10 at the edge. Repeat it three months later and the comparison speaks for itself.

Dilts' logical levels

What they're for: finding how deep a problem really sits. A client says "I can't get organized", which is behavior, and as you move up a belief shows up holding it in place.

How to run them: pick one concrete situation and work from the bottom up: environment, behavior, capabilities, beliefs and values, identity and purpose. In the online Logical Levels the client answers each level's question and rates from 1 to 5 how clear it feels; the result points to the weakest level, which is where to keep going.

On paper: six lines in a column, environment at the bottom. Watch for the level where the answers go vague.

Which exercises help set goals?

SMART goals

What it's for: moving from "I want more clients" to something you can plan and track. George T. Doran proposed the acronym in the November 1981 issue of Management Review (Wikipedia): specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.

How to run it: in SMART goals online each letter lights up once its criterion is met, and the goal comes together in one sentence. In step two you add up to five steps and drag them along a timeline up to the deadline.

On paper: five rows, one per letter. The M needs two numbers, today's and the target; without a starting point there's no way to measure pace.

GROW model

What it's for: giving a whole session a shape, from a fuzzy goal to a first step with a date. John Whitmore was the first to publish it, in Coaching for Performance (1992), building on work with Graham Alexander and Alan Fine (Wikipedia).

How to run it: the online GROW model walks through the four phases. In Reality, the client marks where they are today on a 1 to 10 path. In Options they write up to three and place them on a chart by how doable and how motivating each feels. In Will they pick one, set the first step and rate their commitment from 1 to 10. At the end you get a session summary.

On paper: four blocks with their question: what do you want, where are you now, what could you do, what will you do and when?

Which exercises work on beliefs, confidence and emotions?

Limiting beliefs

What it's for: when a client knows what to do and doesn't do it, there's usually an idea underneath that they take as fact. "It's too late for me" and "asking for money is wrong" are common ones. It's also a good place to start if you're looking for coaching exercises to build confidence.

How to run it: the online limiting beliefs exercise has three steps. First you go down a three-layer iceberg: what you want and aren't doing, what you tell yourself when you think about it, and what belief sits underneath. Then you put up to four pieces of evidence for and four against on a scale, and rate how much you believe it. Last, you write a new belief and one action to test it that week.

On paper: three lines for the iceberg and a page split into two columns for the evidence. The weekly action matters most: beliefs change through new experiences.

Wheel of emotions

What it's for: vocabulary. Annoyance, anger and rage are different things, and finding the exact word already helps a client handle it. The wheel comes from Robert Plutchik and arranges eight basic emotions, each with three intensities.

How to run it: in the online Wheel of Emotions the client describes the situation, picks up to three emotions (the center is the strongest intensity) and sees the combination when two neighbors are chosen. Then they mark on a body outline where they feel each one and write what it's asking for.

On paper: a list of the eight basic emotions and three questions: which one is it, where do you feel it, what does it ask of you? If the distress is intense or lasts for weeks, it's no longer a coaching matter and the client should see a mental health professional.

Which exercises help prioritize and decide?

Eisenhower matrix

What it's for: separating urgent from important, two things people mix up all day.

How to run it: in the online Eisenhower Matrix the client writes 6 to 12 tasks from a real week and drags each into its quadrant: do now, schedule, delegate or drop. Once they're all placed, the tool shows the split and where to start.

On paper: a cross that splits the page into four, urgent on top and important on the left. Ask for real tasks, not the ideal list.

Decision matrix

What it's for: bringing order to the thinking of someone stuck on a decision. It sets the options against the criteria that actually matter.

How to run it: the online decision matrix asks for the decision, at least two options (up to four) and three criteria. Each criterion gets a weight from 1 to 5 and each option a score from 1 to 5. The result shows which option comes out on top and which criterion decided it. My advice: have the client set the weights before the scores, so they don't bend them toward the option they already liked.

On paper: a table with options in columns and criteria in rows. Weight times score, then add up.

Personal SWOT

What it's for: deciding with both the inside (strengths, weaknesses) and the outside (opportunities, threats) in view.

How to run it: the online personal SWOT takes up to five points per quadrant, each with a weight (low, medium or high). In step two you pair a strength or weakness with an opportunity or threat and write the strategy, up to four. At the end you see your position on a map along with the strategies you chose.

On paper: four quadrants and, underneath, two or three sentences that start with "I'll use this strength to…".

How do you use these exercises in group coaching?

They work in a workshop too, with one change: each person does the exercise alone and the conversation opens afterwards. Two formats that work well:

Wheel of life in pairs. Each person scores their own and tells their partner which area they'd pick and why.
Eisenhower with the real week. Ask everyone to bring their calendar. When you compare, team patterns come up, like meetings nobody rates as important.

The free versions are for one person per browser. If you want a whole group to do the same exercise from their phones, the platform has open links and QR codes for a tool with multiple participants, with each person's results and an overall view.

Can you print them or download a PDF?

Straight answer, so there are no surprises: the free versions under /en/free/ run in the browser and don't have a print or PDF button. Each one can also be used twice per browser; from the third visit on you see your last result in read-only mode for 30 days. For paper, use the by-hand version included with each exercise above.

Modern desk with an open laptop, a notebook and a cup of coffee

Printing and PDF download live inside CoachPro Tools: every tool's toolbar has Instructions, Save, Print, Download PDF and e-signature. With white label, the PDF carries your logo, your colors and your contact details in the footer.

How do you use them with clients in CoachPro Tools?

The platform has these exercises and many more, organized by category and searchable by the client's situation. You can run them live while sharing your screen, or send them by link so the client fills them in between sessions without creating an account. Their answers are saved to their profile.

All your exercises in one place, with your brand

Use them in session, send them by link and download them as PDF: 30 USD/month, 157 USD/year or a one-time 297 USD.

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Frequently asked questions

Where can I find free coaching exercises as a PDF?

The 15 free CoachPro Tools exercises run online with no sign-up, and they have no PDF download. If you prefer paper, every exercise in this article explains how to do it by hand on a sheet. Printing and branded PDF download are part of the paid platform.

Which coaching exercise should I use in a first session?

The wheel of life is the usual choice: the client rates eight areas from 1 to 10 and within minutes you have a snapshot of where they are and an area to start with. If they already bring a clear goal, the GROW model takes the session to a first step with a date.

Do these exercises work for both one-to-one and group coaching?

Yes. One-to-one, you do them together in the session. In a group, each person does the exercise on their own and then shares in pairs or with the room. The wheel of life and the Eisenhower matrix are two of the best fits for workshops.

Do I need to sign up to use the free tools?

No. They open in your browser with no sign-up and no email. Each one can be used twice per browser; from the third time on it shows your last result in read-only mode for 30 days.

Which coaching exercise helps build confidence?

The limiting beliefs exercise: you find the idea holding the client back, test it with evidence for and against, and replace it with a new belief plus one action for that week. A small, achievable SMART goal helps too, because reaching it gives them fresh evidence.