Quiet Virtue: The Conscientious

    The everyday signs of conscientiousness (认真尽责)—being punctual, careful in doing work, self-disciplined, and scrupulous (一丝不苟的) in attending to responsibilities—are typical characteristics of the model organizational citizen, the people who keep things running as they should. They follow the rules, help out, and are concerned about the people they work with. It's the conscientious worker who helps newcomers or updates people who return after an absence, who gets to work on time and never abuses sick leaves, who always gets things done on deadline.

    Conscientiousness is a key to success in any field. In studies of job performance, outstanding effectiveness for almost all jobs, from semi-skilled labor to sales and management, depends on conscientiousness. It is particularly important for outstanding performance in jobs at the lower levels of an organization: the secretary whose message taking is perfect, the delivery truck driver who is always on time.

    Among sales representatives for a large American car manufacturer, those who were most conscientious had the largest volume of sales. Conscientiousness also offers a buffer (缓冲) against the threat of job loss in today's constantly changing market, because employees with this quality are among the most valued. For the sales representatives, their level of conscientiousness mattered almost as much as their sales in determining who stayed on.

    There is an air around highly conscientious people that makes them seem even better than they actually are. Their reputation for dependability influences managers' evaluations of their work, giving them higher evaluations than objective measures of their performance would predict.

    But conscientiousness in the absence of social skills can lead to problems. Since conscientious people demand so much of themselves, they can hold other people to their own standards, and so be overly judgmental when others don't show the same high levels of model behavior. Factory workers in Great Britain and the United States who were extremely conscientious, for example, tended to criticize co-workers even about failures that seemed unimportant to those they criticized, which damaged their relationships.

    When conscientiousness takes the form of living up to expectations, it can discourage creativity. In creative professions like art or advertising, openness to wild ideas and spontaneity (自发性) are scarce and in demand. Success in such occupations calls for a balance, however; without enough conscientiousness to follow through, people become mere dreamers, with nothing to show for their imaginativeness.

    Among the teachers in my life，there is one person I called“Old Uncle”．I first met with him a decade ago when I was in primary school．{#blank#}1{#/blank#} During those rides，Old Uncle told me about his life．

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} He made a living by riding tricycles(三轮车)and raised the children on his own．His daughter gave up the chance to go to college so that the younger brother would have money to go after his future．Later on，she became a nurse at a hospital through her hard work．

    For each ride，Old Uncle should charge me five yuan．However，he insisted on accepting only four from me．In our conversations，he told me to always have a good heart，to be a good student，child and person．{#blank#}3{#/blank#} More movingly，every time he took me to school，he asked whether I had eaten breakfast and would try to offer me biscuits．

    Old Uncle was one of the early people who led me to explore pain and suffering，  unintentionally and naturally，through stories and giving．He didn't complain(抱怨)about the hardships he had suffered in life．{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Ten years later as I thought back to the scene，I came to realize that Old Uncle and I shared space，and connected through our spirit．{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A．I knew that Old Uncle lived a difficult life．

B．Old Uncle would pay the price for his behavior．

C．He took me to school in his tricycle every morning．

D．Old Uncle guided me to see the beauty of human nature．

E．Instead，he shared peacefully as if they weren't happening on him．

F．His wife had passed away when their two children were still young．

G．He said this with so much caring that I listened with my whole heart．

Five ways to improve creativity

    Creativity is the ability to go beyond traditional rules, ideas or relationships and create something new through imagination or progressiveness. There are many ways to improve your creative mind.

    Exercise the mind. Exercising your mind is an ideal way to boost creativity. Like the body, the mind needs exercise to work the creative muscles and make them stronger. Exercise your brain by learning new subjects, getting into a debate about politics and talking to other creative and intelligent people.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Be passionate. One aspect of creativity is passion.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Find your internal motivation and follow your passion to improve your creativity.

    Change your routine.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}To boost your creativity, consider changing one to two elements of your daily routine. If you are working on a certain project, consider stopping one project to work on another project at regular intervals throughout the day or week.

    Read. While reading provides many intellectual benefits, reading is also beneficial for boosting creativity, exercising your brain and provide creative inspiration.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}Consider reading about subjects that were previously uninteresting to you. This change in the norm might spark your creative interest.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Our packed schedules have no room for creative thinking. Take a certain amount of time every day to quiet, refresh and clear the mind while relaxing the body. This quiet time can consist of a yoga workout, meditation or simply sitting still in a dark and quiet room, in a peaceful garden or on a beautiful beach.

