走向成功需要的四种心态

4 Mental Shifts You Must Make If You Want to Thrive in Life

刘立军 供稿

TRANSCRIPT

4 Mental Shifts You Must Make If You Want to Thrive in Life

Most people think success depends on what we do, on how talented we are, or on our luck. While all these things can have an impact on our achievements, the reality is the foundation of our success is our mindset. Our mindset - and our core beliefs - can make or break us.

What follows are four mental shifts you have to make if you truly want to succeed in life.

1. Focus on Your Progress, Not on Other People’s Achievements

It’s normal to compare yourself to others from time to time. We all do it. It can be inspiring and it can push you to aim for more in life. However, consistently focusing on other people’s achievements instead of concentrating on your own progress can do more harm than good.

I love how Deep Patel explained this concept in an article published in Entrepreneur, “Using others as our measuring stick will lead to feelings of low self-confidence, envy and devaluing your own worth.”

The reality is, when you focus on yourself and your own progress, you are also focusing on something you can control. You are focusing on something you can change. And this, in the long term, makes you feel better about yourself, as small wins encourage you to go further in life, to push harder and achieve bigger goals.

Instead, when you continuously look at other people’s achievements, you are reminding yourself you still have a lot of work to do to get there, and that may discourage you - or even make you feel helpless if the gap between where you and the other person stands is too big.

2. Learn to Find Opportunity in Every Crisis

“In the midst of every crisis, lies great opportunity.” I love this quote from Albert Einstein, because it’s not only true, but also highly motivating.

If you think about it, every crisis represents change. And, as Kevin Leyes mentioned in Forbes, “every change represents a new beginning, which translates into the opportunity to start again on the same or a different path, but with more experience.”

3. When You Think You’ll Never Succeed, Push Harder

Most people tend to stay in their cozy comfort zone. They don’t have the courage to leave it because they are afraid to fail. That’s why, as Wayne W. Dyer said, “It’s never crowded along the extra mile because few people go there.”

Every time you think you don’t have any chance to succeed at something is the moment you have to push harder. That’s when you have to choose to become better at what you do, to perfect your skills, to work harder on yourself. That’s when you have to think, “Here’s where other people gave up, but I’m not going to do the same.”

I like to think that every time we feel discouraged, we are standing on the invisible border between our comfort zone and an unexplored area full of opportunities - the extra mile. All we have to do is step outside our cozy, warm comfort zone.

4. Harness the Power of Dissatisfaction

Do you know what truly successful people usually have in common? It’s something that might sound like a weakness, but it isn’t. As Brianna Wiest explains in Forbes, what most successful people have in common is dissatisfaction. This doesn’t mean they live in a negative state of mind; it doesn’t mean they don’t appreciate what they already have and who they are. It means they know they can do better and learn more. So they make an effort to improve who they are, every single day. They never stop learning. They never assume they’re the best in what they do, but they strive to be the best. And this is what sets them apart from people who achieve temporary success and then lose it. They don’t relax after gaining momentum. They keep going forward quietly.

To summarize, the following mindset shifts can help you achieve more in life:

Focus on your progress, not on other people’s achievements;

Learn to find opportunity in every crisis;

When you think you’ll never succeed, push harder;

Harness the power of dissatisfaction.

VOCABULARY

1. impact (of sth.) (on sb./sth.): the powerful effect that sth. has on sb./sth. 巨大影响；强大作用。例如：Her speech made a profound impact on everyone. 她的讲话对每个人都有深远的影响。

2. mindset n. a set of attitudes or fixed ideas that sb. has and that are often difficult to change 观念模式；思维倾向。例如：a conservative mindset 保守的思维模式

3. devalue v. to give a lower value to sth., making it seem less important than it really is 降低……的价值；贬低。例如：Work in the home is often ignored and devalued. 家务劳动常常被忽视和贬低。

4. momentum n. the ability to keep increasing or developing 推进力；动力；势头。例如：The fight for his release gathers momentum each day. 争取使他获释的斗争声势日益加强。

QUESTIONS

Read the passage. Then listen to the presentation and fill in the blanks with the information (words, phrases or sentences) you hear.

4 Mental Shifts You Must Make If You Want to Thrive in Life

Most people think success depends on what we do, on (Q1) _______________, or on our luck. While all these things can have an impact on our achievements, the reality is the foundation of our success is our mindset. Our mindset - and our core beliefs - can (Q2) _______________________.

What follows are four mental shifts you have to make if you truly want to succeed in life.

1. Focus on Your Progress, Not on Other People’s Achievements

It’s normal to compare yourself to others (Q3) ___________________. We all do it. It can be inspiring and it can push you to aim for more in life. However, consistently focusing on other people’s achievements instead of concentrating on your own progress can do more harm than good.

I love how Deep Patel explained this concept in an article published in Entrepreneur, “Using others as our measuring stick will lead to (Q4) ____________________, envy and devaluing your own worth.”

The reality is, when you (Q5) ___________________ and your own progress, you are also focusing on something (Q6) _______________. You are focusing on something (Q7) _______________. And this, in the long term, makes you feel better about yourself, as (Q8) _______________ encourage you to go further in life, to (Q9) _____________________________.

Instead, when you continuously look at other people’s achievements, you are reminding yourself you still have a lot of work to do to get there, and that may discourage you - or even make you feel helpless if the gap between where you and the other person stands is too big.

