Coaching Questions to Review Goals and Get Re-Inspired!

Coach at desk with laptop planning goals

When the seasons change is a good time to do a goal review both for ourselves—and our clients.

It's all too easy for us to focus on what we haven't done, so before I go any further I'd like to stress ONE thing—that goals are meant to inspire us, not to beat ourselves up with. So if you find yourself getting frustrated by what you haven't achieved, stop right there!

Instead, this is a great time to 'take stock', do a goal review, look at progress so far and refocus on what's really important.

If it turns out that you're on track with your goals—good for you! And if you feel like your goals have gotten away from you, that's OK too.

Because most of us are running our own businesses (which is a lot of work), we have families, friends—and lives. Expectations are high these days, and as coaches you'll already know that most of us tend to overestimate what we think is achievable in a given timeframe.

So, taking stock and reviewing needs to be done with compassion for ourselves—not judgement. We need to focus on what we have achieved and take time to celebrate and applaud the hard work it took to get there.

Love goal setting? Get our Complete Guide to SMART Goals (with .PDF) >>

So, here are some Goal Review and Refocusing Questions

If you or your client feels on track with their goals ask questions like these:

  1. Are my goals still inspiring? Are they too hard? Too easy?
  2. What might need to change?
  3. What are my 3 biggest priorities for this upcoming quarter?
  4. What could I do to make sure these goals are completed easily?

And if you, or your client feels that they are 'behind' on their goals, ask questions like these:

  1. What are my 3 biggest priorities for the rest of the year?
  2. What could inspire me AND is reasonable to get finished this year?
  3. What is the MOST important thing I want to complete?
  4. What do I need to let go of (whether it's a goal or something else) to ensure I achieve my priority goals?

This is also a great opportunity to remind your clients that:

Goals are important. They help us create the life circumstances we want—and we can get great satisfaction and temporary happiness from achieving them.

But when we're too focused on goals—striving to achieve them—we are merely pursuing happiness. And it's then that we stop enjoying the journey and happiness becomes a destination, instead of always being with us. Let's not make ourselves miserable trying to achieve our goals, let's find a way instead to enjoy that journey...

Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you. Nathaniel Hawthorne

If you liked this article on goal review and refocusing, you may also like:

And if you just love coaching questions try: Coaching Questions: 53 Great Examples and When to Use Them!

Emma-Louise Elsey Headshot

Contributing Author:

Emma-Louise Elsey has been coaching since 2003 and is the Founder of The Coaching Tools Company and Fierce Kindness.com. She's passionate about coaching and personal development. Originally a project and relationship manager for Fortune 500 companies she combined her love of coaching, creativity and systems to create over 100 brandable coaching tools, forms and exercises including 30+ completely free coaching tools. She now serves coaches and the coaching world through her exclusive newsletter for coaches, Coaches Helping Coaches Facebook Group and many other great tools for coaches, plus resources and ideas for your coaching toolbox. The Coaching Tools Company is an official ICF Business Solutions Partner.

Learn more about Emma-Louise & see all their articles here >>

Image of Coach at desk with laptop planning goals by Kraken Images

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