Fifty years of motivation research is definitive in its findings that offering rewards and incentives can drain motivation in the long-run, lower desire, performance and inhibits our ability to creatively problem-solve. What might we do differently with our children (and students) if we knew that the carrot-stick approach to “getting kids to do what we want” actually saps their motivation and creates a “what’s in it for me?” mindset that can undermine empathy, self-direction and autonomy?

We’ll discuss the carrot dynamic, how the carrot-stick approach affects the carrot-holder as well, namely us, and why we find ourselves in higher stakes carrot-holding which requires more effort, energy and management from us, all of which can take its toll on our relationship--and explore ways of shifting the paradigm to cultivate intrinsic motivation in our kids.

[PODCAST: Interview with bestselling author of “Drive”, Daniel Pink www.danpink.com]