After I finish my assignments, there will be an urgency to buy my favorite food. These actions also happen when I finish a project, for example I bought a K-pop album as an achievement for me who has done a great job in the project. This behavior is known as self-reward. Self-reward is basically giving achievement for what you’ve done. Sounds sad? I don’t think so.
Is It Important?
There must be times when we are weary, bored, or stressed in the midst of our process and efforts to accomplish anything. We get bored because we are too concentrated and locked in our everyday routines at times. If we are exhausted, bored, or trapped, we could get agitated and sad if we let it like that. As a result, we need a self-reward.
Self-reward can help us to develop our creativity, so it is fine to give yourself a reward. Rewarding yourself for the hard work you’ve done can restore your motivation when you feel like giving up. When you give yourself a reward, your brain produces dopamine, a hormone that makes us feel good and joyful. This hormone also acts as a stress reliever, restoring mental clarity. Self-reward is one of self-love action. Other than creativity, it helps us to develop our confidence. Therefore, we can shine our positive vibe toward others.
Even though self-reward is important, we need to know that not all rewards are giving us positive effects. For example, after we finish one of the parts in an assignment, then we will do a self-reward, playing games all day long. Or you give yourself a reward by eating as much as you can, but it spends all of your money. Too much isn’t it?
Over Self-Reward
We need to know that Self-reward does not mean revenge after doing something tiresome. It does not mean postponing work and leaving it just like that. What will we get? Laziness. We feel too secure and too lazy to work it again. It will not help us to achieve the best version of ourselves. It can not be said self-reward anymore, it can be said as a self-time-bomb.
In matters of economics, if the desire to do self-reward is excessive, it will result in the emergence of a hedonistic style which is the originator of the formation of consumptive behavior. Jeremy Bentham in his book An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation said that nature has placed mankind under the rule of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure. Those two are that show us what to do, and to determine what we will do. In summary, the higher a person’s hedonistic style, the higher their consumptive behavior is.
Controlling Self-Reward
One way to prevent over self-reward behavior is by self-control. According to Rahma Nora in her article titled Konsumtif Berkedok Self Reward, With self-control we can control ourselves towards the behavior that will have an impact on us. Self-control can be done by holding back and controlling each action, considering the consequences of each action, focusing on goals, and setting priorities.
Self-control on self-reward will give us a positive impact, so that self-rewarding will be much more meaningful and useful for us. If we consume excessively under the pretext of self-reward, it will have a bad impact on us. So be mindful when giving yourself a reward.
References
Nora, R. (2021, May 23). Konsumtif Berkedok Self Reward. Opini.id. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from https://opini.id/sosial/read-17231/konsumtif-berkedok-self-reward
Putri, N. (2021, April 6). PENTINGNYA SELF REWARD UNTUK DIRI SENDIRI. Ners Unair. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from http://ners.unair.ac.id/site/index.php/news-fkp-unair/30-lihat/1230-pentingnya-self-reward-untuk-diri-sendiri
Sudah Kasih Reward Untuk Diri Sendiri Belum? (n.d.). KejarMimpi. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from https://www.kejarmimpi.id/sudah-kasih-reward-untuk-diri-sendiri-belum.html
