Goals and Rewards

Want an easy way to motivate someone? One time tested way is to offer a reward. Yup. I’m talking bribery. It works so often, it is often the first method used to influence someone to do something. Whether it is a quarter to a child to clean their room or paycheck to an adult to work all day, it is one of the oldest tricks in the book.

Can the carrot for achieving goals? Naturally. My health insurance company used it on my wife and I last year. They devised six health challenges, ranging from eliminating sodas and deserts from the diet to limiting computer and television to one hour per day (I found that one harder than I thought it would be). Coupled with an exercise goal, each challenge ran two months and had to be achieved 80% of the time. The reward? Twenty-five dollars per challenge with an additional fifty to complete a health assessment. When we saw the possibility of $200 each, we signed up.

My wife filled all the challenges and I only missed two. A year later, I have to say it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Is $150 a commensurate reward for all the work? Must be, because I did it.  Sure, there was also the motivation of getting healthier, but in the end, it was the money that kept me doing it day after day.

Did it pay off? Well, I weigh the same I did at the start of last year, so yes, it was a success. Considering how much time I sat around, including 21 hours / week in a car driving back and forth to work, I am celebrating not gaining weight. I can run continuously for 30 minutes, something I wouldn’t have dreamed possible a year ago. It was so successful, we are doing the challenge again this year.

We are trying it with our children, too. We are offering them cash if they exercise as well. I am interested to see if that works. Kids are funny sometimes as to what motivates them. What motivates people can be different. There are some great books out there discussing motivations. I have some on my reading queue for this year. One that is near the top is Influencer: The Power to Change Anything by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David Maxfield, and Ron McMillan.

What are some possible rewards we can use? Money may not always the answer, especially since for personal goals, it probably comes from the family budget. For some goals, such as losing weight, the reward shouldn’t be counter-productive, like a hot fudge sundae for losing five pounds. The reward also needs to match the accomplishment. A new car for keeping the garage clean for a month is perhaps way over the top. Find something that fits the effort involved. Often, the reward can be much smaller than the effort. After all, the reward is supposed to be a small accolade – the real triumph is in the accomplishment.

Designing the reward for the goal is not always simple. It doesn’t have to be grand. How about a bottle of bubble bath, candles and a long soak for sticking to an exercise regimen or an afternoon walk in the woods for finally cleaning the basement. How about a good book for running a 5k race? Indulging in one of those guilty pleasures we all have, but rarely take the time for can be a great motivator. Include a spouse. I know I would be honored to do something nice for my wife to celebrate one of her achievements. (She is going to read this and take me up on it, I know! I’ll let you know what she decides.)

One of the greatest books I know for devising rewards is 1001 Ways to Reward Employees by Bobby Jack Nelson. It is literally 1001 rewards. Some cost money, others don’t. I used this book all the time when I was a manager. It is geared to the work place, but is guaranteed to give you ideas for home, too. Check it out if you get stumped.

What are some of the great rewards you have seen? What works for you? Share your triumphs and rewards. What gets you going?