Goals and rewards

There is nothing better than a reward, especially when that reward is for reaching a goal!  All my rewards in the past use to be food.  Ever since I was a kid, the reward was food. 

Passed a class                                = food
Was nice to my sister                    = food
Helped out around the house         = food
Got my drivers licence                  = food

So when I decided to change my life and put some goals in, it was quite the challenge to find a reward that was not food. I remember just a few months ago starting this and saying to my wife, 'I don't want anything.  I would just rather go Chinatown and have green curry chicken!'  Of course that did not happen.  But since then, I have decided that when I reach a goal, I would put money aside for something that I would want at a later date. 

For example, I have a weekly goals list, if I reach my goals every week, I get my reward.  My reward would be to put aside some money for the future when I find something I want.  At least this way, the money will be there for me to buy it.  It is MY money, I can spend it on whatever I want.  This past week, we went over budget and did not have enough for groceries.  So I took MY banked up reward money and used that for groceries.  I could have easily bought the stuff on my credit card and placed it back from my next paycheck but it would still not be balanced out our weekly budget.  So this way, my kids get to eat and next weeks budget is on track!

Aside from money being put away, another reward of mine is to go see a movie.  There is a local Dollar-cinema!  Movies are just $2 plus tax!  And on top of that, there is a meet-up group that does free movies there from time to time.  I saw Man of Steel there for FREE and this past Saturday I saw Star Trek Into Darkness there for FREE too!  Now, if I did not meet my goals, I would not have been able to go and see those films. 

Also my rewards have since evolved.  I have it written out that, when I meet my September goals, I will now be able to schedule a massage for myself!  Now to build up the money jar back again so I can go get the massage.

Also, my eating habits have lost its FUN lately.  So I want to put the FUN back in as a reward too.  But this time, it will not be junk foods like burgers and fries or fried chicken or ice cream or even a cola.  This time, I want to make the reward something my body will thank me for.  For example, a meal at the organic vegan raw food restaurant or even something as simple as buying a kombucha drink from my local organic grocery. 

You also know about my long term goal of being DDP yoga certified on July 13 2014! That is its own reward! 

For more about my goals, check out my Goals page!