WOOP it with Archetypes

Your personality archetypes are a tool for creative and intuitive thinking. You can use them to generate insights, inspiration and motivation. The highest potential of an archetype works like fuel for your soul, so you can draw on their highest potential to manifest your goals.

WOOP stands for Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, and Plan. It’s a well-researched, practical strategy for setting and achieving goals¹.

You can choose an archetype to accompany you and keep you accountable during your quest. WOOP asks you to distill your wish, but before you start to WOOP it, you will have at least a broad idea of what you want, so capture the idea by defining it. Maybe you want to lose weight, start a business, or repair a relationship. Keep it broad. Then choose an archetype to brainstorm 10 pitfalls and 10 benefits. You can use these lists for insights, inspiration and ongoing motivation. Here’s what I’ve learnt by doing this:

• Identifying positive associations for the archetype clarifies and strengthens my desire for the wish to come true. It maintains my motivation and inspiration. It makes the goal feel more attainable and worth pursuing.
• Visualising positive outcomes associated with the archetype makes the outcome more vivid for me. It’s an incentive to maintain my commitment and enthusiasm towards achieving the goal.
• Recognising the benefits associated with the archetype can help me to identify ways to overcome obstacles. It helps me to draw on my past successes and strategies that worked that can be applied to current challenges.
• Listing pitfalls related to the archetype reveals potential challenges, hurdles and fears I have that could stand in the way of my goal. It also makes it easier for me to visualise and then plan for difficulties because it allows me to recognise what could impede my progress.
• Understanding potential pitfalls or negative aspects can help me to set challenging but realistic and achievable wishes. It ensures that the wish is grounded in reality and acknowledges the challenges that might arise.
• Anticipating possible downsides or negative consequences mentally prepares me to manage and mitigate these issues. A more balanced and sustainable outcome is possible.
• By providing me with a resource of tactics and behaviours, I can utilise the associations I’ve made with the archetype to guide the formulation of a personally meaningful and effective plan.
• Acknowledging potential pitfalls ensures that the plan I make is comprehensive and robust. It encourages me to consider contingencies to address unexpected challenges.

Here’s how you can use an archetype to WOOP your goals. Your aim is to recruit the best archetype for the task, but if you don’t know your personality archetypes then choose one that resonates with you from the list below:

Before you start the WOOP process:

1. Define your idea
2. Choose an archetype to assist you with your quest.
3. Brainstorm and list 10 pitfalls and 10 benefits associated with your archetype, in that order.
4. Refer to the list of benefits for inspiration to articulate your WOOP, that is your wish, the outcome and when formulating a plan. Refer to the list of pitfalls to indicate potential obstacles and factors to be aware of and then proceed to WOOP it.

Of course, archetypes are not essential to WOOP it, but I’ve found that by drawing on archetypal information I get additional insights to enhance my process. When I explore both the pitfalls and benefits associated with an archetype, I get a deeper understanding of my relationship to my wish, outcome, obstacles, and plan. It helps me to recognise my self-sabotaging tendencies and potential challenges. Recruiting the best archetype for the task, then deconstructing it by brainstorming and listing the pitfalls and benefits associated with the archetype, in equal measure, and using them as inspiration to create my WOOP, helps to deepen my resolve to make my dreams come true because I’m leading from the energy of my Self, which is sacred.

But don’t take my word for it. Test it for yourself.

1. Disclaimer: This is not an advertisement for WOOP. I’m not receiving any incentive, financial or otherwise, to write about it. ↩︎