How do you motivate a coaster? Spill coffee on it would be my guess. (Sorry - could not resist.)
Having raised a coaster I've come to the conclusion that unless the child sees the value in the end product or the experience itself, very little can motivate a coaster. My son was not motivated by good grades, challenges to do "his best" or do much more than the minimum effort in school. The only thing we found that we could use as a carrot was his climbing - where he drove himself to practice and train and watch his diet in order to earn an invite to nationals almost every year.
What I can tell you is that much of my effort to push him, make him excel, make him want to excel were only crazy-making and created friction at home. Seeing him completely excelling now in college when it is something that matters to him, I often wish I'd left some of it alone and just let him coast without all the friction between us.
