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Complete Guide to the Wheel of Life Template Tool

As a life coach, I have worked with many successful executives and entrepreneurs over the last decade. I have seen how even the most successful people often struggle to find balance. They excel in their careers but feel empty in their relationships. They build financial empires while their health crumbles. They achieve everything society defines as success, yet wake up feeling unfulfilled.

This is exactly why I consider the wheel of life assessment one of the most powerful tools in my coaching arsenal. It’s not just another self-help exercise. It shows the truth about where you really stand in all areas of your life. When I first discovered this tool early in my coaching journey, I was skeptical. Could a simple circle divided into segments really provide meaningful insights? The wheel of life template is amazing. I have used it with clients. I have also experienced its benefits in my own life. I believe it is truly revolutionary.

The beauty of the wheel of life lies in its simplicity and visual impact. When successful people see their life laid out on paper, they notice some areas are high, like a 9 or 10. Other areas may be low, around a 3 or 4. This creates a clear moment of understanding. This isn’t about judgment—it’s about awareness, and awareness is the first step toward transformation.

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What is the Wheel of Life Assessment?

The wheel of life is a tool that helps you see how happy you are in different parts of your life. Think of it as a dashboard for your personal fulfillment—much like how you might track key performance indicators in your business. The tool shows life as a wheel split into parts. Each part stands for an important aspect of your life.

This coaching tool comes from the work of Paul J. Meyer in the 1960s. He created the modern version we use today. The idea of life as a wheel is very old. It shows up in many cultures and spiritual traditions. The modern wheel of life is powerful because it turns ancient wisdom into a useful guide for today’s high achievers.

The wheel of life assessment is based on a simple idea. Rate your satisfaction in each life category from 1 to 10. Then, plot these scores on the wheel. The resulting visual representation immediately shows you which areas are thriving and which need attention. But here’s what most people miss—the goal isn’t to achieve a perfect 10 in every category. Instead, it’s about creating awareness of imbalances and making intentional choices about where to focus your energy.

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The 8 Core Wheel of Life Categories

In my years of coaching, I have seen that people organize their wheel of life in different ways. However, eight main areas always stand out as key to a fulfilling life. Let me walk you through each one:

Career and Business

This encompasses your professional satisfaction, career advancement, business growth, and sense of purpose in your work. For entrepreneurs and executives, this often includes leadership effectiveness, team dynamics, and the impact you’re making in your industry.

Financial Health

Beyond just income, this category covers financial security, investment growth, debt management, and your relationship with money. I have coached many high earners who score low here. This is often due to bad financial habits or limiting beliefs about money.

Health and Wellness

Physical health forms the foundation for everything else. This includes energy levels, fitness, nutrition, sleep quality, and preventive healthcare. Without robust health, even the highest achievers eventually hit walls in other areas.

Family and Relationships

The quality of your relationships with spouse, children, parents, and extended family. This category shows the hidden costs of success. Many high achievers give up family time to advance their careers.

Social Life and Friends

Your connections outside of family—friendships, social activities, community involvement, and your broader social network. Loneliness is epidemic among successful professionals, making this category crucial for long-term happiness.

Personal Growth and Learning

Continuous development, skill acquisition, reading, education, and self-improvement activities. High-achievers typically score well here, but sometimes focus too narrowly on professional development while neglecting personal growth.

Recreation and Fun

Hobbies, entertainment, travel, relaxation, and activities that bring joy without productivity goals. This is where many driven professionals struggle most—they’ve forgotten how to play without purpose.

Spirituality and Life Purpose

Your connection to something greater than yourself, whether through religion, meditation, philosophy, or a sense of mission. This provides the deeper meaning that sustains motivation through challenges.

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How to Complete Your Wheel of Life Assessment

Let me guide you through the exact process I use with my clients. This isn’t just about filling in numbers. It’s about having a moment of honest self-reflection. This can change your whole perspective.

Step 1: Prepare Your Mindset

Before you begin, find a quiet space where you won’t be interrupted. This assessment deserves your full attention. Take a few deep breaths and commit to radical honesty with yourself. The only person you’d be deceiving with inflated scores is yourself.

Step 2: Draw Your Wheel

Create a large circle on paper and divide it into eight equal sections. Label each section with one of the core categories. You can download a wheel of life PDF template if you want. However, I suggest drawing your own. There is something special about creating it by hand.

Step 3: Define What Each Number Means

Before rating, establish clear criteria for your scale:

• 1-3: Significant dissatisfaction, urgent attention needed
• 4-6: Moderate satisfaction, room for improvement
• 7-8: Good satisfaction, minor adjustments needed
• 9-10: Excellent satisfaction, maintenance mode

Step 4: Rate Each Category Honestly

For each section, ask yourself: “On a scale of 1 to 10, how happy am I with this part of my life?” Don’t think too much—trust your first feeling. Your first instinct is usually the most accurate.

Step 5: Plot Your Scores

Mark each score on the corresponding section of your wheel, with 1 at the center and 10 at the outer edge. Connect the dots to create your life wheel. The resulting shape reveals your current life balance at a glance.

