美丽英文-性格决定命运 节选
e Practice of Slowing Down
I believe in the importance of pace. I grew up in a frenetic household, both parents
working jobs that demanded their attention 24/7. I was little and fast and rushed around,
and I still have that person inside me, always at risk of moving too quickly, missing the con-
nection, making mistakes.
The forest behind our house offered a peaceful respite'. My passion for the vertical
world took me from tall trees in my backyard to climbing steep cliffs and crags. As a teen,
I was moving easily over the landscapes of the American West and was drawn to higher
summits. When I was 19, I learned something called the "rest step" from an old mountain
climber named Paul Petzoldt. He advised me to rest in the middle of each step completely,
i but briefly. The rest step, which I still practice today, allows me to walk or climb with little
effort. I can move very quickly yet still find a pause in every step.
The awareness of pace--that I owe to my teacher---has served me whether I am seek-
iing the world' s highest summits, sharing my love for the mountains with others or kneeling
to look my son, Gus, in the eye when he has a question.
It serves me as I drive, adjusting my speed to gain a bit of calm and reach my destina-
tion only minutes behind the "record time a faster lane might provide. It serves me at home
where we maintain a tradition of gathering each night at the dinner table to eat and talk to
ch other
n times of crisis, pace comes to my aid. Another of Petzoldt' s lessons was when faced
th n emergency, sit down, collect yourself, make a plan. When needs seem most ur-
gent-even life-threatening-the practice of slowing down offers calm and clarity.
In 1987, I was in Pakistan to climb Gasherbrum II, one of the world's highest peaks.
We were a small group and it was a very big mountain. Our expedition faced more than
its share of difficulty: A long storm wiped out most of our food rations and an avalanche
devastated our camp, obliterating our tents. One of our party developed altitude sick-
ness; blood poisoning threatened another. In the face of each disaster, we carefully devel-
oped a new plan. Snow caves replaced lost tents. Soups replaced full meals. Eventually we
climbed slowly to the top, then made our way safely down.
Concentrating on how I move through the world is important. It's why I reach moun-
tain summits and life goals with energy to spare.
There is magic in any faith. Every once in a while, rushing about, my belief in pace
rises up, slows me down and grants me a view of a sunset, a smile from a stranger or a con-
versation with a child. I owe these moments to what I learned from an old mountain climber
and have practiced ever since.
以友好的方式开始
如果你对别人发火，出言不逊，你会为发泄情绪而感到痛快，但别人呢?他会分
享你的痛快吗?你那火药味十足、斗志昂扬的口气，会让他轻易同意你的观点吗?
威尔逊总统说过：“假如你紧握双拳来找我，毫无疑问，我的拳头会攥得更紧。
但如果你过来对我说：‘让我们坐下来交换一下意见，看看我们为什么会有分歧。那
就没什么问题了。’我们很快就会发现，其实分歧并不大，不同的观点很少，而看法
一致的很多，因此，只要我们互相耐心地交流，以诚意待人，就能互相理解。”
约翰·洛克菲勒非常赞同威尔逊总统的这种观点。1915年，洛克菲勒在科罗拉
多州受到*严厉的指责。此时，美国工业史上*血腥的大罢工已持续了两年之久。
愤怒的罢工矿工们要求科罗拉多州煤炭钢铁公司加薪水，该公司的老板正是洛克菲
勒。工厂设备遭到破坏，军队的疯狂镇压造成了可怕的流血事件，罢工者遭到枪击，
死伤无数。
那时候，仇恨的气焰空前高涨。洛克菲勒想赢得罢工者的认可，*终他成功了。
他是怎样做的呢?事情是这样的：
洛克菲勒利用几个星期的时间去结交工人朋友，然后对工人代表作了一场精彩
的演说，神奇地平息了罢工者对他的仇恨浪潮，还赢得了不少崇拜者。这种友好方式
的结果是，工人们都回到了工作岗位，并且对曾强烈要求增加的薪水不再提及。
这篇非凡的演讲稿是这样开始的，请注意言辞间流露出的友善。
