Motivational theories

Gamification is defined as the use of game elements and game design techniques in non-game contexts. it is expected that global gamification market will grow to USD $5.5 Billion by 2018. This tremendous market growth relies on basic human instinct to get enticed by both extrinsic and intrinsic motivations. This study aims to provide insights into gamification approach from motivation perspective. For this purpose, conceptual foundations of gamification described, including the structure and Benefits of Gamification, and then related motivation theories reviewed.

Στην παρούσα εργασία παρουσιάζονται τα ευρήματα ποιοτικής έρευνας που πραγματοποιήθηκε με 18 δομημένες συνεντεύξεις σε εκπαιδευόμενους των Σχολείων Δεύτερης Ευκαιρίας (ΣΔΕ), που είχαν μαθηματικοφοβία. Με βάση τις απόψεις των εκπαιδευομένων διαπιστώθηκαν τα είδη και οι μορφές εμποδίων που αντιμετώπιζαν στην εκμάθηση των μαθηματικών στο παρελθόν, αλλά και οι παράγοντες που συνέβαλαν στην υπερνίκησή τους κατά τη διδασκαλία του Αριθμητικού Γραμματισμού με αποτέλεσμα μάλιστα την απόκτηση θετικής διάθεσης για το μάθημα.

Leadership has been defined in various ways with some scholars strongly suggesting that it is a calling or something driven by a trait [1], which is expressed through personal values, integrity and certain qualities [2-5]. Leadership in virtual networks, however, is more of an earned recognition. This article argues that leadership in these virtual networks is about character-building. We approach this study by reviewing the literature around character-building, which we then model as discretionary effort (DE), a construct of expectancy, instrumentality, valence and self-affirmation, which explains the extra effort spent beyond the work-role requirement. Additionally, we review the coaching literature, which, when applied to our DE model, provides a path along which DE can be encouraged. We investigate whether work leverage earned through DE is shaped by process-oriented factors such as 'experience'. 'Gender' and 'profession' are also investigated as other added influencer factors. The study is based on professional networks with a data sample of 1548 managers and specialists in different sectors. Results reveal that process-oriented variables, such as 'experience', significantly explain the variability in the DE build-up process. DE levels are also observed to be different between sectors. 'Gender' did not have any effect on the results, either at unit or inter-unit relations, in clusters of employees who are either virtually-located or co-located.

Este trabajo explora los factores motivacionales que influyen en el aprendizaje del árabe como lengua extranjera, centrándose en la evolución y los cambios que estos experimentan a lo largo del tiempo, las distintas formas en las que interac- túan entre sí, y en su relación con el éxito en el aprendizaje de la lengua. Nuestro estudio consiste en un análisis exhaustivo de la información cualitativa recogida en entrevistas con estudiantes universitarios en España. Los resultados de dicho análisis confirman la validez del Modelo de Proceso de la Motivación en la L2 de Dörnyei y Ottó, sugiriendo, no obstante, ciertas modificaciones y adiciones que podrían ser de gran utilidad para adaptar este modelo a otras segundas len- guas que, como el árabe, presentan una naturaleza diglósica o requieren un pro- ceso de aprendizaje especialmente costoso y prolongado.

This study explores the motivational factors acting when learning Arabic as a foreign language, focusing on their evolution and changes over time, the different ways in which these interact, and their correlation with language learning success. Through an extensive analysis of qualitative data collected during interviews of university undergraduate students in Spain, our research validates Dornyei and Ottó’s Process Model for L2 Motivation, suggesting, however, some significant adjustments and additions that would be of great use when adapting this model to other second languages which, like Arabic, present diglossic features and/or require a particularly long and arduous learning process.

The paper presents an answer to the existential question, "Why do we do what we do?".  It presents and discusses the 6S framework constructed using six basic aims of human life, namely, survival, stability, strength, success, superiority, and sustainability, that everyone strives to fulfill by using different combinations of resources, action-experiences, and conditions as inputs.  Principles to prioritize these inputs as vital, essential, and desirable, are stated.  The framework is applicable to three levels of human organization, namely, the individual person at the micro level, social units starting with the nuclear family, and increasing in size at the meso level to a community (social) or an organization (business/economic), or even a whole government, and ending at the macro level with a whole nation, society or even civilization.  The discussion is taken beyond the 6S framework to enable everyone at the three levels of human organization to recognize and appreciate the need to transcend our games in our lives by striving for the 7th ‘S’ – spiritual realization and spiritual liberation at the micro level of individuals, synergy at the meso level of social units, and shanthi at the macro level of nations, societies and civilization.

