How to improve your ability to reach your goals, based on the work of Gabrielle Oettingen and Peter Gollwitzer. Originally published in the AICTP Journal.

1. Where coaching, counselling and therapy meetAICTP February 2015 issue 11 22
Whether we call ourselves
coaches, psychotherapists
or integrative practitioners,
most, if not all, of our
clients have goals.
Sometimes, the goal is
explicit – ‘I want to find a
new job’ or ‘I want to lose
weight’. Sometimes, the
goal is hidden within a
problem – ‘I have trouble
leaving my house’ might be
rephrased, for some, as ‘I
want to be able to leave my
house without worrying
about what will happen’,
and, at least for some
clients, ‘I’m depressed’
might be related to ‘I’m
unhappy in my marriage
and/or at work and I need
to figure out what to do
about it’. So, for many of
our clients, some focus on
goals and how to achieve
them is likely to be helpful.
However, if it were easy to
achieve all goals, there
might be many fewer
coaches and
psychotherapists. In fact, it
is so difficult to achieve
one’s goals that there are
many books and articles
devoted to theories and
models of goals and
success. As an integrative
practitioner, it may be
helpful to consider a model
for working with goals that
has a body of research
supporting it – Gabrielle
Oettingen’s WOOP model.
In the 1980s and 1990s,
Graham Alexander, Alan
Fine and Sir John
Whitmore developed and
popularised the GROW
model1, which is familiar to
many coaches. Based on
this model, the coach and
client explore:
• The client’s Goal
• The current Reality
• Obstacles/Options/
Opportunities (depending
on the version of GROW)
• The Way forward/Wrap-
up (depending on the
version of GROW)
In a series of research
studies and a 2014 book,
Gabrielle Oettingen and
several of her colleagues
have shown that aspects of
a similar model can be
quite effective in helping
clients to make significant
changes that can help them
to achieve their goals2-5.
This model, referred to in
the academic literature as
MCII (Mental Contrasting
and Implementation
Intentions) is now more
popularly referred to as
WOOP (Wish Outcome
Obstacle Plan). There does
not appear to be any
research comparing the
GROW and MCII/WOOP
models, but they appear to
be quite similar,
particularly when looking at
some versions of GROW.
This article will summarise
several studies that
support the effectiveness of
the MCII/WOOP model
and explain some of the
From GROWing
to WOOPing
Jonathan Sibley looks at
some research about how
people achieve their goals
– because most of our ICT
clients will have goals of
one sort or another

2. Where coaching, counselling and therapy meet AICTP February 2015 issue 1123
factors leading to its
effectiveness.
The first step in mental
contrasting, captured by the
WO (Wish and Outcome) in
WOOP, is to think of the
goal and to fantasise about
the positive results of
achieving this goal2.
In some studies, this is
referred to as
‘indulging’3,6-8. This taps
into the motivation to move
forward.
For many of
our clients,
some focus
on goals and
how to
achieve them
is likely to be
helpful
The second step in mental
contrasting, captured by the
second O (Obstacle) in
WOOP, is to think about
what, realistically, might
get in the way of the goal
and desire outcomes. This
is sometimes referred to as
‘dwelling’3,6-8. The studies
cited, and additional
studies, have shown that
this combination, in this
order (indulging in positive
fantasies followed by
dwelling on realistic
obstacles), is more effective
in leading to changed
behavior than:
• thinking about the
positive aspects of
achieving the goal without
thinking about possible
obstacles
• thinking about possible
obstacles without
thinking about the
positive aspects of
achieving the goal
• thinking about possible
obstacles prior to thinking
about achieving the goal.
Finding the balance
An example shared by
Oettingen is that of a
college student who is very
motivated to get an A in one
of her courses, a goal that
she believes she will achieve
if she spends her weekend
studying before her final
exam, but who also wants
to attend a party that a
friend will be giving that
weekend4. The student
realises that if she attends
the party, she might get
drunk and have a hangover,
and that this could get in
the way of achieving an A
on the exam and, therefore,
in the class. By reflecting on
the reasons to get an A and
the potential obstacle of
going to the party, the
student is able to resist
going to the entire party
and decides to attend the
end of the party and not to
drink alcohol that evening.
Interestingly, studies have
shown that indulging in
positive fantasies (eg how
great it will feel to get an A)
without spending time
reviewing possible obstacles
can trick the mind into
acting as though the
fantasy/goal has already
been achieved, reducing
the power to deal with
potential obstacles and
increasing the likelihood
that the goal will not be
achieved2,9.
By anticipating potential
obstacles and having a plan
for dealing with these
obstacles (sometimes
referred to as if-then plans),
one increases the
accessibility of the new plan
and decreases the
automaticity of previous
habits, potentially leading
to greater success10. In
addition, linking fantasies
about success to potential
obstacles increases the
likelihood that future
thinking about the goal will
increase awareness of
potential obstacles in a
realistic way4. Furthermore,
studies have shown that
mental contrasting
increases physiological
responses related to
increased energy and
motivation11. Therefore, a
balance of positive thinking
and realistic thinking about
potential obstacles is more
effective in helping to
achieve goals than positive
thinking alone.
It should be noted that
mental contrasting,
focusing on the goal and
potential obstacles, can
actually decrease
motivation toward
achieving a goal if one
believes that the goal is not
achievable, as thinking
about realistic obstacles
can serve as a reminder
that the goal is
unrealistic2.
It may be a philosophical
question about whether it
should be considered a

