The intake form is doing more work than most coaches realize. Yes, it gathers information. But it also signals your professionalism, sets the tone for the coaching relationship, and begins the client's reflection process before the first session even happens.
A weak intake form is a lost opportunity. A strong one makes your first session twice as productive.
Here are 20 questions that work — organized by what they're designed to surface — and 5 you should cut immediately.
Category 1: Goals and Vision (Questions 1-5)
These questions help you understand where the client wants to go. The best goal questions aren't "what are your goals?" — that's too open. Good goal questions create specificity.
1. "If our coaching together is wildly successful, what will be different in your life 6 months from now?"
This is the anchor question. It forces clients to paint a concrete picture of success before you've started. The specificity (or vagueness) of the answer tells you a lot.
2. "What's the #1 outcome you're hoping to get from coaching?"
Notice "hoping to get" rather than "expecting." It's softer, more honest, and surfaces the real goal under the professional one.
3. "What have you already tried to achieve this goal, and what happened?"
This prevents you from suggesting the same approaches they've already tried. It also reveals their relationship with setbacks.
4. "On a scale of 1-10, how committed are you to making this change right now? What would make it a 10?"
Readiness for change is one of the strongest predictors of coaching outcomes. This question surfaces ambivalence honestly.
5. "What does success look like in 90 days? What would you need to see to feel good about investing in this?"
Short-horizon specificity. Easier to answer than 6-month visions, and useful for mid-program check-ins.
Category 2: Challenges and Blockers (Questions 6-10)
Understanding what's getting in the way is as important as understanding where the client wants to go.
6. "What's your biggest obstacle to achieving this goal right now?"
Deceptively simple, reliably revealing. The first answer is often the presenting problem, not the root cause. Follow up in the first session.
7. "What patterns do you notice yourself repeating that you'd like to break?"
Pattern awareness is foundational to behavioral change. Clients who can articulate their patterns are already further along.
8. "Is there anything about your current situation that might make it hard to commit to coaching fully?"
This is a practical question — travel, life changes, financial stress. Better to know now than to have it surface as missed sessions.
9. "What does your inner critic say when you think about this goal?"
Gets at the belief layer under the behavior. Answers here often become the most important material in coaching.
10. "What are you most afraid might happen if you actually achieve what you're working toward?"
This is an advanced question — not every client is ready for it. But the "fear of success" pattern is real, and this surfaces it early.
Category 3: Coaching Style and Preferences (Questions 11-15)
Every client has a different relationship with accountability, feedback, and pace. Knowing theirs makes you a better coach faster.
11. "How do you respond to direct feedback? Give me an example."
You need to know if you can be blunt or if you need to frame things carefully. "I like honesty" is a different answer than "I got fired once because my boss told me I was too defensive."
12. "What has your experience with coaches or therapists been before? What worked, what didn't?"
Prior experience shapes expectations. This prevents you from repeating what didn't work and helps you build on what did.
13. "When you're stuck, do you prefer to be challenged to figure it out yourself, or do you want direct guidance?"
Some clients want Socratic questions. Others want you to just tell them what to do. Most want a mix — and it shifts by topic. Ask.
14. "How do you like to track your own progress? Are you a metrics person or more intuitive?"
This tells you how to design accountability structures. A metrics person wants check-in numbers. An intuitive person wants "how does this feel?" conversations.
15. "What's your preferred communication style between sessions — brief check-ins, deeper reflections, or minimal contact?"
This sets expectations for between-session engagement before it becomes a source of friction.
Category 4: Logistics and Setup (Questions 16-20)
Operational questions that prevent administrative headaches later.
16. "What time zone are you in, and what times generally work best for sessions?"
Get this upfront. Timezone confusion causes late clients and frustrating reschedules.
17. "What's the best way to reach you if we need to reschedule? Text, email, or the platform's messaging?"
Establishes your communication channel before you need it urgently.
18. "Is there anything happening in your life in the next 3 months that might affect your availability for sessions?"
Vacations, moves, launches, family situations. Better to know so you can plan around them.
19. "Who else in your life knows you're starting coaching? Do they know what you're working on?"
Support systems (or lack thereof) matter. Clients with involved partners or friends often progress faster. Isolated clients need more support from you.
20. "Is there anything else I should know about you, your situation, or how you work best that you haven't had a chance to say?"
Always end with an open question. Clients often put their most important disclosure here because it didn't fit anywhere else.
5 Questions to Avoid
1. "What are your goals?"
Too broad. You'll get vague answers that don't help you. Replace with questions 1-2 above.
2. "How did you hear about me?"
Marketing data, not coaching data. Keep this in your intake form if you need it for tracking, but don't treat it as a discovery question.
3. "Are you currently in therapy?"
This is a sensitive question that can make clients feel screened or judged. If you have scope-of-practice concerns, address them in your coaching agreement, not the intake form.
4. "What's your budget for coaching?"
If they're filling out your intake form, they've already seen your pricing. Asking this can feel like an upsell trap. It creates awkwardness that starts the relationship on the wrong foot.
5. "Rate yourself 1-10 in the following areas: (list of 20 things)"
These exhaustive self-assessment wheels are popular in coach training but often feel like homework. Clients fill them out minimally, the data isn't actionable, and it adds friction to the signup process. Use 2-3 targeted ratings instead.
How to Deliver Your Intake Form
Timing: Send it 2-3 days before the first session — not immediately after booking. Sending it immediately feels like a test. Sending it too close to the session doesn't give clients time to reflect.
Format: Keep it to 10-12 questions for the initial intake. You can go deeper over time. Long forms create friction and often get abandoned halfway.
Frame it: In your email, say something like: "I sent this intake form — it's not homework, just a way to start thinking before we talk. There are no wrong answers."
Refer back to it: Use answers from the intake form in your first session. This shows clients you actually read it, and it makes them feel seen before you've asked a single live question.
The intake form is the start of the coaching relationship, not an administrative chore. The coaches who treat it that way get first sessions that feel like they're already in session 3.