Covington, Martin V. The Self-Worth Theory of Achievement Motivation: Findings an d Implications. The Elementary School Journal 85.

1 (1984): 4-20. JSTOR. Web. 3 No v. 2011. a href="http://www.jstor.org/">http://www.jstor.org/ pss/ 1001615>. This article, derived from JSTOR, examines the motivations for dreams and goals from a psychological perspective. With an in-depth explanation of the theory of achievement motivation in young children, this article explores the ways in whic h adolescents measure self-worth in terms of their level of ability in different areas of talent and stamina. It is particularly evident that in realizing indiv idual dreams and goals, both self-worth and self-esteem flourish with the succes s of a particular goal, and feelings of self-doubt or failure arise when that go al is not reached. Specifically, the psychology shows that the pure motivation t o prove to oneself that they are not a failure will ultimately drive them to suc cess, while an individual whom lacks true motivation may find themselves in the downfall of self-blame and disappointment. *** Ghaemi, Nassir. The psychology of ambition. PsychologyToday. Sussex Directories, 2 1 Aug. 2008. Web. 3 Nov. 2011. a href="http://www.psychologytoday.com/">http://w ww.psychologytoday.com/ blog/ mood-swings/ 200808/ the-psychology-ambition>. This article, derived from a popular psychology website named PsychologyToday, d iscusses the psychology behind ambition. The author asks his audience to imagine a new thesis called Emersons Thesis (inspired by a quote from Emerson himself), wh ich is the idea that you must aim above your goal to hit the mark and achieve yo ur actual desired outcome. However, the author goes on to discuss a different ap proach to this idea; he asks his readers what the price of ambition is in achiev ing a certain dream or goal, and if achieving it is truly worth that price in th e end. To simplify the authors question, he is basically asking his audience what is worth the achievement of a dream? In realizing a dream, must an individual s acrifice another part of his or her life? While ambition is a force that drives almost the entirety of the human race, it is not necessarily a logical means to an end in all situations. *** Hacker, Scot. Bucketlist. BucketList. Django, Fall 2011. Web. 3 Nov. 2011. a href= "http://bucketlist.org/%3E">http://bucketlist.org/>;. Created by a young scholar with big dreams named Scot Hacker, this website is de signed so internet users across the world can make their own individual lists of what they would like to do before they die. These dreams and goals can be share d on the websites forum, blogged about on the users profile page, and can be forme d into a checklist for the user to check things off as they go. This website is a modern way of observing the ambitions and motivations of people from all kinds of backgrounds, and can help an individual realize the common occurrence of hav ing a dream. While many websites may talk about how to complete a goal, this web site is designed to keep users motivated to actually take action to achieve drea ms and not just talk about them. *** Pausch, Randy. The Last Lecture. The Last Lecture. Hyperion, Winter 2008. Web. 3 N ov. 2011. a href="http://www.thelastlecture.com/">http://www.thelastlecture.com/ i ndex.htm>. Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Mellon who taught Computer Science, Hum an Interaction, and Design. While working there, he was diagnosed with Pancreati c Cancer; his health soon deteriorated enough to give his doctors a general idea of whether or not he would survive - the verdict was that he would not, and upo n telling Randy this, his doctors told him he had about 3 months to one year to live. After coming to accept this, Randy decided to give one last lecture open t o any student and faculty to attend in the lecture hall at Carnegie Mellon. His lecture was titled Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams, and it was presented to the students as a way to instill passion and ambition within them. Randy spoke from a position unknown to most people, and in confronting death Randy believed that he had to leave behind the notion that childhood dreams really can come tru e. ***

R, Elango. Pursue vigor of your childhood dreams and open to a whole new level of commitment and engagement. www.economictimes.indiatimes.com. Bennet, Coleman & C o. Ltd., 2 Sept. 2011. Web. 3 Nov. 2011. a href="http://articles.economictimes.i ndiatimes.com/">http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/ 2011-09-02/ news/ 301060 78_1_auto-driver-auto-driver-auto-rickshaw>. An article written online in the Economic Times, the author writes to inform the reader of the benefits and motivations of chasing ones childhood dreams. Meant t o inspire his audience to venture into the world and realize their dreams, Elang o writes in a casual style, and directly questions the reader about his or her o wn childhood goals. This article addresses the change that often comes about as children become adolescents, and adolescents become adults - often the passion a nd desire is set aside while an individual prepares to succeed in the real world. This represents a clear argument that in the process of reaching ones goals, inne r drive may fade with time - the question is: How can one keep faith and determi nation in a working world that allows only small snippets of time to follow a pa ssion outside of the daily workload?