This month at the Umbrella Project, we are focusing our energy on Intrinsic Motivation.

Intrinsic Motivation is motivation that comes from inside you instead of from external rewards like money or grades. It’s the pleasure you get from doing something because it is interesting, challenging and absorbing. When we are intrinsically motivated, we do activities for enjoyment. We do not worry as much about the reward at the end.

Failing to hit the goals, marks or achievements we are hoping for can be tough. This is even more true when the outcome was the only thing we cared about.

When we enjoy the process, it takes some of the stress off the end result and makes us feel happier. In fact, being intrinsically motivated increases our wellbeing and our success at the end of the day.

Today’s Tip for Building Intrinsic Motivation

Today’s tip for building intrinsic motivation is about the limits we set on our kids.

If our kids could do whatever they wanted all day, they would have a high level of intrinsic motivation! But this is not a realistic approach to our lives.

If you want to set limits without damaging your child’s intrinsic motivation, informational rather than controlling limits are the way to go.

What is an informational limit? Find out with Dr. Jen in the video below!