高中英语 12 Powerful Life Lessons阅读素材.doc

12 powerful life lessonsas my wife and i were planning our last vacation, one of the first things we did was get out a map and plan our route. whether it was online maps or old fashioned paper maps - they all helped guide us to our destination. as i was looking at the maps spread across our dining room table, i thought, “wouldnt it be great if there was a map of life” that could guide you along your lifes journey?a personal motivation map giving you those life lessons that one typically learns way too late in life. does such a “map of life” exist? it was then that i stumbled upon a tattered copy of the alchemist by paulo coelho in the bottom of my closet.paulo coelho in his wildly popular book (65 million copies sold in 67 languages) tells the story of a shepherd boy and his quest to live his dream. along the way, the boy meets an alchemist who has the power to inspire personal transformation. this alchemist gives the boy a number of lifes lessons - lessons that are as fresh and applicable today as they were hundreds of years ago. the lessons by themselves are interesting, but its only when they are applied, that the power of personal transformation can be unleashed.so what can paulo teach us about life and pursing dreams in the face of obstaclesthat caused 65 million people to buy his book?1. its the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary.i believe this to be true and have experienced this with my own family. when i think of the times where we laughed the most or had the most fun - it was when we were doing the simplest things. swimming in a pool, combing a beach for shells, playing a board game, or sharing a delicious meal - all simple things making up the best times weve had as a family.question: what were some of the happiest memories from your past? what were you doing?2. support your children in pursuit of their dreams.in the beginning of the story the shepherd boy (named santiago) tells his father he wants to travel and see the world. the father explains he wants his son to stay in the village and become a priest. but santiago persists - being a priest is not his dream. what does his father do? he gives santiago the small amount of money he had been saving for the boy and wished him well.how many of us had parents who have - in not-so-subtle-ways - influenced us to take careers that were not in-line with our dreams? be honest now, did you pick your current career because youre passionate about the work or were you trying to make your parents proud? how do you feel about your career now?as a parent, its difficult to accept when your child wants to take a path other than the one you had hoped and planned for them. but, its ok. like my wife keeps telling me “give them roots and give them wings”. give them a solid foundation of love, but give them the freedom to follow their dreams.question: what were some of your dreams as a child?3. there is nothing to hold you back, except yourself.there is only one question to ask yourself here: “what would you do if you were not afraid?” think about it.4. there is only one way to learn, and that is through action.trying to learn without doing is like trying to lose weight by watching someone else exercise. its just not going to work. we are all fundamentally hands-on learners.question: what would you like to learn? what next action step can you take?5. trust your gut (or learn to recognize omens, and follow them.)many times our subconscious has already made a decision before weve caught up and made the same decision. sometimes we dont make the same decision and then something does not feel right or there is a persistent naggingthat bothers us. malcolm gladwell wrote extensively about this phenomenon in his book titled blink: the power of thinking without thinking. trust your gut - it may be more accurate than you think.6. follow your dreams.there are many of us who dream our dreams without ever actually realizing any of them. for whatever reason we get locked in a “dream state” and never take action. we analyze too much and our dreams turn into giant mountains in our imagination that seem impossible to climb. as a result, we never learned that foreign language weve always wanted to learn, or traveled, or started that business, or written that book. just think of the many bestsellers that would have been, but were never written.the time is now, to awake from dreamland, to live the life we want and to achieve the extraordinary potential within us all.question: what are some dreams youd like to realize now? write them down on a piece of paper and make sure the success of their attainment is measurable.7. know what you want.set goals and make a plan to achieve them. its like the saying, “a goal that is never written down is nothing but a new years resolution” - and we all know what happens to new years resolutions.8. make a decision and dive in with massive action.the river of life will take you to places that you have never imagined. once you make a decision, take action. youll be surprised to find where it will lead.9. move on - always look forward.its ok to look back once and a while, but dont live in the past. you can visit “pity city” for a short time, but after a while you have to leave it all behind and walk on.10. you will encounter obstacles and take detours while realizing your dreams.as you strive to achieve your dreams, you can count on there being some setbacks and disappointments. dont get discouraged, the road to your dreams may not be an easy one. think of these challenges as tests of persistence and courage that life throws at you during your quest. they were necessary and were meant to help you grow as a person.learn to adjust the sails of your life to unp