When variables are measured on the same set of individuals, the statistics detailing the degree of association between them are vital for inference. Such statistics help to reveal the causal effects and conceptual structures among the underlying variables and can be used as instruments for developing and validating conceptual models. We seek to demonstrate that, by carefully constructing work-effort-related hypothetical structures through statistical measures, a Discretionary Effort model can be realized and fitted. Using empirical data from a survey in professional networks, we tested two models emerging from different sets of expectance variable combinations, with a sample of 1548 primarily managers from various sectors. The first model was based on valence, instrumentality, and expectance (VIE), whereas the second included these three variables and self-affirmation (VIEA). Analysis of construct validities revealed that VIEAs were better fitted than VIE. Structural measures using covariates were able to explain that VIEA is an improved version of VIE.

The chapter presents a review of the research literature examining perfectionism from a motivational perspective. Taking the two-factor model of perfectionism—differentiating the two higher-order dimensions of perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns—as a basis, we present analyses of the differential relationships that the two dimensions show with key motivational constructs focusing on achievement motivation and self-determination theory. As regards achievement motivation, we examine the relationships with achievement motives (hope of success and fear of failure) and achievement goals (task and ego goals, 2 × 2 and 3 × 2 achievement goals). As regards self-determination theory, we examine the relationships with autonomous and controlled motivation and with the different regulatory styles associated with intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation. Based on the findings of our review, we propose that the differential motivational qualities of perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns are important to understand why perfectionism is a “double-edged sword” that may energize or paralyze people, motivating some perfectionists to engage and others to disengage. We conclude that perfectionism research may profit from seeing perfectionism from a motivational perspective, perhaps even regard perfectionism as a motive disposition (need for perfection) whereby perfectionistic strivings represent the approach-oriented and autonomous aspects, and perfectionistic concerns the avoidance-oriented and controlled aspects.

Motivation is an internal state that causes us to direct attention or engage in or maintain a behavior.  So, how do we motivate students to learn?  This is the crux of it all.  This chapter excerpt describes several theories of motivation, all of which can be used to help us understand human behavior.

Various scholars have theorised models of motivation, which laid a strong foundation for employers to motivate their employees. The purpose of this study was to review the motivational theories and explain their collective emphasis, with the ultimate aim of generating theoretical measures whose considerations and implementations could motivate teachers to improve quality of output in schools, as a measure of their work performance. The study reviewed theories related to Hierarchy of Needs theory, Two-Factor theory, Existence, Relatedness and Growth (ERG) theory, Expectant theory, Equity theory and the Goal-setting theory. The theories were reviewed, analysed thematically and discussed within the context of education and teacher motivation, which was the focus of the study. The study found out that theoretical factors that influence teacher motivation and performance, relates to the work itself, rewards and compensation, the working environment and professional growth and development opportunities. Employers should ensure that these factors are well cultivated as they serve as motivators for teachers to work optimally and improve school performance.

Employee motivation is a significant factor driving organizational success. It is imperative for leadership practitioners to understand how the culture and structure of the organization have an impact on the level of motivation experienced by all organizational members. The job of managers is not only to ensure they have the right organizational members in place; but also to keep these employees motivated so they can accomplish organizational goals. This essay examines some of the motivational factors leaders must understand in order to accomplish organizational goals. Particularly, the writer will briefly review the equity theory, the expectancy theory, the goal setting theory, and the self-efficacy theory; as well as their application to management practice.

