How to Run an Awesome Workshop Using the Wheel of Life (in Under an Hour)!

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Emma-Louise
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How to Run a Workshop Using the Wheel of Life Image

Wheel of Life Template Exercise Page 1

Get Your Free Wheel of Life Template here

In this article I share a simple but powerful way to Run a Workshop Using the Wheel of Life Template. In this workshop outline, you will also get the chance to share who you are as a coach, how you can help your attendees, and any special offers you might have for attendees! And the outline provided includes what to do, when, questions to ask and a timed agenda.

If you haven't run a workshop before, using the Wheel of Life Template (get yours free here) is an easy way to get started. I would encourage you to start here and build your experience with managing groups and running events. You can learn about your audience, practice, see what works and begin to discover your style.

Finally, if you're just starting out, it can be hard to drum up interest in a workshop yourself. You could approach some local networking groups, companies, clubs or meet-up groups and see if they're interested in you coming in to do an inspirational workshop on how to have more life balance.

When preparing to run a workshop using the Wheel of Life to talk about life balance, be sure to bring you - and your passion into it! Choose your key message about life balance, and then 3 sub points you want them to know. Then intersperse this information into the agenda below.

Learn everything you need to know about the ultimate coaching tool from The Complete Guide to the Wheel of Life.

How to Run a Workshop Using the Wheel of Life (Agenda with Timings and Outline):

INTRODUCTION:

  1. 5 mins - Introduce yourself, your business, and why you think balance is so important.
    • Start by welcoming attendees and introducing yourself and your business/business name.
    • Then share a personal "teaching story" about your own experience with life balance. Or, if you have a story of a client you helped to achieve more balance and the results, this is great too! NOTE: Be sure to have permission to share a client's story, or create a "blended" story from several client experiences which has no identifying information.

MAIN BODY:

  1.  10 mins - Talk ABOUT Balance with your attendees.
    • Share your thoughts on why balance is so important - especially these days.
    • Ask attendees how they feel when they are not in balance.
    • Ask attendees what they think balance is, and how it might feel to be 'in balance'.
    • Next ask attendees what balance might look like for them? How would they know when they are 'in balance'? How does it feel?
    • It's also fun/interesting to ask, "So, when was the last time you felt your life was in balance?"
    • Share that we don't 'achieve' balance (or at least not for long). The key is to know whether you are moving towards or away from balance. Ask how this perspective could help them?
      Tip: It's great if you have a whiteboard or flipchart where you can write down what people are saying. This helps with visual learners and makes people feel more involved.
  2. 5 mins - COMPLETE the Wheel of Life Template.
    • Explain that the "Wheel of Life" Exercise is a great tool to check-in with how balanced their life is, and where it might be out of balance.
    • Explain the 8 segments on the wheel and ask attendees to consider what satisfaction would feel like for each area, then to score their current level of satisfaction out of 10 for each area.
      Tip: It's good to specifically show them how to draw the line and add each score to their wheel.
      Tip: Remind your attendees to follow their gut and write down the first number they think of (not to justify their score and increase it because they SHOULD feel better!)
  3. 15 mins - REVIEW the Wheel in small groups.

    • Start by asking your attendees to look at their completed wheels and say, "If this was your wheel of life, would it be a bumpy ride?"
    • Next ask your attendees to get into groups of 3-4 and review and discuss their results.
    • Give people 2-3 questions to consider, for example, "What surprises were there for you?", "How do you feel about your life as you look at your Wheel?", and "How would you like to be spending time in these areas?" (there are more questions you could ask included in the instructions on page 2 of our wheel of life coaching form).
  4. 10 mins - DISCUSS and SHARE learnings from the Wheel of Life as a larger group.
    • Some great questions to ask the group include:
      • So, what did you learn and notice as you reviewed your wheels with each other?
      • Which categories do you most want to improve?
      • What needs to change to bring more balance into your life?
      • What are the common themes we're noticing in the room today?
      • What help and support might you need from others to make the necessary changes and be more in balance?

WRAP-UP

  1. 5 mins - Each person identifies an ACTION to create more balance
    • Ask each person to come up with ONE action they could take to move closer to balance in their lives, and write it next to the relevant category on their wheel.
    • A great question to ask is, "If there was one key action you could take that would begin to bring everything into balance, what would it be?"
      Tip: If anyone struggles to identify an action try asking, "What is the smallest or easiest thing you could commit to, to move towards balance?"
  2. 5 mins - SUMMARISE and wrap-up the session
    • Thank the attendees for being there and sharing!
    • Tip: If you have time, it's nice to ask everyone to share their action with the room. Allow 30-45 seconds per person.
    • Share and summarise your main point and 3 sub-points about life balance. You could also share a powerful quote if you like - some examples include:
      • "Looking back at the times where I allowed my work to create stress and frustration in my life, I now realize what I thought was important really was not. I am not saying you should not take your work seriously; what I am saying is that we need to realize that life is all about balance." Catherine Pulsifer
      • "Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance and order and rhythm and harmony." Thomas Merton
      • "Problems arise in that one has to find a balance between what people need from you and what you need for yourself." Jessye Norman
    • Wrap-up the session by talk about what you offer, specifically how you could help them create more balance and fulfilment in life. (It's particularly good if you have a special offer for your attendees for one-on-one coaching, and/or ongoing group coaching offer around creating a balanced and more fulfilled life!
    • Optionally, (which I recommend) you can also ask for feedback and get permission to send them your email newsletter!
  3. FINALLY, make sure no-one leaves empty-handed!
    • Mention the handouts on offer at the back of the room (branded with your details on) for them to take home. Examples could include a special report on coaching, articles you have written on life balance, a few branded coaching forms and exercises for attendees to take away - and your flyer listing your special offer (that can be given to friends etc)?

