nstructions – Brief version:

First, write your Submission: The instructions for this assignment are similar to the one last week (Understanding #1 Self Referent) except instead of reporting how a concept from the textbook explains your past (and thus helps you understand yourself), you are reporting how a concept from the textbook can be used to implement in your life in some way (and thus be “useful” as a strategy to achieve your goals in life). I would highly recommend skimming some examples since this activity is much easier to complete after you see some examples. The basic idea is that when reading the Chapter you paused after each paragraph to ask yourself how to turn that information into a concrete strategy to use in your life. You report one of those instances for the assignment. You don’t have to try the strategy, just brainstorm ideas for how you could use the info in your life. Your post should be two paragraphs:

Concept: The first paragraph is stating the concept or topic from the chapter. You may copy directly from the text. In fact, I encourage you to just copy/paste the textbook. This first paragraph is typically only a few sentences long.
Application: The second paragraph describes how that concept could become a concrete strategy. You must provide details. This second paragraph is medium length. The objective is to be articulate and concise. Longer paragraphs do not always mean better paragraphs. The goal is to use the keywords from the concept when explaining how it could be a concrete strategy in this second paragraph.
(FYI – you need to include the labels “Concept” and “Application” because they are thematic approach or strategy I am trying to help you practice so that when you read something you will naturally learn to ask yourself to concise identify topics and apply what you learned (identify & apply skills).

How to do it? After each paragraph, pause for a second or two, and ask yourself if you can turn that information into a concrete strategy to improve your life. The objective for this assignment is just to brainstorm ways of using the knowledge from the textbook to make your life easier, similar to how the Self-Referent effect was brainstorming ways in which the concepts applied to your life.

How to write my submission? There are two paragraphs:

Concept: The first paragraph is stating the concept from the textbook. You may copy directly from the text. In fact, I encourage you to just copy/paste the textbook. This first paragraph is typically only a few sentences long.
Application: The second paragraph describes how that concept can be turned into a concrete strategy to improve your life. You must provide details. This second paragraph is medium length. The objective is to be articulate and concise. Longer paragraphs do not always mean better paragraphs.

What is the goal of that second paragraph? Your goal is to use the keywords from the concept when explaining how it can be a strategy. For example, if you are using Affective Forecasting (page 6) then the important parts of that concept are the ideas of “expecting” certain “feelings” to occur in the future, so when writing your second paragraph you should explain how your strategy involves expectations, and feelings (see the examples page for examples). Try using the keywords from the concept when writing your second paragraph.

Are there formatting requirements? Yes, you MUST include the word “Concept:” as the label for the first paragraph, and “Application:” as the label for the second paragraph. Those labels are the thematic approach or strategy I am trying to help you practice. In other words, the objective of the assignment is to think in a new way, so that every time you read something you will naturally learn to ask yourself to identify the concept, and then to apply what you learned.