We thus conclude that selectivity emerged through evolution as a design feature to enable efficient goal-directed action. Such selectivity became necessary as the action repertoire of the given line of organisms that led to humans increased. This means that selectivity is an emerging property arising from a myriad underlying processes, and the simple fact that humans (and other species showing selective attention) evolved the way they did, with selective attention being one of many byproducts, next to “selective intention” and “selective decision making.” This clearly was the case in the spiritual beliefs in animal spirits as well. 
In summarizing the extensive rituals, rules, and taboos involved in the spiritual beliefs in animal spirts and the pervasive presence of spiritual beliefs in everyday life, Erica Hill states, “First, prey animals, including bear, walrus and whale, were perceived as agential beings who interacted with humans as persons; they were sentient social equals capable of deciding whether to favour humans by allowing themselves to be taken. Human hunters engaged with prey animals on a regular, perhaps daily, basis. Hunting ritual and observance of taboos were the responsibility of the individual hunter and his family members, whose duty it was to properly approach, take, butcher and dispose of the animal and its remains." Clearly, the spiritual beliefs in animal spirits recruited imagination and intuitive processes in pursuit of hunting and the skills necessary for that.

Our paper aims to examine the Impact of motivational factors on employee job satisfaction. A sample of Anamallais, 100 employees from Tea plantation Industries of Anamallais, Coimbatore District, TamilNadu was taken for this analysis. The motivational factor plays a vital role in employee job satisfaction. The objective of the study is to analyse the impact of motivational factors on job satisfaction of employees. This is an exploratory study based on primary data. The primary data is collected through the questionnaire. The data is collected from the middle level management staff performing their office work, field work and factory work. The statistical tool used for the study is mean, standard deviation and variance. The study concludes the intrinsic motivational factor are having significant relationship with job satisfaction of employees than the other factor such as working condition, compensation benefits and fringe benefits.

Motivation is widely discussed widely in areas such as psychology, education and development. Motivation plays a crucial role in human lives as it leads human to any action. The purpose of this paper is to compare the motivation theories according to Western perspective with Islamic perspectives. Western psychologists relate motivation to many aspects of life such as biological, environmental, cognition, and developmental. Islamic perspective on the other hand put more emphasis on the spiritual and religion aspect where Muslims are motivated to do good deeds or to perform any activity only to seek the pleasure of Allah. The paper ends with the elaboration on how soul function as the moderator to motivate human to do their actions.

Understanding human behavior in workplace has been one of the most prioritized tasks for any organization. This is due to major changes like globalization and technological advancement that change in the structure of the business done, the workforce behavior and management of employees.

This article aims to analyze the application of motivational theories in popular music groups using as a basis a survey of thirty-two musicians working in the music scene of São Paulo. We use Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Theory, Frederic Herzberg´s Two Factor Theory, David McLelland's Acquired Needs Theory, Douglas Mcgregor's Motivational Theory “X” and Theory “Y”, Alderfer´s ERG Theory and the Hackman´s and Oldham´s Work Planning Theory. We seek, through this method to check the leadership styles that best apply to these groups in order to improve not only artistic performance, but also the satisfaction of individuals who are part of these groups.

This article aims to establish the particularities of cybercrime in Nigeria and whether these suggest problems with prevailing taxonomies of cybercrime. Nigeria is representative of the Sub-Saharan region, and an exemplary cultural context to illustrate the importance of incorporating social and contextual factors into cybercrime classifications. This paper anchors upon a basic principle of categorisation alongside motivational theories, to offer a tripartite conceptual framework for grouping cybercrime nexus. It argues that cybercrimes are motivated by three possible factors: socioeconomic, psychosocial and geopolitical. This contribution provides new ways of making sense of the voluminous variances of cyber-crime. Concomitantly, it enables a clearer conceptualisation of cybercrime in Nigeria and elsewhere, because jurisdictional cultures and nuances apply online as they do offline.

Abstract: According to Rost (2006) motivation has been called the “neglected heart ” of language teaching. As teachers, we often forget that all of our learning activities are filtered through our students’ motivation. In this sense, students control the flow of the classroom. Without student motivation, there is no pulse; there is no life in the class. When we learn to incorporate direct approaches to generating student motivation in our teaching, we will become happier and more successful teachers. The issue of motivation, particularly in EFL settings, is so important that other considerations about teaching methodology seem to pale in comparison. It is important to think about motivation as the essence of language teaching because of the stark realities of learning English for most of our students.

