Motivating Your Kids

My daughter is a special, strong-willed teen. I seem to pick teeth when it comes to just asking her to do something. But I've found it's also because she's so gifted. She's a right-brainer. She's always finding the need to create something.
So, each moment is a "homeschool lesson" for her. I wanted to get her motivated about exercising & taking care of herself more, so, I let her choose what activities she finds most interesting & engaging. Right now, I've been working out with her; playing Dance Central 3 for Xbox Kinnect. (The game is so much fun & there's all kinds of things that keep her interested & engaged). She absolutely loves it & she's staying healthy. (I also love the challenges because,  they teach her how to set goals). And she earns rewards on the game, so they make her feel really accomplished).

Now, how do I get her motivated about personal hygiene? It's always a fight to get her to the shower. So, I turned it into a game. After exercising together, I go to my shower & she goes to hers. I set our mark, & then each of us has to run to gather our belongings, hop in the shower, then race to get dressed. We do this to see who finishes first. Then, she's usually hungry, so, I reward her with her favorite food.

You may be going through something similar. If you have any ideas on how to motivate your children, please feel free to share your comments. I hope my idea was a good example on how to motivate your children. Feel free to try it out. It can be used to get them to complete whatever you want them to. I feel I'm connecting with my child & that's what they really want.