Virtue is not its own reward

Reward and acknowledgment

The misunderstanding and misapplication of the reward phase of task management is the single biggest mistake I notice in the world.

Don’t undervalue this part. 

The seemingly silly concept coming up is the single most important distinction you will ever be exposed to.  

It will sometimes be the only thing that will keep you on track as you work your way through the items on your plate – whether that means filling out the Challenges Inventory™, putting together your Boggle Space, or getting through the rest of this article!

We are ALL Peter Pan

Inside every one of us lives a three-year-old who wants a cookie.

Maybe we can convince that three-year-old to behave for a while without that cookie, but eventually even the most well-behaved three-year-old is going to stage an old fashioned temper tantrum because s/he is tired of behaving and wants a reward for all the work s/he has done already!

Our inner three-year olds are totally uninspired by concepts of goodness and virtue and rewards in the afterlife.  Our inner three-year olds are wiser than we know.  Nobody behaves for sake of good behavior itself.

Playing by the rules, waiting our turn, and being quiet so that the grown ups can talk about important things (when we would much rather be free to do whatever we wanted at the playground down the street) is hard work.  

And if you think you’re getting all that hard work for free, you’d just better think again, buster!!

Three-year-olds want regular, recurring, tangible rewards for their efforts!  If you want to continue to motivate your inner three-year-old so that s/he will work with you instead of slowing you down with chronic distractions, the most effective way is BRIBERY!

Effective Bribery

The most effective bribe for an inner three-year-old is a cookie. 

Not just any old cookie, either — one that is especially delightful to your inner three-year old,
whose taste is remarkably similar to yours.

WHY a cookie?

Because it is a treat. It is not something that is part of the everyday menu. Its primary value is the fact that it is delightful. It doesn’t try to sneak in the slightest hint of virtuousity or moral imperative.

A cookie is a time-out from good behavior to acknowledge the effort it has required to cooperate in the good behavior game so far.

You already know the cookie that will delight your inner three-year-old.  It’s one that you don’t feel you really should want or should have, but you want it anyway.  Its primary value is the fact that it is delightful.

It is not something that adds to your life in any significant way that might allow you to justify its inclusion as part of the menu.  It might not even be particularly good for you.

Whenever you have worked really hard or accomplished something that took real effort and concentration to keep from chucking it all and running off to your favorite playground down the street, you feel almost entitled to let yourself treat yourself, especially if you feel vaguely guilty indulging your cookie jones otherwise.

The Cookie

You know what a cookie is, right?.  NO, not a snack.

A cookie is an item or activity that you don’t feel you really
should want or should let yourself have, but it’s part of what makes
life worth living.

The final litmus test is that subtle, defensive feeling that lurks whenever you have accomplished something really major, or completed a task you’ve been putting off forever, or ticked and tied something hateful that you simply have to bite-the-bullet and gosh-darn DO, you feel practically entitled to let yourself have your particular cookie * just this once* – and you indulge.

That is your cookie.

For me, the cookie is reading magazines that have nothing whatsoever to do with improving my life in any realistic way:

• Any of the ones with glossy pictures of old country mansions, old money decor and tips on how to work by fax with an interior decorator who lives abroad; or
• Magazines with weepy stories, recipes I will never make, gardening tips I would have to move to the suburbs to use, and quizzes about whether or not I am in danger of falling in love with that boss I don’t have.

These magazines represent a time-out for me, a break from the treadmill of accomplishment — total fantasy time without one single redeeming feature what-so-ever.  It is even a little embarrassing to admit how much pleasure I get from them, or how important they are to my sense of well-being — or how relaxing I find it to let my imagination wander into a beutifully decorated room I’ll never have to clean.

Most professional organizers would argue that my magazines are part of the clutter that creates the chaos I feel the need to escape.  They are an item many financial planners would strike from my budget as a frivolous expenditure of funds that would be better applied directly to one of my stated financial objectives.

EXACTLY!  A cookie.  Reading those magazines in the chaise by the window, sipping a gigantic mug of coffee is my cookie.

From the moment one of those glossy covers crosses my threshold, my inner three-year-old begins chomping at the bit. She wants to stop everything and savor it immediately, but has learned that cooperating with me so that I can get to the completion of my current task quickly is her most effective strategy.

• Resistance melts away.
• Unconflicted resolve takes ts place
• BOTH of us are ready to stop agonizing over the perfect approach and just get the task over with so we can get to that cookie!

What is your cookie?

You don’t have to write it in your notebook or ever tell a living soul about it.  You do, however, have to give it to your inner three-year-old as a reward for good behavior and grudging cooperation, each and every time s/he cooperates when s/he’d rather not.

No Big Thing

Remember, this is a cookie — a small reward for a small accomplishment.  Don’t make yourself jump through rings of fire to earn a measly cookie.

When you train a dog, do you wait until he learns sit and shake hands and fetch and lie down before you give the poor pooch a Pet Tab?

If so, I’ll bet your dog does none of the above.

Once the training is complete you can reconsider what has to be done for what reward in the future.  In the learning phase reward yourself often.

For every tiny accomplishment on your list you get to have three rewards:

1. A sense of well-being that accompanies evidence that you are moving forward in your life in ways that you can identify specifically;

2. The elimination of a boggle trigger that results in a step closer to Optimal Functioning;

- and -

3. A cookie!

Guess which one is most likely to keep your inner three-year-old motivated?

Never Lie to a Three-Year-Old

If you’ve ever spent even one hour with a child, you know the particular tone of voice that goes with the words, “But you promised!” 

You also know the quivering lip and the very loud weeping that follows the instant the child realizes that you are not going to fork over the expected reward.

And you know what?  That child is completely justified.  You tricked her.  You said something was going to happen and then weaseled out.

Never mind that you left your checkbook at home and can’t buy the groceries, much less the promised Comic Book, the child’s faith in the fairness of the system has been injured.

How much cooperation do you think that child is going to be willing to give the next time you need to go to the grocery store?

Fortunately (or un-) real three-year-olds can be carried from the store, kicking and screaming if necessary.

Inner three-year-olds can cause us to lock our keys in our cars, leave confidential documents in fax machines, and jeopardize relationships.

Whatever you do, don’t ever forget that cookie.  You will live to regret it!

Cookie Management

The next two articles will explore ways to apply the Cookie concept to
encourage YOUR inner three-year-old to work with you – so stay tuned.

As always, if you want notification of new articles in this series – or any new posts on this blog – give your name and email to the nice form on the top of the skinny column to the right.  (You only have to do this once, so if you’ve already asked for notification about a prior series, you’re covered for this one too) STRICT No Spam Policy

Articles in the TaskMaster™ Series

• TaskMaster – Getting things DONE!
• Task Anxiety Awareness
• Virtue is not its own reward
• Doling out the Cookies

Coming up in the TaskMaster™ Series:

• When the Game is Rigged
• Sherlocking Task Anxiety
• Taking Your Functional Temperature
• Juggling Invisible Balls
• Getting Things Done – 101 (part 1)
• Mapping your Universe (Getting Things Done-101, part 2)
• Calendars and To-Do Lists

Related articles around the ‘net

• Task and Compliance Management (bettermanagers.com – one of a series on the topic – tone:biz – free webinars – nice site!)
• How Rewards Can Make You Hate Something You Love [Mind Hacks] (lifehacker.com)
• Time Management Tips for Working From Home (bloggertone.com)