Motivating students is an important concern for language teachers. One of the most direct ways to motivate students is for the teacher to talk them into it. This study investigates the effectiveness of narrating inspirational stories about successful role models on motivating a sample of Saudi university learners of English (N = 270). Teachers of the experimental group told their students motivational stories about famous people associated with the English culture as a warm-up activity for a period of about four weeks. Results of t-tests showed that the experimental group reported a significant reduction in anxiety (d = 0.41). However, there were no significant differences between the two groups in integrativeness, motivation, or attitudes toward the learning situation. The role of creating role models for language learners is discussed in light of the present results.

AbstrAct Aim: Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is used to generate a theory by exploring the factors which account for the variations and interrelationships of the manifested variables used in the study. WEIMS scale has been widely used by many researchers on various target respondents. “Mystery shoppers” being highlighted in this study are the respondents on whom the scale constructs are used to draw data.Background: Motivation and its variables have to be studied in depth among mystery shoppers as the results would help them to be motivated even during the tough time of their profession if taken into consideration.Method: The  sample  consisted  of  238  mystery shoppers  from  every  sector  as  they  do  mystery  shopping assignments in various industries. The data has been collected using convenient sampling method and snowball sampling method. This is tested on a five point Likert scale.Summary: This study is an analysis of 18 variables associated with various facet of motivation. A total of 238 mystery shoppers participated in the study. Utilizing Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) techniques, the research examined relationships among the following variables: Components were extracted using Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and orthogonally rotated resulting in three component solution. Motivation for Triumph, Motivation to be a front-runner, Motivation for Livelihood, Feeling Secured were derived and being named after the rotation.Keywords: WEIMS, motivation, intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, mystery shoppers.MeAning of Mystery

Ever wonder how to apply the law of attraction so that it works every time? Most of us can remember times when we asked for something and got it. But we can also remember times when nothing came of it. Is this cosmic law inconsistent? The real secret of how to apply the law of attraction that most people don't know is that it's not as easy as simply asking. There are skills and techniques that you need to have in order for it to work for you. In fact, if you master these skills, you can use it for whatever you want, and it'll get consistent results.

This book is now available for FREE to download at: https://tinyurl.com/MotivatingStudents2pdf

The title of the book, Motivating Students by Design, was chosen because the author explains how instructors can motivate students intentionally through the design of their courses. The two primary purposes of this book are to present a motivation model that can be used to design instruction and to provide practical motivation strategies and examples that can be used to motivate students to engage in learning. Based on decades of research, Dr. Brett Jones presents a framework to organize teaching strategies that motivate students. All of the strategies presented are followed by several examples, which provide readers with over 100 ideas for how the strategies can be implemented in courses. This book will be useful to graduate students and beginning professors, as well as professors who are more experienced and want to refine their instruction or try new strategies.

Pour favoriser le transfert des acquis de la formation continue dans l’environnement professionnel, les concepteurs pédagogiques s’appuient de plus en plus sur les technologies du numérique pour développer des méthodes qui stimulent les capacités d’autorégulation et favorisent la contextualisation des con-naissances. Cette communication a pour objectif de présenter l’utilisation d’un nouvel outil d’évaluation du transfert basé sur une approche socio-cognitive : l’échelle de Perception d’Auto-efficacité à la Régulation du Transfert des Apprentissages (PARETA). Une étude sur des parcours multimodaux en anglais langue étrangère menée auprès de 142 salariés de l’industrie de la santé a montré des relations positives fortes entre le PARETA et la perception de transfert à froid, les scores au test certifié du BULATS (Business Language Testing Service). L’étude de la valeur prédictive du PARETA conjointement avec le sentiment d’efficacité personnel en anglais a permis d’observer la contribution différenciée du score global PARETA et de ses trois dimensions : la contrôlabilité du transfert, l’impact sur la performance, et l’adaptation autonome du contenu. Les résultats liés aux modalités de formation (e-learning, téléphone, face-à-face, parcours mixtes) sont proposés.

Tutti sono pronti a dichiarare che gli insegnanti debbano motivare gli studenti. Tutti sono d’accordo su questo punto.

Ma chi motiva gli insegnanti?

