The Winner's Guide to Success

    How do successful people think? What helps them to make success? To find out the answers, an American scholar recently visited some of the most successful people in America.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}.

    Be responsible for yourself

    Sometimes you may want to blame others for your failure to get ahead. In fact, when you say someone or something outside of yourself is stopping you from making success, you're giving away your own power. You're saying, “You have more control over my life than I do.”

    Live life “on purpose”

    Almost all successful people live life “on purpose”{#blank#}2{#/blank#}.When you live your life on purpose, you'll try your best to do your job or study as well as you can. You love what you do and you can find pleasure in what you do.

Write a plan

    It is very difficult trying to get what you want without a good plan. It is just like trying to drive through strange roads to a city far away.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Without this “map”, you may waste your time, money and also your energy; while with the “map” you'll enjoy the “trip” and get what you want in the shortest possible time.

    Be willing to pay the price

    Nothing great is easy to get. So you must be ready to work hard-even harder than you have ever done. If you are not willing to pay the price, you won't get anything valuable.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}It seems to us that everyone knows this. But it is easier said than done. When you are doing something, you must tell yourself again and again: Giving up is worse than failure because failure can be the mother of success, but giving up means the death of hope.

    Don't delay

    Once an American writer was writing a novel. He could not have a good ending for his book until one night when he had a very good idea. He was so excited that he made a phone call to one of his best friends. “I've got a perfect idea,” he said, “I'll put it down later and show it to you.” But he never did, because he died that night. His book was left without a perfect ending{#blank#}5{#/blank#}. Never delay at all.

A. Some people achieve success much later in life because they fail to realize earlier the importance of hard work

B. So remember, do what you can right away

C. Never give up

D. A good plan is like a map to you

E. Here are some keys to success that they give

F. They are doing what they believe they should and want to do

G. Make a decision

How to Be Healthy and Happy

    We all want to be healthy, happy, free of stress and more productive in life.

    ⒈Get enough sleep. It not only keeps you healthy but also you will be happier. It is said that “Early to bed, early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.”{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    ⒉Drink plenty of water. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} The benefits of water are amazing. Water helps keep your skin clear, leaving you feeling happier and better about your body. Water is just simply an amazing source in itself for your overall health. Try to drink 8 glasses a day.

    ⒊Smile and laugh. Don't get sad over small problems or take any joke seriously which hurt you. Instead, if you feel so hurt, you prefer to stay away from that friend. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Respect your friend from a good perspective. Smile and laugh all the time and you will be happy.

    ⒋{#blank#}4{#/blank#}Help your mom do the dishes, help out your dad in the kitchen, clean your room, or do anything that could help your family. It will not only make them love you more, but you will feel happy knowing you have done good even if you moved out twenty years ago and are a father yourself.

    ⒌Have goals. Always believe you can achieve. If you can dream it, you can achieve it, no matter what. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Organization plays a very important role in achieving goals, so organize yourself.

Being a volunteer

    What can you do to help people? The answer is-to be a volunteer! {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Help yourself by helping others

    When you volunteer to help others, you can helping yourself. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Lots of people really enjoy volunteering. Doing volunteer work means one important thing: You make a difference in the world. So where do you start? {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Things to do with family members

    Volunteering is a great way to have fun with your family. Talk to your parents, brothers, or sisters and see what they might be interested in. Find something you all agree on. You can do the things as a family like cleaning up a park and planting trees or flowers in your local community（社区）

    Invent your own opportunity

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You can make and sell products, and donate（捐赠）the money. Volunteering gives kids a taste of responsibility. Volunteering can also help kids learn important things about themselves-like what kind of things they're best at. A volunteer job can even help some kids decide what they want to do when they grow up. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Make a plan to start volunteering today!

A. Why not come?

B. School is a good place to start if you are looking for volunteer ideas.

C. Volunteering means to spend time helping others.

D. If you're upset, doing something can be a great way to calm yourself down.

E. Kids can come up with their own ways to raise money or provide needed services.

F. So what are you waiting for?

G. Clean up a school or other public buildings.

    The art of growing dwarf(矮小的)trees, or "bonsai"(盆栽)as their Japanese planters call them, is increasing in popularity in the United States. Growing bonsai can make a fascinating hobby for anyone who enjoys plants and creating beautiful effects with them.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    In growing bonsai, in fact, one must be careful in choosing the type of tree, as the growing conditions are unusual.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Varieties of pines with small needles and hardwood trunks are especially suitable.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}This is necessary because the major growth of bonsai is kept confined(被限制) to the tree's trunk and leaves, not its root system-a process quite unlike what is done with other plants.

