Q&A Wednesday - A Motivating Reward

Nat asked, "If you had a goal for yourself right now, what would your reward be? I'm teaching First Place at church right now, and I've made all my 'students' set goals and 'rewards' for the 12 week session. My goals are lose 10 lbs, meal plan, and track all food. I'm having the hardest time figuring out my reward...so I'm just curious what you would pick for a reward."

I am a big fan of pampering. Pedicures, massages, lunch out with a girlfriend, a day off to scrapbook, things like that.

But your reward could be (and maybe should be, to keep you motivated to continue) tied more closely with your goal. If the goal was to save $200 in a savings account for emergencies to keep out of debt, a massage might not be an appropriate reward. If your goal is to lose 10 lbs, your goal probably shouldn't be something like a huge dinner out with drinks and dessert. That might get you off the track of living a healthy lifestyle.

Given your situation, I would do something clothing related. Maybe give yourself a budget and go shopping. Get an amazing pair of jeans (my favorites are Lucky Big Star - not cheap, but they fit like a dream) or a great dress to wear on date nights. If you're going to continue on with the next 10 lbs or more, maybe your reward could be new shoes. (you don't want to spend too much money on your current size if you plan on losing even more weight) Think along those lines...something to make your feel good about your accomplishment. Tying the reward to the results of the goal might motivate you to keep that 10 lbs off!

That's what motivates me, but all of my ideas involve money. In this economy, that might not work for most people. Anyone else have a suggestion for a goal-achieving reward?