What motivates us?

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I've been evaluating my actions lately and found that I'm most motivated by the little things that do not matter but not motivated by the bigger rewards. It seems like a lot of other people are like that too. Are we just wired for wanting the smaller but instant rewards more? For example, I would spend hours working on and advertising my website just for a few extra clicks on my ads per day. When I earn the few extra cents, I actually get excited. Another example: I would spend hours completing homework so I get credit but find it very difficult to study for a big test that's coming up in a few days. Since homework directly to points, those few points are my motivation. However, tests lead to much bigger points, but I do not feel any motivation at all (unless the test is less than a day away)