Nessuno.

Ma anche i docenti hanno bisogno di essere motivati.

Allora, ci provo io, con questa mia "lunga" lettera di motivazione ai docenti, per apprezzare il loro bellissimo e difficilissimo lavoro.

www.mariopolito.it
info@mariopolito.it

Marketers often use incentives such as coupons, rewards or special membership discounts in order to motivate consumers to purchase or recommend a particular brand. This practice is based on the underlying assumption that an increase in incentives will lead to an increase in consumer response – an idea which has been at the core of traditional economic thinking for decades. Some psychologists have claimed, however, that under specific conditions an increase in incentives can reduce (rather than increase) one's willingness to perform the behavior which is being incentivized. If materialized, the possibility that extrinsic incentives may diminish consumer willingness to recommend a favorite brand could have important theoretical and practical consequences in the context of word-of-mouth or buzz marketing. This study tests that possibility in the context of an experiment about Apple computers, a favorite brand among US college students. Participants were asked to recommend the brand to a friend (1) in absence of any monetary reward and (2) for a small monetary incentive. Students who were promised a small monetary reward experienced a decrease in intrinsic motivation and wrote shorter recommendations than those who were not promised any incentives. Data also suggest that the quality of the recommendation may decrease when incentives are offered. The results are discussed in line of their possible theoretical and practical significance.

The aims of this study to discusses prophetic leadership models and how to facilitate it in the public bureaucracy. Prophetic leadership is the ability possessed by leaders to influence subordinates in accordance with Islamic demands (leading to the pattern of the leadership of Rasulullah SAW). Systematically we work starting with searching for sources of reading (nash al-Qur'an, hadith, journals and books), then reading interactive, making reading tables, and reducing the essence of reading before being transferred to the worksheet. This study found that leadership can be explained through theories of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. Prophetic leadership belongs to intrinsic leadership because it uses spirituality as the basis of value. In Islam, prophetic leadership not only stems from intrinsic or ethical motivation, but the integration of divine-world motivation (hasanah) and akhirat (salamah). Then it is known that the triggers of prophetic leadership can be the result of imitating the Prophet Muhammad and also through social experience. The process of its formation took place in a long time, so it is concluded that prophetic leadership can be applied in the public bureaucracy if the ASN of the country has religious maturity. Efforts to realize prophetic leadership can begin by analyzing the level of religious maturity. Bringing spiritual nuances within the organization is considered to be sufficient to facilitate the ASN of a mature country. We are just at the analytical stage and predict its application opportunities. The next researcher needs to raise the best practice case from this model and to formulate a measuring tool to assess the successful application of prophetic leadership in the public bureaucracy.

Human beings varies from individual to individual and from group to group. Primarily, man is a social animal; and is being interacted to and dependent on others. They are insufficient and inadequate in themselves and hence need help from time to time. But to a great extent, man is selfish by nature. Machiavelli, an Italian political thinker, says that man is evil by nature and manipulates others in his selfinterest, which can be further verified by Darwinian concept of "survival of the fittest". However, Plato was the first thinker who believed that selfish nature of man can be modified by proper education, adequate training and socialization. Early socialization can be seen in peer groups, family and educational environments. For, the present research paper, the investigator selected the population of young adults whose prosocial behavior is assessed with respect to their success in their educational area. Specifically, prosocial behavior is defined as voluntary behaviors that is carried out to benefit another without anticipation of external rewards. This is called as Altruism. An exploratory correlational research was done to find the level of pro social behavior in the form of Altruism among Young Adults and how that altruism level motivates them to achieve something in their lives, a variable which is called as Achievement-Motivation. It was founded that the correlation of the overall altruism and achievementmotivation among 84 samples of young adults was significant.

Workers in the field of development aid, particularly those involved in capacity development projects, have for some time recognized the importance of understanding the psychology of aid beneficiaries. However, there have been very few psychological studies on development aid, possibly because there are yet few tested theoretical frameworks that allow empirical research. The aim of this paper is to present a theoretical framework that would be applicable to aiding, assessing, and researching the psychology of people facing difficulties such as extreme poverty. The framework is based on Self-Determination Theory (SDT) and also draws from behavior modification approaches. It is argued that for such people, as a prerequisite for supporting the need for autonomy, it is necessary to support the needs for competence and relatedness. Based on the modified SDT framework, aid paradigms such as conditional cash transfers (CCTs), the life improvement approach (LIA), the smallholder horticultural empowerment project (SHEP), and the freedom for enhancing empowerment (FrEE) approaches are examined, and future research directions are discussed.

