Published on 03 October 2021

Reward Yourself: Types, Techniques, & Efficacy

Healthy Living reward-yourself
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Rewarding yourself is the best thing you can do for yourself. It is a token of appreciation to yourself. It is ok if everything is not going according to your plan in life. The most important thing is giving 100% and not quitting. Quitting is the first step towards losing confidence and disappointment. Once you quit, it would be difficult to get back on track.

Give some reward for every target you achieve. The reward doesn't need to cost money. It could be something valuable too, which would be more than money. 

In this tough life, maybe in this busy world, there is no one in the time of need, but you have yourself and for that, you need to understand one thing you need to stay strong and confident and remember to believe in yourself.

When Was the Last Time You “Rewarded Yourself”?

When we dream big, we often deny ourselves of things we like. Often it is heartbreaking, and one may get the feeling of just giving up on their goal. There is some self-motivation required here. 

One of the best ways of self-motivation after considerable self-deprivation is by rewarding yourself. It's very important to reward yourself as one of the ways to keep yourself motivated while resisting either bad habits or obstacles to your goals.

The self-motivation technique is effective in almost all the areas, such as Education and career, handling addictions, and following a dietary plan, such as reducing sugar intake or cutting down on junk food. It is essential to deny yourself short pleasures to attain higher objectives in life.

Frequently Asked Questions

By rewarding yourself, your brains produce dopamine, which is why you feel joyful. It also acts as a stress reliever and restores mental stability. It helps develop confidence and creativity.
When you successfully complete or achieve the target you wanted to complete, then right after that, you reward yourself with something.
Adults take a favorable motivation from the rewards, whereas children tend to be affected more by the rewards, whether a small reward. Children will listen to you more if they know they are going to get more rewards.

Remember Your Childhood Days.

We all remember the days we used to work for some money or reward. We all have eaten popsicles from the money we earned by doing hard work. Worked like cutting grass from the garden, helping with grocery shopping, taking care of neighbor's dogs when they were unavailable, and many more. 

We used to appreciate all that. But today, you earn not just for yourself but for your family as well. So in this busy life, try to remember those nostalgic days and the happiness you used to have when rewarded with something.

Simple And Effective Ways To Reward Yourself

Self-rewarding techniques could be simple but effective. It may include not having coffee for a week, as you might be addicted to caffeine, and later giving yourself a treat by seeing your favorite movie at the end of the week. Another instance could be outdoor physical activity six days a week, like traveling, playing games, and taking a daylong rest on the seventh day.

Self-rewarding techniques look effortless and practical, but they need a certain amount of self-discipline to enforce them. Thus, one can start with short-term self-rewarding methods such as not doing something one day and then self-rewarding yourself the next day. 

Remember, if self-rewarding techniques are too long and the person doing it feels too stressed, the person may discontinue it. Therefore, it is essential to assess yourself about the stress level you can take.

Self-Rewarding Can Also Be With Healthy Habits

Rewarding can be with healthy habits such as traveling and spending time with family and friends. Traveling has effects on improved mental health, and one should travel as a hobby. It can be much more beneficial if a person rewards himself for giving up a bad habit and developing good practice. This is usually done when people are following healthy diet plans.

This would be a reward in itself. One’s mind and body rejuvenate after traveling to a hilly place or a sea beach. A person meets new people and witnesses new culture and environment; all this has a remarkable effect on one’s mental wellness and is one of the best stress releasers. The same goes for when one spends a good amount of time with family and friends.

Take Support From Family And Friends

Family and friends are sound support systems for one’s mental health. It would be more beneficial when it comes to practicing self-motivation techniques, such as rewarding yourself for giving away bad habits. Whatever happens to you, your dear ones are “rippled.”

Including your family and friends for any positive change in your habits, lifestyle, or diet is advisable. Family always supports and suggests things that might help you with your health, with yoga benefits for mental health. Studies have revealed that a good amount of time spent with family and friends automatically causes a positive change in one’s life.

Social Rewards vs Self Rewarding

We have all gone through rewards after achieving something, either in school or in the office. E.g., your mother might have treated you with ice cream after scoring good marks in your examination. Another instance would be your boss might have applauded you when you had a setback and did extra work during a holiday. 

The difference here is that this is practicing and rewarding yourself. Therefore, it all depends on how much you should resist or restrain and how much you should reward yourself. 

Therefore, to carry on the exercise smoothly, you should plan your day; preferably, write down your don’ts for the day before executing the exercise. This will reduce the chance of deviation or non-adherence to the exercise.  

Prevent From Eating Sugar, Junk Food, And Alcohol

When you achieve something, be happy about it and go for something that would not harm you and your body. Even If you are hitting the gym, you must not consume junk food or sugary things.

Because it contains so many calories, it would affect the hard work you do by not losing weight a bit. Because of this, you may get demotivated, and your mood for that target may change, and you won't be able to work on it again. 

Avoid taking alcohol as a reward because it won't do any good if you drink. If the addiction gets a hold on you, then your reward will become your addiction, and you will focus on completing your work for reward, because of which the quality of your work may be compromised.

Role Of Dopamine

Apart from this, the chemical flow of dopamine flows through your brain when something that is important to you is going to happen and pleases you when the task is accomplished. This ultimately gives a feeling of pleasure and further motivation. 

This exercise empowers us by giving us the option to make a change in our lives. Most of us reading this blog know and understand how important change is in people’s lives. The rigid behavior takes us nowhere; instead, we go into self-deterioration and harm ourselves.

Do Other Things At Home

There are several things in today's life for entertainment. You can do anything while sitting at home. 

  • Bake or cook something for you and your loved ones.
  • Sleep for some extra hours, Give yourself a rest.
  • Watch some movies or series alone or with family.
  • Listen to your favorite music
  • Play some games if you like
  • Do some workout, yoga, or any physical activity

Why Add Some Humor?

Apart from this, it is said the best-sought reward would be your smile. The source of your smile would be the humor. When you are mentally prepared and come up with some good jokes, it keeps your mind boosted so that you can reduce stress with humor and entertainment. People who smile can adopt any kind of change easily in life.

To adopt good humor, you can read good humorous books and watch funny videos on the television or the internet. You do not feel a certain amount of pain when you are humorous. Rewarding yourself after suffering is about feeling a pinch for a certain time, but good humor can nullify the pinch you feel.

Bottomline From Practical Anxiety Solution

There are many ways a person can get upset, depressed, and stressed. But there is always a balance in life, so there are also so many types of entertainment and relaxing things that make you happy and peaceful. 

Taking a long break is not possible for one who works in a corporate job or even for a businessman, but if you get one left, don't waste it on doing something you don't like. Instead, do something meaningful that will refresh your mind, and once you are refreshed, that will be the biggest reward you will give yourself.