Companies these days must be willing and able to change constantly. Sometimes companies change course to survive， and sometimes they do so because an opportunity is too good to resist. I know of a small company that provided a messenger service several years ago. A sudden major increase in corporate use of fax machines nearly put this small company out of business. Fortunately， the owner of the company was astute enough to realize other global corporate trends happening at the same time. The owner shifted gears from offering a messenger service to providing an off site records storage service， and soon business was booming once again.
It all comes down to perspective. When there was a downturn in the economy， some people could say， “This is terrible！ With the downturn in the economy， nobody will have a budget for my service.” Or others thought， “This is great！ With the tightening of budgets and the loss of support staff， there’s an even greater need for professionals to be effective， which is precisely what I’m here to help them do！”
我們生活在一個公司規模縮減、機構重組和全球化競爭加劇的特殊時代。有些人認為，這會帶來眾多問題；也有些人認為，這種變化會帶來難以置信的巨大機遇。
家政服務行業在近十年迅速發展起來。這些業績是那些勇於追尋夢想的人創造的。然而，任何一個得以執行的計劃，都曆經了反反複複的構思階段——從設想到付諸行動。
是什麽阻礙了人們追求並實現他們的夢想？我想，這是恐懼心理在作祟。曾有人說：“失敗的原因有很多，沒把握住機會是一個最主要原因。”也有人說：“人們不是敗於計劃，而是敗於沒有計劃。”
如今，無論是為了生存，還是為了抓住千載難逢的絕好機遇，公司必須願意且有能力進行機構重整。據我所知，幾年前，有一家提供信使服務的小公司做得很不錯，但傳真機的迅速普及使該公司麵臨倒閉。幸而公司老板非常精明，他意識到了當時的全球化趨向。於是，他馬上將公司服務轉型，由提供信使服務轉為遠端記錄存儲服務，很快，公司再度蓬勃發展起來。
因而，一切都取決於你看待問題的視點。經濟不景氣時，有人會說：“太糟糕了！經濟低迷，產品銷不出去。”有些人則會這樣想：“太棒了！預算緊張，雇員減少，這就需要大量的高效率專業人員，這恰好適合我！”
心靈小語
任何事情都有兩麵性，我們往往在難得的機遇來臨之時也麵臨著巨大的困難，是抓住機會迎難而上，還是放棄機會不敢奮鬥，考驗著我們的智慧和勇氣。
記憶填空
1. We live in an unusual__ with corporate downsizing， restructuring， and the increase in global competition. Some__these times as problematic； others see the incredible opportunities created by such__.
2. Someone once said，“There are a lot of__ to become a failure， but never taking a chance is the__ successful way.”I’ve also heard it said that“people don’t plan to fail...they__ to plan.”
3. When there was a downturn in the__， some people could say，“This is terrible！ With the downturn in the economy，__ will have a budget for my service.”
佳句翻譯
1. 我們生活在一個公司規模縮減、機構重組和全球化競爭加劇的特殊時代。
譯______________
2. 是什麽阻礙了人們追求並實現他們的夢想？
譯______________
3. 一切都取決於你看待問題的視點。
譯______________
短語應用
1. What holds people back from pursuing their dreams and acting on their great ideas？
hold back：退縮；抑製
造______________
2. A sudden major increase in corporate use of fax machines nearly put this small company out of business.
out of：在……外；離開；缺乏
造______________
成功的奧秘
There Is Good in All Things
塞隆·Q.迪蒙 / Theron Q. Dumont
One of the most beneficial practices I know of is that of looking for the good in， for there is good in all things. We encourage a person by seeing his good qualities and we also help ourselves by looking for them. We gain their good wishes， a most valuable asset sometimes. We get back what we give out. The time comes when most all of us need encouragement； need buoying up. So form the habit of encouraging others， and you will find it a wonderful tonic for both those encouraged and yourself， for you will get back encouraging and uplifting thoughts.
Life furnishes us the opportunity to improve. But whether we do it or not depends upon how near we live up to what is expected of us. The first of each month， a person should sit down and examine the progress he has made. If he has not come up to “expectations” he should discover the reason， and by extra exertion measure up to what is demanded next time. Every time that we fall behind what we planned to do， we lose just so much for that time is gone forever. We may find a reason for doing it， but most excuses are poor substitutes for action. Most things are possible. Ours may be a hard task， but the harder the task， the greater the reward. It is the difficult things that really develop us， anything that requires only a small effort， utilizes very few of our faculties， and yields a scanty harvest of achievement. So do not shrink from a hard task， for to accomplish one of these will often bring us more good than a dozen lesser triumphs.
I know that every man that is willing to pay the price can be a success. The price is not in money， but in effort. The first essential quality for success is the desire to do—to be something. The next thing is to learn how to do it； the next to carry it into execution.
The man that is the best able to accomplish anything is the one with a broad mind； the man that has acquired knowledge， that may， it is true， be foreign to this particular case， but is， nevertheless， of some value in all cases. So the man that wants to be successful must be liberal； he must acquire all the knowledge that he can； he must be well posted not only in one branch of his business but in every part of it. Such a man achieves success.
The secret of success is to try always to improve yourself no matter where you are or what your position. Learn all you can. Don’t see how little you can do， but how much you can do. Such a man will always be in demand， for he establishes the reputation of being a hustler. There is always room for him because progressive firms never let a hustler leave their employment if they can help it.