Incentive Trust

You're potty-traing your kid. Or maybe your ferret. Either way, you probably have some sort of reward system. Put the poopie in the potty and get a Reese's.

That system (rewards for doing something you want them to do) underlies an incentive trust. The term describes a pot of money set aside for the express purpose of encouraging some kind of behavior.

You want your nephew to become a world-renowned clown. He wants to become a doctor. So you put $1 million in an incentive trust. Upon graduating from clown college, he gets the $1 million. If he doesn't, the money gets sent to a charity dedicated to potty-training exotic pets.

Of course, using the incentive system for potty-training might create severe mental damage that, years down the road, will lead your middle-aged kid to a psychologist, describing why they feel the deep-seeded need to eat candy while going to the bathroom. But, for the present, at least you can move on from diapers.

(There's probably less chance of damaging your ferret's psyche. But then again, who knows? Ferrets are complicated.)