Prior research has identified political efficacy and political interest as strong predictors of political participation, but few studies have examined these two attitudes in tandem or compared their relative importance vis-à-vis political participation. Drawing on the expectancy-value model of motivation, we begin to address this research gap while also considering several related issues. Our sample includes a diverse group of high school students in grades 10, 11, and 12 (N  = 422) from the midwestern United States. Through quantitative analyses of participants’ survey data, we found that political interest (a central aspect of value) and political efficacy (closely related to expectancy) predicted participants’ expected future political participation, controlling for background characteristics—and that political interest was a particularly strong predictor. In addition, we identified political-engagement differences on various demographic measures, such as grade level. We also found a significant interaction between political interest and internal political efficacy, suggesting that high levels of both attitudes can have an especially positive effect on adolescents’ political participation. We discuss the implications of these findings for researchers and educators interested in fostering political engagement among youth.

Online learning is no longer very novel these days.  It is rather fairly mundane where nearly every academic institution has implemented some facet in one manner or another.  But how people learn online isn’t the same as how they learn in face-to-face learning environments, and often requires greater levels of motivation (or different types of motivation) in order to persist towards actually achieving one’s academic goals.  This difference or lack of motivation is only one barrier towards greater engagement and persistence in online education.  Online learners have shared that there is an overwhelming sense of isolation due to a lack of social interaction and engagement along with collaborative engagement with peers within online courses (Muilenburg & Berge, 2005; Redmond, Abawi, Brown, Henderson, & Heffernan, 2018).  Additionally, traditional pedagogical and didactic methods do not work to spur motivation in the adult learner, but rather adults seek to purposely fulfill different learning needs and goals via andragogical methods (Knowles, Holton, & Swanson, 2012).

The purpose of this paper is to explore the intersections of these contributing factors: lack of learning motivation, lack of social interaction and collaborative engagement, and misaligned learning methods.  By exploring online learning for the adults population through the lens of these various motivational theories and concepts, the hope is to ideate and develop strategies and support that can be embedded within the curriculum or the learning experience to enhance the motivation within the learning experience aimed at increasing learner persistence towards achieving their goals and to educate and empower adult learners towards self-regulating their motivations within their learning experience enabling them to apply the same techniques outside of learning in their other personal and professional pursuits.

Ideas exchange must needed in order to get the novel and creative solution for problems and also to implement it for future innovations. Ideas exchange will be met in many meetings, work session, discussion in a group of people to achieve the solution. There is a brainstorming method to create and generate ideas in order to exchange it with freewheeling and as flexible as they can or in another words with free-flowing burst of ideas (Osborn, 1957). This brainstorming involves the interconnected influences of cognitive, social, and motivational process from each contributor. The expressing of their ideas are affected by this model, in cognitive aspect the members have basic knowledge that can be used for idea generation. The second aspect is social that can influence because of the comment or judgment by another members that can block their mental. The last aspect is motivational process because each of members must know what the benefit and urgency of this group idea generation. Figure 1. A Cognitive-Social-Motivational Model of Group Ideation

Change is necessary, change is constant and change only shall make this world beautiful but all the changes has only for the betterment of human life.  To be a altruistic person one must not change in the basic qualities, if we change in those area then the world sure will come to an end...

“The secret to happiness is letting go” - The Buddha

Most of us have already spent too much time chasing happiness. Most of us get bogged down by the slightest change in our lives. Most of us are still searching for answers to a million dollar question “how to live a happy life?”

Though the answer to this question lies in front of us, it is we who fail to recognize it. Happiness is not something you can chase and get. Happiness is within us. Happiness is letting go, of all things that put you down and stunt your growth. In the art of letting go, you truly become happy and content in life. But what exactly should you let go of?

