Awards and trophies are a symbol of success, a very tangible pat on the back by people with the clout to truly mean it when they say, "good job." A big holiday bonus can just as easily be the generosity of the giver as a mark of superior performance. Utilitarian devices that serve practical purposes might be excellent motivators, but how many people will see their toaster as a mark of prestige in a year's time? In the end, these things are payments, rewards commensurate (or sometimes not) with the effort brought to bear or the practical value of the service provided.

But there's a difference between a reward for your actions and an award for your proficiency. A set of awards and trophies in a glass case is a show of skill, a mark that you have in the past outperformed your peers and are quite ready, willing, and able to do so again. Conversely, filling that space with two toasters, an mp3 player, and the ticket stubs from your Hawaii weekend getaway only proves that you don't like loud music, have a strange fixation with burned bread, and never, ever throw away anything that has been written on paper. And when you are starting up your own business and want to make an immediate impression on any client who walks through your door, which is the picture you would like to paint.

Awards and trophies are the quintessential emblems of victory over a persistent and proficient opposition. Prominently emblazoned with your name and engraved with the specific reason for the award, they stand as irrefutable displays of past accomplishments and strong indicators of future displays of superior ability. Awards and trophies aren't just earned; they're won. It's a simple fact that ours is a competitive world, where people and groups alike strive constantly against each other to prove their prowess and obtain the rewards they deserve for it. As such, as other organizations and individuals seek to claim their share of the resources we have available, they will strive to enlist those most likely to aid them in their efforts. And which is a finer show of such skill? A marble-base acrylic trophy engraved with your name and the competition you won, or a toaster?

So think, perhaps, about the awards and trophies you've earned in the past, and the people you've showed them off to. Agents? Clients? Partners? Or maybe you more humbly kept it to yourself, an enduring symbol of past victories that needs no recognition to inspire your confidence and enhance your drive to succeed. Think maybe about the awards and trophies you've seen from others, and when thinking about those symbols of success and the people who possessed them, consider how those various medals and statues translated into displays of true and remarkable capability in your future dealings. And then, when you are in the position where you want to encourage success and give a lasting reward to the person who comes out on top, think back on these things and decide whether you want to pay for an engraved custom trophy or award...or a toaster.