12 Questions Fitness Coaches Should Ask When Wanting to Help Clients Develop a Growth Mindset

One of the things I say over and over again when teaching other fitness coaches how to become actual mindset coaches is for them to ASK MORE QUESTIONS⁣!

Asking (high-quality) questions is especially important if you're a mindset coach looking to get your clients unstuck from their fixed mindset, increase their self-awareness, and overcome limiting beliefs.

I'm sure that all Health Mindset Coaching Certification grads can attest to the fact that I'm annoying about this, but I swear I do this for a reason. 

You'll notice that even in my Instagram captions, I typically end with questions.⁣

Can You Teach a Growth Mindset?

If you’re thinking it might not even be possible to change the mindset of your clients, that very thought process might be what’s holding you back from helping your clients see better results. 

Let’s do a quick assessment of where your own mindset is at first; you can’t expect to help other people with their mindset if you don’t have a handle on your own! 

Growth mindset, a term first coined by Carol Dweck with her Mindset Theory, can absolutely be developed (and something you can have a hand in developing in your clients!). 

Carol Dweck defines a growth mindset as the belief that people can develop abilities and intelligence through dedication and hard work. A growth mindset is the opposite of a fixed mindset, where individuals believe their abilities are static and unchangeable.

Coaching to help guide your clients to a growth mindset is not only possible but highly effective when it comes to helping clients stick to the plan and be more successful long-term.. Mindset coaching focuses on helping people understand and shift their mental frameworks, transforming fixed mindsets into growth-oriented ones.

Why You Need to Ask the Right Questions as a Mindset Coach

By asking your clients the right mindset coaching questions, you will not only become a better health coach, but your clients will be more successful, too! And of course, when your clients are more successful that means they’ll stick around longer and refer new clients to you. This is how helping clients with their mindset (and having the right tools to do so) can increase your income as a coach.

This is a win for your coaching business because you'll increase client retention and adherence, and it's a win for your clients because they develop the skills to overcome self-sabotage, fixed mindsets, and limiting beliefs. Your clients will learn new skills thanks to your growth mindset coaching so they can ultimately achieve the goals they originally came to you for.

The benefits of asking your clients good mindset coaching questions:

• Develop a stronger relationship & connection⁣
• Allow your clients to feel heard⁣
• Uncover core beliefs⁣
• Boost independence and autonomy⁣
• Break through negative thought patterns⁣

This list could go on and on with the benefits, so I encourage you to ask your clients more questions! For their benefit and for yours.

Growth Mindset Coaching Questions to Ask Your Clients

⁣Now that you understand why it's important to ask your clients lots of questions, let's dig into what kinds of mindset coaching questions you should ask. 

There are three categories of mindset coaching questions: exploration, visualization, and evaluation. It's essential that mindset coaches ask all of these types of questions to help their clients achieve success in their pursuit of health and fitness.

Note: Some of these questions might force your client out of their comfort zone, but nobody achieved a growth mindset by refusing to do things just because they're uncomfortable.

1. Exploration Questions

If you want to get your clients into the right mindset for change, you must ask them open-ended questions. These questions require more than a yes or no response and can give you valuable insight into their mindset, values, and behaviors. 

Questions you can ask:

What allowed that to happen?

When challenges arise, it's essential to try to get to the bottom of them so you can learn from the situation. 

What went well?

Don't only focus on “fixing” things that go wrong. Determine what went well, too!

Why do you think that didn't work?

When something doesn't go according to plan, taking the time to debrief and determine what to do differently next time is crucial.

2. Visualization Questions

These are questions that will “play out the script.” For better or for worse.

Visualization questions might get your clients to realize their true desires when they start thinking more about the big picture.

Questions you can ask:

How will your life change?

Spending time visualizing the outcome of changed behavior and lifestyle can help provide motivation. Try to get your clients to be as specific as possible when they are thinking about how their lives can change.

What barriers do you predict?

Don't only visualize the good parts. Prepare for the challenges, too, so they don't feel like a failure the first time something goes off plan.

How will you feel differently?

In making decisions or plans, thinking about the feelings involved depending on the chosen route can help your client make the best decision. 

3. Evaluation Questions

Evaluation questions will determine your client's readiness to change. You're there to help get your clients unstuck, but they have to be ready to put in the effort.

As a mindset coach, you're there to encourage, support, and guide, but you can't do the work for them. These questions are a good way to determine if you need to work more with them on cultivating a growth mindset and ditching their fixed mindset tendencies.

Questions you can ask:

Do you really want to change?

I realize that this sounds too basic to work, but people rarely check in with themselves. This question can encourage deeper thought. 

How ready are you to change on a scale of 1-10?

Asking why your client chose a specific number can spark change-based conversations and ideas.

I love using rating scales in my forms and during coaching conversations because they give a much better insight into your client's mindset.

Do you think you can change?

This is another basic but extremely important mindset question. Ask this as soon as possible. Don't wait until you realize that a fixed mindset is the problem.

4. Self-determination Questions

Self-determination questions will give your clients more autonomy, an essential aspect of mindset coaching. 

As a growth mindset coach, you want your clients to feel empowered and in control of their success, which means you want to encourage autonomy. After all, successful mindset coaches know that fitness coaching is not just about giving advice.

Questions you can ask: 

Can I suggest some ideas?

Instead of rushing to provide your thoughts, check in with your client to see if they want your opinions. 

Before I share my thoughts, what do you think about it?

Don't make this about you! Involve your clients in the goal-setting and planning process.  

What do you think we should do?

Enroll clients in making decisions, as this will help them start to see how they can do this on their own.

Growth Mindset Tips for Everyone

If you're NOT a coach, these questions can still be helpful when having conversations with loved ones, co-workers, employees, etc!⁣

You can also ask yourself these questions. It takes a bit of practice to be mindful and honest with yourself, but it will get easier with time, and you may be surprised at how helpful it is to consider each of the above questions.

Whatever position you're in, ask away because solid communication skills will never go out of style.

Real Mindset Coaching

While these questions are a great way to help you encourage your clients to cultivate a growth mindset, real mindset coaching is more complex than asking a dozen predefined questions.

Including mindset work inside health and fitness coaching practices has become increasingly popular over the last several years, but unfortunately, not everyone who calls themselves a mindset coach is qualified in any way to coach clients through their fixed mindset tendencies and into a growth mindset.

When I realized that there are many unqualified "mindset coaches" out there, I knew I had to use my expertise to help them and their clients, so I created the Health Mindset Coaching Certification.

I used my expertise in psychology and health behavior change to develop the Health Mindset Coaching Certification to bridge the gap between the extensive focus on nutrition and training science and the lack of focus on applying science to clients' mindsets. 

Throughout this course, I'll teach you what I've learned from years of coaching inside my own fitness coaching business and researching during my Ph.D. program in Psychology.

If you're interested in mindset and psychology but aren't sure how to actually apply the research and science to your coaching programs, the Health Mindset Coaching Certification is for you!

Sign up for the waitlist to grab some FREE mindset coaching lessons, and get first dibs (and bonuses) when the time comes to join the next round of The Health Mindset Coaching Certification.

Check out the original Instagram post HERE.

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IG: @coachkaseyjo @healthmindsetcert