My first real long-term job was actually in a local restaurant called Mel's House. I worked there for 7 years and learned a lot, especially from a waitress, Helen. Helen is in her sixties, with red hair and strong self-esteem-that's what I really lacked at that time. I admire Helen because she is doing what she loves-receiving customers-and no one can do it better than her. She makes everyone, whether clients or colleagues, smile and feel happy.

I also learned an important point, that is, I am proud of my small achievements in life; For example, when I help in the kitchen, nothing makes me happier than cooking eggs and serving them exactly the way customers want.

Being a waiter really changed my life. One of my old customers, Laford Hasbrouck, is a salesman. He always eats the same thing every day. As soon as I see him coming towards the restaurant, I will get everything he wants ready. He doesn't even have to ask.

Because of the confidence I learned from Helen, I dream of owning my own restaurant one day. Unfortunately, when I called my parents to borrow money, they said, "We really don't have any money."

The next day, Fred saw me and asked, "What's the matter, sunshine girl? I didn't see you smile today. " I told him my dream and said, "Fred, I know I can do a lot of things as long as someone believes in me."

He went to several other regulars in the small restaurant and handed me $50,000 the next day, along with a note that I tried my best to keep, which said, "Good people with dreams should have a chance to realize their dreams."

I hurried to a bank, which invested the money for me. At the same time, while continuing to work in a small restaurant, I plan to open my own shop. What makes me sad is that this money investment failed, and I lost all my money.

At that time, I began to think about trying to be a stockbroker, so I decided to apply for a job in a bank. Although I have no experience, I was hired and the result was good. Later, I even paid Fred and other customers $50,000, plus 65,438+04% annual interest. After five years, I can finally start my own company.

Recently, I received a thank-you letter from Fred, which will be printed in my heart forever. A while ago, he was ill and said that the money I sent him helped him pay the accumulated arrears of medical expenses. He said in the letter: "I am really glad that I invested in you."

I'm glad I did my first job.

Unit 5 Translation: Dearest Father

My father and I were watching a video when my two-year-old nephew Cameron appeared with a spoon in his mouth. "If you trip, the spoon will get stuck in his throat." Father said worriedly. Like most parents, the father has been trying to protect his children. As a doctor, he is also particularly sensitive to the dangers around him.

I remember eating at a friend's house once, and it was strange that no one mentioned the words related to food poisoning. If you are at home, someone will ask, "Did you wash your hands?"

Father warned us that eating in a restaurant will face many dangers-a careless waiter may spill hot coffee on your head, hotel staff may not wash their hands, and so on.

In my father's opinion, fashion can also be dangerous. He took my coat a few years ago because he said it was wrong. I asked him what was wrong. He put on his coat and explained to me how serious the problem was:

"Look, I've worn it for too long. And this material is very heavy and will crush you. "

"I've never heard of anyone being injured by a heavy coat."

"Do you want to be the first? Cut it off from here. " Father said, pointing to his knee.

Fashion is just one of many dangers that we must guard against. Even now, when I walk away from the branch, I still stop, and my father's voice seems to ring in my ear: "Be careful to poke my eye!" " "

Of course, when we were young, we didn't always listen to our father. We've had fractures, traffic accidents and illnesses. If we follow our father's advice, some accidents can be avoided.

When I talk about the past with my brothers and sisters, we will recall that my father told us not to jump too hard or too high during exercise, because it might hurt our spine. The route he gave us always tried to avoid turning left. Nowadays, we find that we often warn others like our fathers. We will call our younger brother and tell him that we have seen the news that someone died of poisoning, or call our sister to remind her that some curtains have high lead content.

Now, the father can teach the new generation again. His grandchildren soon understood. When they see the washing products, they know to shake their fingers and say, "That's dangerous!" " At the holiday dinner, three-year-old Margaret said to her two-year-old sister, "You eat too much in one bite. Be careful. " When leaving, my niece said goodbye to her father like this: "Take care, Grandpa!" " "We all laughed after hearing this. After visiting my father's house every weekend, my father will drive us to a quiet train station and take the train back to Manhattan. While waiting for the bus, I could see that his car was still in the parking lot. I know he wants to watch me get on the bus safely.

When I get on the train and sit down, I will watch him drive away. More and more, I hope to protect him from all kinds of dangers in the way he protects us. His concern and concern gave me a feeling of peace of mind, and I hope I can also give him this feeling of peace of mind.

When the train started, I silently said, "Take care, Dad."

Life in a violin case

In order to let you know my faith, I must briefly talk about my personal history.

The turning point in my life was my decision to give up my promising business career and study music instead. Although my parents can understand me, they don't agree that I take music as my career. From my family background, I think this is understandable.

My grandfather taught music at Springhill College for nearly 40 years. Although he is highly respected in society, he hardly earns enough money to support a large family. Father often said that thanks to grandma's diligence and housekeeping, they could barely make ends meet.

There is a precedent for this. Later, when it comes to making a living by music, we think of a precarious life. My parents insisted that I go to college instead of the Conservatory of Music, so I went to college.

Before I graduated from Columbia University, my family had some financial problems, so I felt obliged to leave school and look for a job. So I started my business career in a daze-I think this is a wasted time in my life.

Of course, I didn't mean to belittle business at all; I'm just saying that business is not for me. I do business for money. Besides the satisfaction I get from helping my family, money is everything I get from doing business. That's not enough. I feel that life is leaving me. I am sad. My purpose is to stop doing business after saving enough money, and then go to Europe to study music.

