Nutella can be motivating.

For the past 15 days, I have walked into my apartment around 10:00pm sweaty, red-faced, and racing to the sink for water with a smile on my face. Why? Well, my running habit has picked up again, this time with my fantastic roomate as my companion. At the beginning of this school year, we set a goal that we would run 30 days straight (excepting Sundays), and then we would get to go buy one new clothing item at the end of it. Well, a few days later while we were at the grocery store, we set an impromptu goal after we saw that jar of Nutella--15 days straight and it was ours. Well, today marks that 15 day streak. It has never been sweeter to achieve one of my goals. I think that it is important to take our goals in baby steps--one day at a time. If we set goals that are way above our capabilities, we will fizzle out quickly because the project is too much to handle. Cassie and I don't run marathons, we don't run for extremely long amounts of time, we just do what we can. Our distance is usually about 2-3 miles. However, we do it EVERY day.  I have also learned that providing yourself with a reward (even if it is as simple as a jar of Nutella) gives you motivation to keep going, no matter how small the reward is. Let's be honest. Is one new shirt worth 30 days of running? Probably not, but I have a goal. I have a goal and a simple reward set for myself when I achieve it. My life has been so much more fulfilled because I gain a sense of worth and accomplishment over completing and still working on my goals. So, next time YOU want to achieve something, bribe yourself with some Nutella. It works. :)