Gabriele Oettingen is a Professor of Psychology and author originally from Germany. She has been teaching at New York University and the University of Hamburg for more than 20 years. Her research focuses on the Science of Motivation and explains why positive thinking alone is not enough to achieve our goals. Upon more than 25 years of research, she developed a goal-achievement strategy called WOOP. WOOP stands for WISH, OUTCOME, OBSTACLE, and PLAN. This empirically based approach focuses on helping people connect to their biggest wishes, clarify the desired outcome, identify the obstacles that may stand in the way, and set a realistic plan in just ten minutes or less!

I first heard about Gabriele's work three years ago, and I found it immensely helpful for setting goals. This time of year, many of us are thinking about what new objectives we want to achieve, so I was so thrilled to be able to get Gabriele on. With Gabriele's advice, you can make this the year that you actually achieve some of your deepest desires, be it English fluency, weight loss, better health, a new job, or even less anxiety! Gabriele shared with me a bit about how she ended up in the USA and some surprising cultural differences. Whether she still finds it challenging communicating in English. Why the advice to be optimistic or think positive may not always be to your benefit. How you can use WOOP to identify the right goals for this new year and actually achieve them. When you should use WOOP to be most successful and plenty of examples. How we can deal with risk aversion. How you can use WOOP to be a better parent. So much more. I'm so excited to bring you Gabriele's work and wisdom, I hope you find it as helpful as I have. Let's jump into episode 23 of Beyond Borders!

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