Here is a list of 12 things that you could let go and get better. Keep reading to find out more.

Let Go of Trying to Control – Replace it with alert excellence

You can’t control anything or anyone! The only thing you can control is yourself, your actions and your attitude. Accept this harsh truth and let go of the need to be in control all the time. It is the hardest thing to do, but once over it, you can truly start to transform yourself. Replace the desire to control with the drive for excellence, excellence in your profession, excellence of knowledge in your field, excellence in personal psychological and emotional hygiene (supporting only the best ideas and emotions in ones system), excellence in interpersonal interactions (coming from a place of openness and empathy towards all). It’s only when we are unsure of our own capabilities that we seek to control the people and circumstances.

Let go of Trying to Please People - Replace it with acceptance of yourself

Pretending to be someone else in front of others only takes you away from your true self. The more you try to please someone, the farther you get away. Also, it is hard to please everyone. There will at least one person who will still be unhappy with the way you are. Liberate yourself from doing the same and learn to accept your true self! Accepting yourself doesn’t imply a freezing into a permanent state on the contrary it allows you to identify your flaws, your traits and characteristics in relation to your dreams and desires hence allowing for a true correction or a transformation if the need be.

Let Go of Bitterness – Replace it with empathy

Unless you walk in someone else’s shoes, you don’t know why they behave the way they behave. So don’t get upset about small things. It might hurt you, but learn to look past it. Once you start letting go of the bitterness, the feeling of being free is just amazing! Meet people and circumstances with a genuine empathy.

Let Go of the Ego driven rigidity – Replace it with present moment awareness 

An apology doesn’t make you small, neither does forgiveness. Try to build an authentic connection with people. Cut off that ego from your life. It will be the beginning of your healing process. Though it might seem a very arduous task in the beginning once you begin to operate from the present moment awareness even for a few moments within a day its fruits of joy, peace and clarity would be so addictive that you would automatically strive for more.

Let Go of Resentment – Replace it with Gratitude

Learn to be grateful in life. Rather than counting what you don’t have, be appreciative of what you have. In that sense of gratitude, you will find a completely new self, acknowledging the world and accepting the beauty of life.

Let Go of Trying to Be Perfect – Replace it with focus on excellence

Most people squander their lives in the quest for perfection. But the result is always that of disappointment. Making mistakes is what makes us humans. It is an essential part of learning and growing in life. Embrace your flaws and understand that you are a “work in progress” and hence excellence should be the only focus as the very definition of excellence like you is also a “work in progress”.

Let Go of Unhealthy Relationships – Replace it with the idea of enriching others

There is an old quote which reads “We become who we hang out with”. In good company, you grow, in bad, well we all know how that ends. If you get stuck in unhealthy relationships that provide you nothing but negativity and unhappiness, you should let go of it, immediately. Even though you might truly love them and the process can be painful, but it is pivotal to distance yourself, at least psychologically if not physically, from such people if you want to be happy. These relationships only drain you, thus, preventing you from being happy. Focus on transforming yourself first then investing positivity in the relationship and then awaiting transformation within them too. Don’t be in a relationship to take anything just be there to give your best and still if things don’t work out then take the difficult decision of quitting.

Let Go of  “Not enough” consumerism – Replace it with clear goals towards fulfilment

We seem to be mistaking consumerism for success and fulfilment. Yes, we need money to survive in society and there is nothing wrong with having a good house, a luxury car etc but what’s wrong is a false belief that these things would make us feel better about ourselves or fulfil us . A good job, a big car, an expensive house and all things material can make you happy and comfortable (physically) for a while, however, if you truly want to be happy in life, you have to let go of the idea of seeking fulfilment via consumerism and start focusing on activities that align with your long term goals and vision of your life.

Let Go of The Fear Of Failure – See Failure as an inevitable teacher on the path to success

One of the top motivational speakers of the world Zig Ziglar once said, “If you learn from defeat, you haven’t really lost”. This <a href="http://www.thepossibility.in/">motivational quote</a> talks about letting go of fear. Stop fearing that you will fail. Failure isn’t ultimate until you allow it to be. It only shows that you need to try one time, probably with a different approach or technique or diligence, that’s for you to figure out. So, stop treating it as something negative instead start seeing it as an integral part of the process. Use it as a fertilizer for your growth (although repulsive and unsightly it is extremely nutritious for the plants).

