Coaching question bank
Over 40 open coaching questions organized by GROW stage and purpose — clarify, explore, surface assumptions, shift perspective and more. Nothing you enter is saved.
42 questions
- GoalWhat would you like to get from our time together today?
- GoalIf this conversation turned out to be really useful, what would be different by the end of it?
- GoalHow will you know you’ve made progress?
- GoalWhy does this matter to you right now?
- GoalHow much of this is within your control?
- RealityWhat is happening at the moment, as specifically as you can describe it?
- RealityWhat have you tried so far, and what happened?
- RealityWho else is involved, and how do they see it?
- RealityWhat is getting in the way?
- RealityWhat resources, skills or support do you already have?
- RealityWhen was the most recent time that happened? What exactly did you say, and what did they do next?
- OptionsWhat could you do? What else?
- OptionsIf there were no constraints, what would you try?
- OptionsWhat would someone you admire do in your position?
- OptionsWhat has worked for you in a similar situation before?
- OptionsWhich of these options appeals to you most, and why?
- WillWhat will you do, and by when?
- WillWhat might get in the way, and how will you handle it?
- WillWho needs to know about this, or could support you?
- WillOn a scale of 1 to 10, how committed are you to this step? What would make it higher?
- WillHow will we both know it happened?
- ClarifyWhat do you mean by ‘stuck’?
- ClarifyCan you give me an example?
- ExploreWhat else is going on?
- ExploreWhat’s underneath that?
- ExploreWhat matters most to you here?
- Surface assumptionsWhat are you assuming about how they’ll react?
- Surface assumptionsHow do you know that’s true?
- Shift perspectiveHow might this look a year from now?
- Shift perspectiveWhat would you tell a friend in this situation?
- Find resourcesWhen have you handled something like this before?
- Move to actionWhat’s one step you could take this week?
- Move to actionWhat would success look like?
- Move to actionHow might you approach that?
- Capture learningWhat are you taking away from today?
- Check & ask permissionIs this still the most useful thing to talk about?A closed question used to check direction.
- Check & ask permissionCan I share an observation?Asking permission before offering your own view.
- Check & ask permissionI have a thought; would it be useful to hear it? Feel free to discard it.Offer an idea openly, then hand the decision back.
- ExploreWhat led you to that decision?A gentler alternative to “Why did you do that?”
- Find resourcesWho else could help with this?An open alternative to the leading “Have you thought about talking to HR?”
- Move to actionWhat do you want to happen next time?An open alternative to “Don’t you think you should set a boundary?”
- ExploreWhat feels like the biggest issue here?An open alternative to “Isn’t the real problem your workload?”
How it works
- Every question comes from our GROW and powerful-questions guides, grouped by GROW stage (Goal, Reality, Options, Will) and by purpose.
- Includes open alternatives to common leading questions, and a few closed questions for checking direction and asking permission.
How to read it
Use questions as starting points, not a script. A powerful question is usually short, open and tied closely to what the client just said — and silence after asking is part of the question. Ask one at a time.
The full explanation is in our guide: How to Ask Powerful Coaching Questions.