Life is a continual learning experience. As we evolve, we need to learn new things, do things new ways, and challenge ourselves to let go of old traditions and build new ones.
Changing behaviors can be one of life’s biggest challenges, but because everything is changing around us, many times we do need to remember to change our own behaviors.
One of the best ways to solidify the changes you seek is by rewarding yourself when you notice that you have taken on the new paradigm rather than the old one. When you achieve a goal, even a very small one.
Many of the clients that I work with forget to acknowledge that they have made changes that have been useful to them. They forget to reward themselves for a job well done. Instead, they spend a lot of time berating themselves for things that they didn’t do well, which is a form of negative motivation, rather than positive motivation.
We all know that positive motivation works much better than negative motivation, so let’s get in the habit of rewarding ourselves. Even for little things.
If used correctly rewards stimulate a positive cycle of change. We all get into habits, and sometimes even ruts. And to get out of the rut, we need to actually break out of it. This is when introducing new positive habits can be very useful, and when rewarding yourself can engrain the new behaviors.
One of the best ways to initiate changes within ourselves as to start small, and grow, and end with the bigger goal achieved. We can do this with the rewards that we allow ourselves as well. The size of the rewards can match the size of the goal.
Just remember, the rewards that you employ should be things that make you feel good. One of my clients who loves to read rewards herself when some of her goals are met by a trip to the bookstore, and a predetermined budget for how much she can spend on books.
Rewards can and should be very individual and can be as small as giving yourself a half-hour to “do nothing.” Just remember, they should be something that makes you feel GOOD!
The most important part about setting up rewards for yourself is to actually do it.
In the rat race that we live in, we do a pretty good job of forgetting ourselves, and forgetting to apply motivators that work with other people to ourselves.
So here’s your challenge – select something you’ve been wanting to change, something internal to yourself, set a goal, but as you set that goal, establish the “feel good thing” that you will reward yourself with upon completion.
What rewards work for you? Let us know how it works!
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