Rules require enforcing. Incentives are followed naturally. There is an optimal balance where the two come together, but the more you can align incentives, the less rule enforcing you will need to do.
For example, if a young person knows their hard work on a project will be rewarded with recognition from people who matter, their incentive is to work hard. If there is a rule in place saying “everyone must try their best” they don’t have any reason to follow that rule. If they slip up, it has to be enforced. Whereas if they slip up in preparation for an important event, all that’s needed is a reminder of how soon their work will be made public.
An authentic, public audience for the work aligns incentives more quickly than any other change. No one wants to look bad in front of people they respect.
Do the work for someone real and the incentive will be for everyone to do their best.