A. Schedule quiet time.

B. It can become weak due to stresses

C. Creativity is a natural quality

D. Often, creativity is blocked due to a too familiar routine

E. These activities will encourage a flow of creativity.

F. Read as much as possible about several different subjects.

G. Typically, students will do well in subjects they are interested in

How to Have a Successful Teenage Life

    Everyone wants to succeed in their life, don't they? Even as teenager, you can achieve success in your life, it really isn't that hard. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Do well in school. No matter how boring it is now, education will help you be a productive member in society. Try your best for excellence in school, listen to the teachers, do your homework, study, and get good grades. Doing so will help you get into a better university, which will enable you to have a bright future. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Do good in your community（社区).Volunteering can not only improve your community's status, it could make you happier .Studies show that people who volunteer are likely to depression than people who don't.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}For example if you love animals, volunteer at an animal shelter. If you love helping the environment, plant trees or pick up Litter. When you help others, it will make you feel better about yourself.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Remember, they're there to help you be the best that you can be. Respect them and value their opinions, even if they annoy you sometimes.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}You don't get to choose your teachers or your family, but you still have to put up with them. Learn how to deal with people now, because when you're an adult, you don't get to choose your boss or your co- workers, so learn how to respect them now.

A. Live life to the fullest.

B. School sets you up on the right track!

C. Be nice to your parents and teachers.

D. Find chances to do volunteer work that interests you.

E. It will help you paw time and develop your personality.

F. Here arc Mime important points that you may find helpful.

G. Keep in mind th4l they do the things they do because they care about you.

    Some people are naturally better than others at social activities. There are the lucky few that draw people to them without any effort. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Put yourself at ease and remember these tips:

    Smile! A smile is understood in any culture and any age as a sign of friendship. So go ahead! It will put the other person at ease. You will seem approachable and happy. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Make eye contact. Good eye contact engages the other person to you. When you are introduced to someone, shake their hands and repeat their names. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Making eye contact shows you have confidence and shows you are interested in the other person.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Having a trusted friend next to you makes it less frightening to walk into a room full of people. But remember that even if you walk in as a pair, it doesn't mean you just stick together the whole time. The point in a social gathering is you make friends with other people.

    Go to social settings with a shared interest. For example joining an art class automatically puts you in a setting with other people you already have a common interest in. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A.Go with friends.

B.Ask the other person questions.

C.That will help you remember their names.

D.This is the worst impression to make in any setting.

E.It will let the other person know that you are safe to talk to.

F.But for most of us, we feel shy and awkward in social activities.

G.You now have something to talk about and work it from there.

    Every week for the past thirty years, I have hosted a Sunday dinner in my home. People, including total strangers, call or e-mail to book a spot. I hold the salon in my studio. The first fifty people who call may come-twice that many when the weather is nice and we can overflow into the garden.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Last week it was a philosophy student from Lisbon, and next week a dear friend from London will cook.

    People from all corners of the world come to break bread together，to meet to talk， and often to become friends. All ages, nationalities, races, and professions gather here, and since there is no organized seating, the opportunity for connecting couldn't be better. I love the randomness (随意).

    I have a good memory so each week I make a point to remember everyone's name on the guest list and where they're from so I can introduce them to one another. If I had my way, I would introduce everyone in the whole world to one another.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Many travelers go to see things like the Tower of London, the Statue of Liberty, the Eiffel Tower, and so on. I travel to see friends， even-or especially-those I've never met.

    In the late 1980s, I edited a series of guidebooks to different countries.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Instead, each book contained about a thousand biographies of people who would be willing to welcome travelers in their cities. Hundreds of friendships evolved from these encounters, including including marriages and babies.

    The same can be said for my salon. At a recent dinner a six-year-old girl from Bosnia spent the entire evening glued to an eight-year-old boy from Estonia. Their parents were surprised, and pleased, by this immediate friendship.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Most of them speak English, at least as a second language. Recently a dinner featured a typical mix: a beautiful painter from Norway, a truck driver from Arizona, a newspaper editor from Sydney and students from all over.

    It is unnecessary to understand others; one must, at the very least, simply tolerate others.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}No one can ever really understand anyone else, but you can love them or at least accept them.

    I am a world citizen. All human history is mine. My roots cover the earth. We should know each other. Okay, now come and dine.

A. I believe in introducing people to people.

B. People are the most important thing in my life.

C. There were no sights to see, no shops or museums to visit.

D. Tolerance can lead to respect and, finally, to love.

E. After all, our lives are all connected.

F. Every Sunday a different friend prepares a feast.

G. There is always a collection of people throughout the world.