Threats vs Incentives

I've found myself falling back into a threatening mode towards my children.  This is one of those things I have to make a conscience effort to avoid.  I frequently find myself saying things like "If you don't clean all the books up, I'll have to take your stuffed animals away." Really, I'd probably get a better result if I phrased it as "If you put all of your books away, you can go play with your stuffed animals".  I react better to incentives than I do to threats, and I'm pretty sure my children are the same.  An early New Year's resolution, I guess, to focus on encouraging the positive rather than punishing the negative.