Want to succeed? You’ve Got to Positively Reinforce Yourself!

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     If you are success-obsessed like me, you probably put a lot of pressure on yourself and struggle to prioritize yourself in the midst of your academic life. Doing well in school comes easy to some, but definitely not all, including me. As someone who strives to do my best, especially when it comes to earning grades, sometimes it is really hard to find the motivation. As a Registered Behavior Technician, I learned the ins and outs of positive reinforcement and its effectiveness, so I felt like I had this secret tool, I might as well use it!

When life gets stressful, it is easy to withdraw yourself from things that previously brought you joy due to the wave of overwhelming-ness that you might feel. I found that positively reinforcing myself helps alleviate some of this heaviness when facing daily challenges, especially during the school year. Positive reinforcement has been scientifically proven to be effective in increasing positive behaviors. In this case, the behavior is studying, the consequence is success, so what's the reinforcement? The reinforcement can be almost anything that you find desirable. I typically find myself in situations where I am really struggling to study for an exam or to finish a difficult assignment. When this happens, I ask myself, “What do I really want to do right now instead of this?”, and when a realistic answer (key word is realistic) comes to mind, I use that as motivation/a reinforcer. Many people probably do this and don't even realize it! But the key is to actually provide yourself with the reinforcer when you have completed the task. For example, I rarely drink soda, but sometimes when I'm studying, I will really want a soda. So, I will keep the soda in my mind as I continue to study, and the first thing I do when I am done is treat myself to a cold soda! The sooner you provide yourself with the reinforcement, the more reinforcing it actually is!

https://www.aprilaba.com/resources/the-power-of-positive-reinforcement

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