3. Where coaching, counselling and therapy meetAICTP February 2015 issue 11 24
positive result if one gives
up on working toward an
unachievable goal.
The final step in Oettingen’s
models (Implementation
Intentions/Plan) involves
creating concrete plans to
deal with potential
obstacles. For example, if
one’s goal is to eat healthier
food, how does one plan to
react when going to a
restaurant, listening to the
specials, and being tempted
by a special that clearly isn’t
healthy? Oettingen and
colleagues differentiate
between ‘goal intentions’
that are more general and
goal-focused (eg ‘I want to
improve my work-life
balance’) and the more
concrete ‘implementation
intentions’ that address
specific, potential obstacles
(eg ‘when my office phone
rings and I am heading out
the door, I will keep walking
out without picking up the
phone’). Studies have shown
that the combination of
mental contrasting and
implementation intentions
is more effective than either
component on its own.
Oettingen and her
colleagues have studied the
effectiveness of MCII/
WOOP in several domains,
including health12-14,
education15-17 and the
workplace18. Through
Oettingen’s book2, website
and apps19, WOOP has
recently moved from the
research lab into the public
sphere. Whether WOOP
consists of a relabelled
version of GROW, an
enhanced version of GROW
or something new and
different, it appears to have
significant research
supporting its effectiveness,
making it a potentially
useful tool to consider
having in one’s integrative
toolbox. As an integrative
practitioner, a focus on the
client’s goals may be helpful,
but a focus on goals that
takes into account the
obstacles that can get in the
way of success and includes
techniques for dealing with
those obstacles is likely to
increase the client’s chance
of success, leading to greater
client satisfaction.
Jonathan Sibley offers
executive and personal
coaching and
psychotherapy in a number
of languages in the US, and
is lead for the International
Division of AICTP.
www.jonathansibley.net
WOOP has
recently
moved from
the research
lab into the
public sphere.
Whether
WOOP
consists of a
relabelled
version of
GROW, an
enhanced
version of
GROW or
something
new and
different, it
appears to
have
significant
research
supporting its
effectiveness

4. Where coaching, counselling and therapy meet AICTP February 2015 issue 1125
10 Adriaanse MA, Gollwitzer PM, De Ridder
DTD et al. Breaking habits with
implementation intentions: a test of
underlying processes. Personal and Social
Psychology Bulletin. 2011; 37:502-13.
11 Oettingen G et al. Mental contrasting and
goal commitment: the mediating role of
energization. Personal Social Psychology
Bulletin. 2009; 35:608-622.
12 Johannessen K, Oettingen G, Mayer D.
Mental contrasting of a dieting wish
improves self-reported health behaviour.
Psychology & Health. 2012; 27:43-58.
13 Christiansen S, Oettingen G et al. A short
goal-pursuit intervention to improve
physical capacity: a randomized clinical trial
in chronic back pain patients. Pain. 2010;
149:444-452.
14 Stadler G, Oettingen G, Gollwitzer P.
Intervention effects of information and self-
regulation on eating fruits and vegetables
over two years. Health Psychology. 2010;
29:274-283.
15 Gawrilow C, Gollwitzer PM, Oettingen G.
If-then plans benefit delay of gratification
performance in children with and without
ADHD. Cognitive Therapy Research. 2010;
35: 442-455.
16 Parks-Stamm E J, Gollwitzer PM,
Oettingen G. Implementation intentions and
test anxiety: shielding academic
performance from distraction. Learning and
Individual Differences. 2010; 20:30-33.
17 Gollwitzer A, Oettingen G, Kirby TA et al.
Mental contrasting facilitates academic
performance in school children. Motivation
and Emotion. 2011; 35:403-412.
18 Oettingen G, Mayer D, Brinkmann B.
Mental contrasting of future and reality:
managing the demands of everyday life in
health care professionals. Journal of
Personal Psychology. 2010; 9:138-144.
19 WOOP – a scientific strategy to find and
fulfil wishes. http://www.woopmylife.org
References
1 Clutterbuck D, David S. In: Clutterbuck D,
David S, Megginson D. (eds) Beyond goals:
effective strategies for coaching and
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2 Oettingen G. Rethinking positive thinking:
inside the new science of motivation.
London: Penguin; 2014.
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4 Kappes A, Singmann H, Oettingen G.
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