2. Learn to Find Opportunity in Every Crisis

“In the midst of every crisis, lies (Q10) __________________.” I love this quote from Albert Einstein, because it’s not only true, but also highly motivating.

If you think about it, (Q11) ________________________. And, as Kevin Leyes mentioned in Forbes, “every change represents (Q12) ____________________, which translates into the opportunity to start again on the same or a different path, but with more experience.”

3. When You Think You’ll Never Succeed, Push Harder

Most people tend to stay in their (Q13) _______________. They don’t have the courage to leave it because they are afraid to fail. That’s why, as Wayne W. Dyer said, “It’s never crowded along the extra mile because (Q14) ____________________.”

Every time you think you don’t have any chance to succeed at something is the moment you have to push harder. That’s when you have to choose to become better at what you do, to perfect your skills, to work harder on yourself. That’s when you have to think, “(Q15) ________________________.”

I like to think that every time we feel discouraged, we are standing on the invisible border between our comfort zone and an unexplored area full of (Q16) ______________ - the extra mile. All we have to do is step outside our cozy, warm comfort zone.

4. Harness the Power of Dissatisfaction

Do you know what truly successful people usually have in common? It’s something that might sound like a weakness, but it isn’t. As Brianna Wiest explains in Forbes, what most successful people have in common is (Q17) _____________. This doesn’t mean they live in (Q18) ___________________; it doesn’t mean they don’t appreciate what they already have and who they are. It means they know (Q19) ___________________________. So they make an effort to improve who they are, every single day. They never stop learning. They never assume they’re the best in what they do, but they strive to be the best. And this is what sets them apart from people who achieve temporary success and then lose it. They don’t relax after gaining momentum. They (Q20) ___________________ quietly.

To summarize, the following mindset shifts can help you achieve more in life:

Focus on your progress, not on other people’s achievements;

Learn to find opportunity in every crisis;

When you think you’ll never succeed, push harder;

Harness the power of dissatisfaction.

KEY

Read the passage. Then listen to the presentation and fill in the blanks with the information (words, phrases or sentences) you hear.

4 Mental Shifts You Must Make If You Want to Thrive in Life

Most people think success depends on what we do, on (Q1) how talented we are, or on our luck. While all these things can have an impact on our achievements, the reality is the foundation of our success is our mindset. Our mindset - and our core beliefs - can (Q2) make or break us.

What follows are four mental shifts you have to make if you truly want to succeed in life.

1. Focus on Your Progress, Not on Other People’s Achievements

It’s normal to compare yourself to others (Q3) from time to time. We all do it. It can be inspiring and it can push you to aim for more in life. However, consistently focusing on other people’s achievements instead of concentrating on your own progress can do more harm than good.

I love how Deep Patel explained this concept in an article published in Entrepreneur, “Using others as our measuring stick will lead to (Q4) feelings of low self-confidence, envy and devaluing your own worth.”

The reality is, when you (Q5) focus on yourself and your own progress, you are also focusing on something (Q6) you can control. You are focusing on something (Q7) you can change. And this, in the long term, makes you feel better about yourself, as (Q8) small wins encourage you to go further in life, to (Q9) push harder and achieve bigger goals.

Instead, when you continuously look at other people’s achievements, you are reminding yourself you still have a lot of work to do to get there, and that may discourage you - or even make you feel helpless if the gap between where you and the other person stands is too big.

2. Learn to Find Opportunity in Every Crisis

“In the midst of every crisis, lies (Q10) great opportunity.” I love this quote from Albert Einstein, because it’s not only true, but also highly motivating.

If you think about it, (Q11) every crisis represents change. And, as Kevin Leyes mentioned in Forbes, “every change represents (Q12) a new beginning, which translates into the opportunity to start again on the same or a different path, but with more experience.”

3. When You Think You’ll Never Succeed, Push Harder

Most people tend to stay in their (Q13) cozy comfort zone. They don’t have the courage to leave it because they are afraid to fail. That’s why, as Wayne W. Dyer said, “It’s never crowded along the extra mile because (Q14) few people go there.”

Every time you think you don’t have any chance to succeed at something is the moment you have to push harder. That’s when you have to choose to become better at what you do, to perfect your skills, to work harder on yourself. That’s when you have to think, “(Q15) Here’s where other people gave up, but I’m not going to do the same.”

I like to think that every time we feel discouraged, we are standing on the invisible border between our comfort zone and an unexplored area full of (Q16) opportunities - the extra mile. All we have to do is step outside our cozy, warm comfort zone.

4. Harness the Power of Dissatisfaction

Do you know what truly successful people usually have in common? It’s something that might sound like a weakness, but it isn’t. As Brianna Wiest explains in Forbes, what most successful people have in common is (Q17) dissatisfaction. This doesn’t mean they live in (Q18) a negative state of mind; it doesn’t mean they don’t appreciate what they already have and who they are. It means they know (Q19) they can do better and learn more. So they make an effort to improve who they are, every single day. They never stop learning. They never assume they’re the best in what they do, but they strive to be the best. And this is what sets them apart from people who achieve temporary success and then lose it. They don’t relax after gaining momentum. They (Q20) keep going forward quietly.

To summarize, the following mindset shifts can help you achieve more in life:

Focus on your progress, not on other people’s achievements;

Learn to find opportunity in every crisis;

When you think you’ll never succeed, push harder;

Harness the power of dissatisfaction.

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