I used to get up early in the morning to practice the piano, and then I went to work in the city center. Instead of having lunch with my colleagues, I found a cheap restaurant and ordered a simple and cheap lunch. I kept making money and finally saved enough money to go abroad.

At that time, my help was no longer needed at home, so I gave up my job and went to Europe by boat. I stayed there for four years, studied hard, worked harder than I had dreamed before, and enjoyed every minute.

Seriously, the word "happy" is not enough to express my feelings; I'm simply intoxicated. This is the real life. I am a free man, and I am doing what I like and should do.

If I were in business, I might have been a real rich man today. However, I don't think that kind of life will succeed. I may have given up the happiness that money can't buy-this happiness is often given up when one's main goal is to make money.

I almost ignored the advice of all my friends and family and left the business. Most of us habitually think that money equals success-this idea is so ingrained that it seems foolish for most people to give up high salary for happiness. In that case, I can only say "Ah! Stupidity is great. "

Money is a good thing, but now I know people may pay too much for it.

Unit 8 The Character of Genius

Even the most powerful computer in the world can't be a genius because it has no personality. Although it can remember, calculate and process a large amount of information quickly and accurately, it can't think about this information like us humans. It has no feelings, no thoughts, and no crazy moments.

If you study great geniuses carefully, you will find that their personalities contain some special qualities, which make them surpass all their previous achievements. Their lives contain many secrets about how to generate great ideas and put them into practice. To be a genius, you must:

One is to have fun. Leonardo da vinci is famous for his funny jokes. Galileo had a busy social life and humorous speeches.

Bill, the genius behind Microsoft? As the richest man in the world, Gates has always been called "the big boy". He once said that one of his greatest hobbies is playing with bulldozers on construction sites.

First, curiosity. Genius has been questioning things around him all his life. Leonardo da vinci filled many notebooks with questions he wanted to answer. The following paragraph is taken from his notebook.

"I wander around this country, looking for answers to questions I don't understand: why there are shells on the top of the mountain, why thunder lasts longer than lightning that makes thunder, why stones ripple when they touch water, and why birds fly—"

First, be brave. Genius is not afraid of making mistakes. Orville Wright and wilbur wright's plane crashed many times before they could fly off the ground. The inventor Thomas Edison failed thousands of times before he succeeded in converting electricity into light. He told his friends that he was closer to the correct answer than any other inventor, because he knew that so many methods would not work!

Genius must also shock the world. New ideas can make people feel strange and even afraid. Great thinkers are often described as eccentric and stupid.

First of all, we must persevere. Thomas Edison once said that genius is "one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration."

To be a genius, you must be prepared to face great difficulties for a long time.

First of all, be inspired. The answer you are looking for may be nearby, but the problem is that you need to know where to look. Travel is an effective way to inspire. Mozart accumulated many excellent musical ideas through travel. When Albert Einstein was a teenager, he persuaded his parents to let him travel in major cities in Italy. Finally, he came back with some inspiring ideas.

First, stay healthy. There is an old saying: "Only a healthy body can have a healthy brain." Therefore, it is very important to keep your body in the best condition so that your brain can work effectively.

Sophocles is not only a philosopher, poet and politician, but also a sports champion who has won many awards. Leonardo da vinci is also famous for his strength and talent when riding a horse.

So obviously, to be a genius is to reach and surpass the limits you think.

Unit 10 How to find an ideal job

Getting the ideal job requires motivation, energy and preparation. Although you can be qualified for many positions, the competition for good jobs is fierce now, because there may be more than a dozen applicants with the same qualifications. So, you have to convince the potential boss that you are the special person he has been looking for. With a little guidance, you can do it

I was surprised to realize that you have to look for a job as a job. If you put as much energy into your job search as you put into your job, you can find a job soon.

However, this rule does not apply to people who already have jobs-don't give up your job easily! It is much easier to change jobs than to resign and start from scratch.

There is a way for you to get a new job without endangering your current position: take part in professional club activities related to your major and actively perform in them. This will help you meet more people, such as the bosses of the company you want to go to, people you don't usually see.

Another major challenge is the interview, which is crucial.

After studying the job interview, psychologists found that the interview includes two main parts. If the first part is extremely poor, then no matter how good you are in the second part, your chances of getting a job will be very slim. I call the first part the "30-second barrier" because research shows that most employers will decide whether a candidate is suitable for the job within the first 30 seconds of the interview. This 30-second judgment method is based on what psychologists call the "bias effect", that is, the first impression you leave on others. Unfortunately, first impressions are not always good. However, in the best case, the "prejudice effect" will make others think that we are better than the actual situation.

As soon as you enter the interview site, remember to stay calm, smile, shake hands firmly and look at the other person's eyes at the same time. By doing so, you will easily break through the 30-second mark.

In addition, almost all interviewers will ask the following three questions, so you should be prepared to answer them. It is wise to think about the answer a few days in advance; Compared with being prepared, the temporary decision to deal with it will not leave a good impression.

These three exemplary questions are as follows:

1. So, you are interested in becoming an assistant in our laboratory, aren't you?

You can't simply answer "yes". After answering "yes", add something-for example, "Yes, I am very interested in this position. This is my long-awaited job." The answer should be concise, but never just say "yes" or "no" palely.

2. Why do you like this job?

A manager told me that if candidates answered this question, "I think this job is interesting" or "I like working with people", he would immediately delete them from the list. "This means that they have no idea what they want to do and have not considered the requirements of this job," he explained.

3. Can you talk about yourself?

The interviewer doesn't want to know your whole life course. What he wants to know is the facts that can prove your character, ability and motivation.

That's all! With the above guidance, you are sure to find your ideal job. Good luck.