    Another thing the bonsai-grower must do is to trim(修整)the roots and branches of the tree periodically (定期地). Unless this is done, the plants will not have the proper proportions(比例) and will look unnatural.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    The last thing one must do is to be careful to keep the tree well-watered. Because bonsai are grown in smaller-than-usual containers, they often need more water than ordinary houseplants do.

    As can be seen from the above, the art of bonsai-growing is one which requires a certain amount of time and effort.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}Imagine having such a tree in your living room and passing it down through several generations of your family. That is exactly what bonsai-growing is all about: establishing a tradition of beauty which lasts for years and years and is a symbol of the beauties of the natural world.

A. Then one must be careful in choosing the size of the container.

B. How can we meet the goal of making such a kind of art?

C. Why do so many people take a fancy to the art of bonsai-growing.

D. But one must get well prepared before starting bonsai-growing.

E. The satisfactions that growing bonsai brings can be great, however.

F. The ideal for bonsai plants are trees just like normal trees in everything but size.

G. Not all species of trees can be made into bonsai.

    Self-esteem means feeling good about yourself. You can do things to feel better about yourself. Here are some tips to raise your self-esteem.

    Be with people who treat you well. Some people act in ways that tear you down. Others lift you up by what they say and do. Learn to tell the difference. Choose friends who help you feel OK about yourself. Find people you can be yourself with. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}.

    Accept what's not perfect. It's always good to do the best you can. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}, you can't feel good about anything less. Accept your best. Let yourself feel good about that. Ask for help if you can't get past a need to be perfect.

    Focus on what goes well. Are you so used to talking about problems that they've all you see? It's easy to get caught up in what's wrong.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}, it just makes you feel bad. Next time, catch yourself when you complain about yourself or your day. Find something that goes well instead.

    Give and help. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} . Tutor a classmate, help clean up your neighborhood, or walk for a good cause. Help out at home or at school. Make it a habit to be kind and fair. Do things that make you proud of the kind of person you are. When you do things that make a difference your self-esteem will grow.

    Set goals and work toward them. If you want to feel good about yourself, do things that are good for you. Maybe you want to eat a healthier diet, get more fit, or study better.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. Then make a plan for how to do it. Stick with your plan. Track your progress.

A. Make a goal

B. Say helpful things to yourself

C. Be that type of friend for others

D. But when you think you need to be perfect

E. But unless you balance it with what's good

F. When you focus on what's good about yourself

G. Giving is one of the best ways to build self-esteem

    Teenagers are not only an extremely valuable resource of energy, good will and creativity, but also the key to our future. In a culture that is so wrapped around "wants" and "achievements", it is easy for our teenagers to grow up without a sense of gratitude for what they have and sympathy for the needs of the less fortunate around them. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} If you can show your teen how rewarding it is from a young age, they'll start to make a connection between helping someone else and their own joy.

    Choosing the right service opportunity can influence how your teen interacts with that cause, and make volunteering go forward. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} The reach of volunteering can be limited to the school and student body, or it can have a wider reach locally like organizing a blood donation, hosting an awareness event for young kids at the local library, or caring for animals at a shelter. Try to choose an activity that suits the teen's interest and time to make sure they take part in the activity for a long time.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Parental participation in volunteering regularly or even occasionally promotes relationship and common respect. Make sure your teen realizes how his time is directly affecting the needy group and discuss possible ideas of how to further the cause. Stress on discipline: {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Research has shown that teens who engage in community service arc more responsible. Volunteering helps the teens gain new skills necessary for the job market such as leadership, communication skills, dependability, time management, and decision making. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} They also build a stronger resume for college and scholarship applications.

A. Make sure you lead by example.

B. Teens can schedule their own chances.

C. Stick to a volunteering activity regularly.

D. Teens who volunteer perform better at school.

E. So consider their abilities, interests, and time.

F. Volunteering makes teens desire to be independent.

G. However, volunteering can offer a chance for them to make some changes.