The final letter in my SMARTER Goals system is a second R. This one stands for “Reward.”
Rewards Motivate You
Carrots and Sticks. This is the central metaphor we use when talking about extrinsic motivation – that is, something outside of yourself that gives you the incentive to take action. Carrots are positive motivators. Sticks are negative motivators.
I’m a big believer in extrinsic motivation, and here’s why:
Most people lack the intrinsic motivation needed to move themselves out of their comfort zones, start a series of difficult tasks necessary to achieve their goals, keep these tasks going over time, and pick themselves up when they hit the inevitable roadblock(s).
Many people give up before they have the chance to build momentum toward their goals. Having something outside yourself to motivate you can be a wonderful way to make you take the actions you know you need to take to build the outcome you desire.
I recommend you have two extrinsic motivators in place for every goal. A positive one (a carrot, or an actual reward) and a negative one (a stick, or a penalty of some sort).
Positive Rewards
For every goal you set, decide on a reward you will receive when you achieve the goal. You can even create small rewards for completing a step toward achieving the goal. Make your reward an extra incentive, beyond the accomplishment itself, to keep you moving forward.
Rewards can be simple: patting yourself on the back, saying “good job” when you’ve worked toward your goal, having a bowl of ice cream, watching a favorite TV show, or any other small rewards you can think of that you know motivate you.
Rewards can be extravagant: vacationing in the South Pacific, ordering the most expensive bottle of wine in a 5-star restaurant, buying a new car.
You get to decide what level of reward you’ll receive for achieving the goal. Simple, extravagant, or somewhere in between.
Please do this step. I have had so many people tell me they do not need a reward only to realize days, weeks, or months later that – without a reward to look forward to – they’re losing steam working toward their goal.
Negative Rewards
Okay, maybe putting the word “negative” in front of the word “reward” is a bit awkward. Fine. There are plenty of other words we can use:
Anti-reward
Penalty
Punishment
Consequence
I’ll leave it to you to decide what to call this negative extrinsic motivation when you apply it in your life.
For this blog post, I’m going with the word “consequence.”
Here’s my recommendation:
Whenever you set up a goal to achieve, have a specific consequence that will happen if you do not achieve the goal. Just like with a positive reward, the disincentive inherent in your chosen consequence will keep you moving forward toward your goal.
Another recommendation: Your consequence should scare you a bit and be something you cannot imagine enduring. This doesn’t mean the consequence has to be life-changing. Just come up with something you really don’t want to have happen.
I’m so interested in the idea of consequences that I’ll be exploring it as its own topic in my blog.
