书城外语用耳朵听最优美的讲演
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第61章 智慧人生(8)

Don"t do anything that 30 years from now you"ll look back at and say,“Oh, my God, why the hell did I do that?!”I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard someone start a sentence with,“If I only was younger, I would have……”So I did a little informal survey for you, I found out that, amazingly, all of these people had the same regret.When they graduated from college, sadly, they bought furniture.

This probably needs a little explanation. Right at this moment in your life, you are in a unique position that you may never ever be in again.You have nothing to lose.Everything you have acquired of value is locked inside you.If you have a dream, now is the time to pursue it, before you buy furniture.

I was one of the lucky ones. I graduated from the University of Wisconsin with no employable skills, unless you count jury duty.AIt meant I had to start from scratch and figure out where I fit in.I didn"t have money, but I could afford to fail, and there were many failures.But I found out what I was good at.I found something I loved.And now I have furniture—lots of furniture.

One day when I was a kid, our house caught on fire in Milwaukee. BA large section of the wood shingle roof was burning as the fire trucks pulled up.The firemen ran into the back yard with a large hose and began assembling their metal ladders and positioning them against the house.

Mrs. Zubatsky was our next door neighbor and, at the time, she was standing on her upstairs porch taking in the laundry.She watched anxiously as the firemen struggled with their ladders.Suddenly she leaned over the balcony and shouted down to the professional firefighters,“Forget the ladders!Just point the hose at the fire!”CThe firemen, to their credit, responded immediately.They dropped their ladders, pointed the hose at the fire and extinguished the blaze in about 40 seconds.

There are two morals to this story. One, never assume that just because it"s someone"s job, they know how to do it.And two, don"t let yourself be intimidated by professionals or their uniforms.

难点重点,一目了然!

长难句解析Sentence Structures

AIt meant I had to start from scratch and figure out where I fit in.

这意味着我要白手起家,然后弄明白我适合什么职业。

(start)from scratch从零开始。例如:There were so many spelling mistakes, I had to write the letter out again from scratch.这封信的拼写错误太多,我得重写一遍。

BA large section of the wood shingle roof was burning as the fire trucks pulled up.

当消防车赶到的时候,一大片的木屋顶正在燃烧着。

pull up指(车辆)停下。例如:The driver pulled up at the traffic lights.司机在红绿灯前把车停下。

CThe firemen, to their credit, responded immediately.

值得称赞的是,这些消防员立即响应了。

to sb"s credit使某人值得赞扬。例如:Jack, to his credit, refused to get involved.杰克好就好在拒不参与。

114.Fail Big 狠狠地失败

Track 114. MP3

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总词汇量:0368词汇

每篇好演讲都有灵魂!

今日关键语导读Today"s Key Points

努力实现梦想,就要放下恐惧,不要害怕尴尬,不要害怕遭到羞辱,被人嘲笑,要从失败的恐惧中大胆地走出来。失败是成功之母,几次失败之后可能就是成功。这样距离实现梦想就不远了。

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Growing up in Wisconsin, I never knew anyone in the movie business.I never even knew anyone who knew anyone in the movie business.That world had a mystique that made it seem unattainable to me.But, like Mrs.Zubatsky, I sat on my porch and I watched someone else do it, and I said,“I have a better idea.”And like her, I seized the moment.

If you have a better idea, if your plan makes more sense, if you have a vision, then put down your laundry and scream a little bit. AThrow your hat into the ring and never let professionals or their uniforms prevent you from telling anyone where to point their hose.

If you"re going to fail, fail big. lf you don"t, you"re never going to make a difference.Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes.BArt is knowing which ones to keep.Ask yourself one question:If I didn"t have to do it perfectly, what would I try?

For many of you, the biggest obstacle to getting there will be a fear that you have carried with you since childhood—the fear of humiliation, of embarrassment, of ridicule. That is so stupid!Oh……sorry.But really, you have to stop caring about that, which brings me to Travolta"s law.

My brother David and Jim Abrahams and I were having pie at Rumpelmeyer"s Coffee in New York on the day after our third movie,“Top Secret”opened. The reviews were terrible and it was bombing at the box office.We were really getting into some serious moping and self-fiagellation when John Travolta walked in.We knew him from the Paramount lot and he could see right away that we were in a funk.

CWe immediately poured out our heart to him, explaining the pain of our humiliating misfortune.

I"m not sure what we were expecting, but John just smiled and said,“Guys, the thing you have to remember is nobody else is paying as much attention to your failures as you are. You"re the only ones who are obsessed with the importance of your own life.To everyone else, it"s just a blip on the radar screen, so just move on.By the way, are you going to finish that pie?”

难点重点,一目了然!

长难句解析Sentence Structures

AThrow your hat into the ring and never let professionals or their uniforms prevent you from telling anyone where to point their hose.

宣布加入,不要让他们的职业或制服阻止你告诉任何人,他们应该将水管指向什么地方。

throw one"s hat into the ring表示宣布参与此事。

BArt is knowing which ones to keep.

艺术就是知道该留下哪些。

不定式to keep 和which ones 是动宾关系。

CWe immediately poured out our heart to him, explaining the pain of our humiliating misfortune.

我们立即向他倾诉遭遇如此令人羞辱的不幸所感到的痛苦。

pour out将……尽情表达出来。例如:She poured out her troubles to me.她向我倾述她的苦恼。

115.Spreading Love传播爱

Track 115. MP3

朗读指数:◆◆◆

背诵指数:◆◆◆

难度指数:◆◆

总词汇量:0393词汇

每篇好演讲都有灵魂!

今日关键语导读Today"s Key Points

真正的爱是伟大的,让你周围的人快乐,以他们的快乐程度来评价自己,你就可以做成任何事,承受任何失败。因为付出越多,得到越多。朝着正确的方向前进,你就会感到无比幸福。

文中障碍词抢先攻克!

障碍词先听为快Words and Expressions

精彩文字,耳听心受!

好英文娓娓动听Words and Expressions