Clearly the five or ten dollar bribe that the writer mother was using wasn’t the right item to motivate her children. When she dangled it in front of them, they ignored her and went on with their agenda. The mother was unsuccessful in getting their attention. When I used the jellybean as a reward, I knew, both from them asking for it and from years of experience with them, that this was what they wanted.
But rewards have more levels to it than that. I had spent years being the oldest of eight, surviving five brothers, and frequently being in charge. For survival purposes I had to learn quickly to motivate. When I put up a reward, I needed to speak the language of the person I am trying to motivate. For my four- and five-year-olds, the motivation was candy that they rarely got.
When you are trying to set up the proper motivation to get what you want, what needs to be in place? Do you know yourself well enough to set up an environment where you have the proper motivation to go through all the hoops and obstacles that are going to present themselves along the way? What can drive you through all the resistance, excuses, and pressure to quit? What do you want badly enough that all the work would be worth it?

Posted in: Uncategorized at 8:52 am