Gabriele Oettingen’s WOOP: Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan

Ever wonder why your ambitious goals remain unfulfilled despite positive thinking? What if there’s a more effective way to transform wishful thinking into meaningful accomplishments?

According to Gabriele Oettingen, WOOP (Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan) offers a practical approach to achieving your goals by balancing optimism with reality. In Rethinking Positive Thinking, Oettingen explains that merely visualizing success isn’t enough.

Keep reading to discover how you can apply this four-step method to finally achieve what matters most to you.

Gabriele Oettingen’s WOOP Model

According to Gabriele Oettingen, WOOP (Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan) is the way to implement mental contrasting. While mental contrasting makes up the first three steps (WOO), adding the planning component makes the technique even more powerful. Here’s how it works:

• Wish: Identify a meaningful, feasible goal you want to achieve within a specific timeframe. Oettingen explains that this wish should be something that’s meaningful and important to you, whether it’s a major life goal or a more mundane wish. 
• Outcome: Vividly imagine your best possible result if you achieve this goal. Oettingen explains that this step helps you to clearly define what you truly wish to achieve. By visualizing the result you desire, you can set a clear goal for yourself.
• Obstacle: Identify the main internal barrier holding you back—such as specific thoughts, emotions, or habits. Oettingen explains that this step requires you to think about what’s in your way, often internal limitations like your fears or insecurities that impede your progress toward the specific goal you’ve set for yourself.
• Plan: Create an “if-then” strategy so that you can decide in advance how you’re going to handle the obstacle when you encounter it (for example, “If I feel unmotivated to exercise, then I will put on my running shoes and go for just five minutes”).  

(Shortform note: David Robson (The Expectation Effect) explains that Oettingen’s research has shown that combining mental contrasting with “implementation intentions” can be particularly effective in overcoming obstacles and achieving goals. But some psychologists have evaluated whether WOOP works as well as Oettingen contends it does—with mixed results. One review found that mental contrasting combined with implementation intentions (the “plan” step of WOOP) has shown a significant effect in helping people achieve goals, but the effect size is small. Face-to-face interventions where participants are guided through this method tend to be more effective than having people follow WOOP by themselves. Some psychologists suggest more research is needed to explore what makes the strategy most effective.)

Putting WOOP Into Practice 

Let’s look at how WOOP works in different situations. Take someone who wants to improve their public speaking skills:

• Wish: To feel confident presenting at work meetings 
• Outcome: Imagining themselves delivering clear, engaging presentations while feeling relaxed and in control 
• Obstacle: Identifying that anxiety about being judged leads them to speak too quickly and lose their train of thought 
• Plan: “If I start feeling anxious during a presentation, then I will pause, take a deep breath, and speak at half my usual pace.”

Oettingen explains that WOOP works particularly well for handling stressful situations because it helps you prepare for challenges before they arise. For instance, if you’re facing a difficult conversation with a colleague:

• Wish: To have a productive discussion without becoming defensive 
• Outcome: Picturing a respectful exchange where both parties feel heard 
• Obstacle: Recognizing your tendency to interrupt when you disagree 
• Plan: “If I feel the urge to interrupt, then I will write down my thought instead of speaking immediately.”

To get the most benefit from WOOP, Oettingen recommends making it part of your routine: Set aside a few minutes daily or weekly to apply the technique to your current goals and wishes. Over time, you’ll develop the habit of balancing dreaming with reality—turning your positive visions into concrete actions rather than just pleasant fantasies.

(Shortform note: While Oettingen’s mental contrasting technique has proven useful for many people trying to achieve their goals, some researchers raise questions about the empirical evidence she cites. Psychologist James Coyne, for instance, argues that some of the studies supporting her claims about positive fantasies had methodological limitations, such as small sample sizes and questionable statistical analyses. Yet even critics acknowledge that the core insight—that combining optimistic goals with realistic planning is more effective than positive thinking alone—aligns with established principles about motivation and behavior change.)

Exercise: Turn a Dream Into a Plan

Many of us have wishes that remain just that—wishes—because we either get stuck in positive fantasies or feel overwhelmed by obstacles. Let’s apply Oettingen’s mental contrasting technique to one of your current goals.

1. Think of something you’ve been daydreaming about achieving. What is this wish, and what would it feel like to accomplish it? Be specific about the outcome you envision.
2. Now, look inward: What is the main internal obstacle that’s holding you back? (This isn’t about external circumstances like time or money, but rather your thoughts, habits, or emotions that prevent progress.)
3. How does identifying this internal obstacle change your perspective on achieving your wish? Does it make your goal feel more or less attainable?
4. If this goal still feels achievable, create an “if-then” plan: “If [your internal obstacle] arises, then I will [specific action to overcome it].”