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Coaching Models · 5 min read

WOOP: the goal-setting science that closes the intention-action gap

Developed by NYU psychologist Gabriele Oettingen across 20+ years of research, WOOP (Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan) is one of the few goal-setting methods with rigorous experimental evidence.

What it is

  • 01Wish — what is the meaningful goal that excites and challenges you?
  • 02Outcome — what is the best result you can vividly imagine if the wish comes true?
  • 03Obstacle — what is the inner obstacle in YOU that most stands in the way?
  • 04Plan — when X obstacle happens, I will do Y. (An if-then implementation intention.)

Three takeaways

  1. 01

    Pure positive visualization (popular in self-help) statistically REDUCES the chance of achieving the goal — the brain confuses imagining with achieving.

  2. 02

    Naming the internal obstacle, then pre-committing to a specific response, is what shifts behavior. This is the science of 'implementation intentions.'

  3. 03

    WOOP works for goals as small as 'drink more water' and as large as 'restructure my department' — the mechanism is the same.

Three things to implement this week

  • Spend 5 minutes on WOOP before any quarter or any major project. Write all four steps by hand.
  • Coach your team using WOOP instead of SMART for any goal that requires behavior change, not just task completion.
  • Re-WOOP every 30 days — obstacles evolve, and the if-then plan needs to evolve with them.