This workshop packs a powerful punch in a short space of time - helping people connect with how balanced their life is, how they feel about that, where the issues might be - and identifying one action to take away and improve things!

IMPORTANT: You don't have to be perfect, especially if you're offering a free workshop! I guarantee people will love what you have to say and appreciate this valuable window to meet and share with others, learn about themselves and improve their lives! Just get out there and start sharing you!

If you liked this article on How to Run a Workshop Using the Wheel of Life, you may also like:

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, 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 >>

Categories: Balance & Self-Care, Coaching Tools for Workshops, Coaching Wheel, Grow Your Coaching Business, Health & Wellness Coaching, Life Coaching

Image of Intelligent businesswoman thinking about workshop by kurhan via Shutterstock

30 Comments

  2. Cindy

    Hi Emma-Louise,
    Thank you for all the wonderful ideas and resources. I am just starting out. Do you offer any materials that are specifically for health and wellness coaching?

    Reply
  3. Katerina

    Dear Emma-Louise,
    Thank you so much for your article, it's a wonderful guidance for me! I'm just starting out and this brings high score in my anxiety's scale. Your article popped up just on time as I was searching for a way to start my first presentation/workshop. The amazing coincidence is that I was also considering to use the Wheel of Life. Now you made it structured and specific.
    Much gratidude and all my best wishes!

    Reply
    • Emma-Louise

      Dear Katerina,

      I'm so glad you found the article helpful AND timely! I'm sure you will do much better than you expect! And that you'll enjoy it more than you expect too (once you get going). Groups are fun, and if you set a framework and get them discussing things together - they do the workshop for you! Warmly, best of luck, Emma-Louise

      Reply
  4. Alinah Kallon

    Hi Emma-Louise
    Thank you for taking your time to share these useful tools with us. They have been very useful for me personally in my job and my business. Thank you.

    Reply
  5. Karen Wiggins

    Just this morning I was thinking...I want to do a workshop but I have no ideas how to break it up. I have it logged in my bullet journal to research and then I opened this. Thank you so much for all of your wonderful ideas and resources.

    Reply
    • Emma-Louise

      Dear Karen, it sounds like the right article at the right time 🙂 It is much easier than you think to run a workshop! And once you've done one, you'll learn lots to help you in the future. Enjoy! Warmly, Emma-Louise 🙂

      Reply
  6. Marsha T

    This is a great exercise! I did something similar which sparked my interest in coaching. I'm
    currently enrolled in a health coaching certification. I think is exercise is a great way to get started with a client. It really sets them up to want more from the relationship. Thank you for sharing I'm going to use this in a 1:1 setting this week. Thanks again!!

    Reply
    • Emma-Louise

      Dear Marsha! Thank-you for taking the time to comment 🙂 I really appreciate it and am glad you found the article inspiring/helpful. Warmly, Emma-Louise

      Reply
  7. Wanda N Walker

    Hi EL,
    Thanks so much for the creativity around how to change tool to make it relevant. I'm starting a new position in a few weeks and was thinking about something to use with my new team! What categories might you use for a wheel of leadership?
    I've enjoyed these tools for many years and I thank you for the refresh and new tools consistently.

    Blessings to you,

    Reply
  8. Ndidi Viviene Nkwopara

    Hi Emma-Louise,
    Thank you very much for the information. I am just preparing for my first workshop. The Wheel of L ife will help greatly.

    Reply
  9. Rebecca Kirk

    Thank you sooooo much for sharing this really helpful article Emme-Louise. I have been scratching my head thinking about potential taster workshop topics and then had a flash of inspiration around using the Wheel of Life which then led me to your ready made outline! It all feels very aligned and very simple. Thank you for your generosity in sharing your knowledge. I hope it comes back to you tenfold!

    Reply
    • Emma-Louise

      Hi Rebecca, thank-YOU for taking the time to share your comment and how this wheel of life article helped! That made my day 🙂 It's so lovely to know you're making a difference. Good luck with your workshop, warmly, Emma-Louise

      Reply
  11. Beena

    Thank you very much for this tool and clear timeline for the workshop. Just what I was looking for on a constrained timeline for a free workshop. Gratitude.

    Reply
    • Emma-Louise

      Dear Beena, I am so glad you found this article about using the Wheel of Life in a SHORT workshop helpful 🙂 Warmly, Emma-Louise

      Reply
  12. Farrah

    Excellent resources! Have bookmarked them ready for when I do my Intro to Coching webinar 🙂

    Reply
    • Michela Phillips

      Amazing! Glad you're enjoying the resources, Farrah!
      - Kindly, Michela

      Reply
  13. Michelle Ryerson

    This is a wonderful article. I have been trying to come up with (or put together) a simple group workshop to get started with my life & wellness coaching career and I'm so happy to have come across this article. I was introduced to the Wheel of Life form during my coach training course.

    Reply
    • Michela Phillips

      So glad you enjoyed the article, Michelle!
      - Kindly, Michela

      Reply
  14. Yinlayefa Adeleke

    This is great! Your tools and resources are a -must -have. Thanks for all you do.

    Reply
  15. Michelle L Davidson

    I am doing my first workshop next week. I had heard about the Wheel of Life and I am going to use it. I am so glad to have found this site. It had ALL the answers to my "What's Next" questions. THANK YOU!

    Reply
    • Michela Phillips

      So glad you like the Wheel of Life, Michelle! I hope your workshop goes well 🙂
      - Kindly, Michela

      Reply

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