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Interpreting Your Wheel of Life Results

The visual you’ve created tells a powerful story. Here’s how to read it like a professional coach:

The Shape Analysis

A perfectly round wheel shows balanced satisfaction in all areas. However, this is rare and not always the goal. Most successful people have wheels that look more like amoebas—with some areas bulging while others are severely indented.

Identifying Priority Areas

Look for your lowest-scoring categories first. These represent your greatest opportunities for life improvement. However, don’t automatically assume you need to focus on the lowest score. Sometimes, addressing a moderate score in a foundational area (like health) can positively impact other areas.

Recognizing Interconnections

Your wheel reveals how different life areas influence each other. For example, low scores in health often correlate with decreased performance in career and relationships. High stress in business might be driving down scores for recreation and family.

Spotting Patterns

After coaching thousands of professionals, I’ve noticed common patterns:

• The “All Work” wheel: High career and financial scores, low everything else
• The “Burning Out” wheel: Declining scores across all categories due to unsustainable pace
• The “Stuck” wheel: Moderate scores everywhere, indicating comfort zone imprisonment

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Advanced Wheel of Life Exercises

Once you’ve completed your basic assessment, these advanced exercises will deepen your insights and accelerate your growth:

The Time Allocation Exercise

Create a second wheel showing how you actually spend your time versus your satisfaction scores. This often shows big gaps. For example, someone might spend 70 hours a week on work (score: 8) but only 2 hours with family (score: 3). Discover time management tools to improve your life and use our time management worksheets to improve your results.

The Values Alignment Assessment

Rate each category again, but this time based on how well it aligns with your core values rather than satisfaction. Misalignment between satisfaction and values often explains feelings of emptiness despite apparent success.

The Future Visioning Wheel

Complete a third wheel representing where you want each area to be in 12 months. This becomes your roadmap for goal setting and priority allocation.

The Energy Impact Analysis

For each category, note whether it currently gives you energy or drains it. High-scoring areas that drain energy need investigation, while low-scoring areas that energize you represent untapped potential.

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Creating Your Action Plan from Wheel Results

A completed wheel of life assessment without follow-up action is just an interesting exercise. Here’s my systematic approach to turning insights into transformation:

Priority Matrix Creation

High Impact, Easy to Change	High Impact, Hard to Change
Quick wins to build momentum	Major focus areas requiring significant resources
Low Impact, Easy to Change	Low Impact, Hard to Change
Nice-to-haves when time permits	Avoid these—low return on investment

The 90-Day Focus Rule

Select a maximum of three categories for focused improvement over the next 90 days. More than three leads to scattered effort and mediocre results. High-achievers often resist this limitation, but focus is what separates successful people from busy people.

Goal Setting Framework

For each focus area, establish:

• Specific outcome goal (measurable result)
• Process goal (daily/weekly actions)
• Milestone markers (monthly check-ins)
• Accountability system (coach, partner, or group)

Resource Allocation Planning

Honestly assess what you need to stop, reduce, or delegate to create space for improvement in your focus areas. This is often the hardest part for successful people who struggle with letting go.

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Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Through years of guiding clients through this process, I’ve identified critical mistakes that undermine the tool’s effectiveness:

The Perfectionist Trap

Many high-achievers become obsessed with achieving 10s across all categories. This misses the point entirely. Life is about conscious choices and trade-offs. Sometimes a 6 in one area is acceptable if it allows you to achieve a 10 in something more important to you.

The Comparison Game

Your wheel is unique to your life, values, and circumstances. Comparing your scores to others or to some imaginary ideal defeats the purpose of self-awareness and authentic growth.

The Static Mindset

Your wheel should evolve as your life changes. What matters at 30 differs from what matters at 50. Regular reassessment ensures your focus remains aligned with your current life stage and goals.

The Analysis Paralysis

Some people spend weeks analyzing their wheel instead of taking action. Remember, imperfect action beats perfect inaction every time. Start with small steps in your lowest-scoring area.

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Technology and the Modern Wheel of Life

I still like drawing your wheel by hand. However, digital tools make the wheel of life easier to access and track. Apps and online platforms now offer:

• Automated scoring and visual generation
• Progress tracking over time
• Comparative analysis across different time periods
• Integration with goal-setting and habit-tracking systems

However, don’t let technology replace the reflective process. The power lies not in the pretty graphics but in the honest self-examination and committed action that follows.

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Transform Your Life Starting Today

The wheel of life assessment is not just another personal development tool. It shows the truth about your current situation. It also guides you toward your desired future. After watching many successful people use this tool, I can say the real magic is not in the assessment. It comes from your commitment to act on what you learn.

Your wheel is calling you to examine whether you’re truly living or simply achieving. Are you building a life of significance or just accumulating success? The only way to know is to honestly assess where you stand today and courageously choose where you want to go tomorrow.

I challenge you to complete your wheel of life assessment this week. Not next month when things slow down, not after your current project finishes—now. Draw your circle, rate your satisfaction, and prepare to see your life with new clarity. Because the most successful people aren’t those who avoid difficult truths—they’re the ones who face them head-on and take decisive action.

Remember, you have the power to redesign your life. The wheel of life is simply the tool that shows you where to begin.