Idea Almanac

“Learning happens every day and everywhere. Humans are hardwired to classify experiences and assimilate knowledge. We can almost effortlessly learn a new recipe or memorize a bus schedule. That’s because the motivation is closely tied to the acquired skill or knowledge. The act of learning the recipe results in the satisfaction of a great meal, and learning a new bus schedule can reduce your wait times, so there is a clear line of sight between motivation and learning. But sometimes learning is harder, particularly when the gratification of accomplishment is delayed. Spending years in school to prepare for a career is a long, hard slog. Corporate training is often dry, boring, and not easily connected to employees’ goals. Whether it is formal education, corporate training, or informal learning, gamification can provide the path and add motivation to learning activities.”

Excerpt From: Burke, Brian. “Gamify : How Gamification Motivates People to Do Extraordinary Things.”

Idea Almanac

“What if our employees don’t want to play games? Is calling something a quest considered gamification? Is the gamification BlendTech uses to promote its blenders the same as the gamification that eBay uses to make its platform addictive? How do I know what type of gamification works for my company? All this can be quite confusing to the average reader . As Gamification is such an all-encompassing umbrella term for “making things game-like” , there are almost no bounds for what it can or cannot be.”

Excerpt From: Yu-kai Chou. “Actionable Gamification: Beyond Points, Badges, and Leaderboards.”