Why it works
Motivation lasts when something good is always a few days away.
You promise yourself a treat if you hit the goal. A slow week costs you the progress and the treat, so quitting starts to feel reasonable.
Your weekly anchor is already on the calendar. It comes whether the week went well or not, and a good week makes it even better.
In a review of 128 experiments, rewards promised for doing or finishing a task made people less likely to choose that task on their own afterward. Surprise rewards didn’t, and genuine praise helped.
Deci, Koestner & Ryan, 1999. Researchers still debate how big the effect is.
Studies of New Year’s resolutions, studying and exercise found that people who enjoyed the activity itself were the ones who kept going. Caring about the far-off result helped them set goals, but it didn’t predict sticking with them.
Vacationers were happier before their trip than people who stayed home. After the trip, most of the lift was gone within about eight weeks.