Let Go of Comparison With Others – Replace it with focus on yourself

There are 7 billion living on this planet, and everyone is unique in their own way. You can’t compare your happiness, sadness or even your success and failures to someone else’s. You need to stop comparing yourself to others. Instead, start focusing on your negativities and work on getting better. Comparison with others causes nothing but pain and a sense of failure. It is time to let go of comparison and shifting the focus from the other to yourself.

Let Go of the Past – Replace it with a fresh and immersive experience of the present

If you truly want to be happy in life, you have to let go of your past. You have to stop holding on to the baggage of the bygone. You have no control over your past; what is gone is gone. Rather start focusing on the present. Once you learn to deliberately focus on today, the world will become beautiful. Everything that seemed mundane will be sweet. It is about time, you move forth in life! Appreciate everything you have to truly understand the mystery of life. It’s not that the past clings to us, it’s just that we have chosen to be uninvolved with the present and hence have too much of our psychological and energetic space available for the past to keep playing in a loop. If we were to get intensely involved with the present moment past would be a thing of the past!!!

Let Go of Expectations – Replace it with your confidence in yourself

Stop expecting from others! Most of our troubles exist because of the expectations we have created from others. When the expectations are not met we feel let down or even betrayed. Stop expecting how friends and spouses ought to be or behave. Stop expecting how the specifics of every situation should turn out to be, stay focused on the outcome. When we become confident in our ability to handle life come what may the expectations drop automatically. So again the focus is on ourselves, how we can be better, how can we refine ourselves further and further more. Focus on self-improvement and everything in life will start falling into the right place.

“Letting go” is not easy! It is the most difficult thing one has to ever do in life. The road to letting go is difficult, however, persevere, don’t give up, and keep moving forward because it’s absolutely worth it. You will get there faster than you expect. It is a journey that will teach you <a href="http://www.thepossibility.in/lead-happy-life/">how to be happy in life</a> . Just as a quote reads, “When you LET GO, you create space for something better!”

Davidson and Kolnai in different ways emphasise that practical syllogistic reasoning can only tell one that one has a reason to do or not to do something.  It cannot adjudicate between conflicting reasons.  It can tell one the means to certain ends but not which ends to pursue.  This paper considers possible responses to this predicament.  What if anything can be done to put deliberation - the 'weighing' of competing reasons - on  a rational basis?

'Engagement' is becoming an increasing used term within the field of language teaching to explain the extent to which learners becomes actively involved in tasks. Recent TBLT research has focused upon measuring engagement using a combination of performance variables related to emotional, behavioral, and cognitive acts within learner speech (Philp & Duchesne, 2016). Emotional engagement has been measured by using self-reported learner surveys addressing feelings towards doing tasks (Skinner, Kidderman & Furrer, 2009), behavioral engagement by using measures such as words spoken and turns taken (Dornyei & Kormos, 2000) and cognitive engagement by measuring persistence to explain opinions, reasons and examples (Helme & Clarke, 2001). Increases in these measures across both whole task-time and from task-to-task demonstrates improved levels of engagement and are desirable for teachers.

Goal-setting theories, such as Achievement Goal Theory (Elliot, 1999), have been used to explain how learners can become more engaged in learning. An experiment involving 88 English students within a Japanese university adopted a mixed-method approach to assessing the impact on engagement of implementing goal-setting into discussion tasks. Half of the learners set, monitored and tracked progress of spoken goals across time (words spoken, as well as opinions and reasons given) while the other half did not. Pre and post-experimental surveys measured learner affective disposition towards discussions. Weekly task recordings examined changes in engagement measures across task-time (for four time quarters), as well as from task-to-task. Results showed a strong effect for goal-setting on several observed engagement measures across all four quarters of discussion time, as well as from task-to-task. However, similar effects of goal-setting on affective disposition towards discussions were not present within survey data. The implications for such findings for classroom oral tasks will be discussed for both teachers and researchers. Limitations and future directions for the research will also be addressed.