Rethinking Positive Thinking

Ever wondered why your greatest goals or visions don’t happen?

Gabriele Oettingen, world-class researcher and psychologist has spent her career studying the science of making your dreams come to life.

In her book Rethinking Positive Thinking, which by the way,  is one of my most fave books ever, she tells us that it’s simply not enough to put your wishes an wants out there, ‘Law of Attraction’ style. 

The book tells us that Positive Thinking, can actually be a hinderance to achieving our goals – WHAT? - I don’t know about you, when I first read that, I was kind of disappointed!! 

The good news is, Gabriele tells us it’s really very important to start with a vision of our ideal lives, creating a Vision, is a powerful start. BUT the trick, then, is we need to “rub it up against reality.”

She created a tool called “WOOP” to help us make our dreams a reality. Here’s how it works:

W is for Wish

O is for Outcome

O is for Obstacles

P is for Plan

Seriously. This is such a great tool, I use this almost every day, it’s great for BIG Life Goals or Business Plans, it’s so good as a coaching tool or to use with your next team meeting (also works wonders for Husbands and Kids!!), or, and I do this too, a two minute WOOP in the shower, sets you up fabulously for your day.

So, let’s have a go, start with Wish. What do you really want in life? If you could wave a wand and create anything, what would you see?

Think of the most important goal in your life right now. What is it?

Wave a wand. Everything goes perfectly. What do you achieve? Capture that in a few words. That’s your wish.

Now, think about the Outcome you’ll experience when that Wish is present. (actually, I think “Benefits” is a better word here but WBOP isn’t quite as cool as WOOP, ha, ha?)

Think of all the benefits achieving that wish will bring to you. See it. FEEL IT. It’s super important that you’re really lit up about it.

Once we’ve got that super focussed, it’s time to rub it up against reality.

What Obstacles will you face? You’ve got to KNOW you’re going to face obstacles and KNOW you have what it takes to get over/under/around them. Embrace reality so you can prepare properly and get to work on creating the reality you want. 

Once we’ve identified the Obstacles we need to create our Plan.

The heart of this is something Gabriele calls “implementation intentions”– which are a genius way to anticipate challenges and deal with them in advance. If ‘x’ happens, then I will do ‘y’.

What’s your plan to deal with the obstacles so you can experience the benefits of bringing your wish to life?

As I said I WOOP everything and this is the most popular Tool in my Visionary Women Programme - my clients love it too.

The Science has proven: WOOP! Works.

P.S. Want a free copy of my 60 Top Tips for Success – Get a FREE e-copy from here.

https://quantumvantage.co.uk/60-tips-for-success – 60 TOP TIPS to help you live your BEST life NOW, achieve your BIGGEST, most HAIRY, most AUDACIOUS GOALS! Want PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION or BUSINESS SUCCESS? Achieve your wildest career and business aspirations with these simple, pragmatic Tips, Tools and Life Hacks.

Stay Focussed, Keep Positive and Choose to +1 in Every Moment. Fulfil Your Dreams and Awaken Your Greatness!

Love, Hugs, High Fives and Fist Bumps

Toni  x