Stephen Covey's book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is very popular among business people who want to improve their careers.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}For example,Covey's principles can be used to improve relationships between parents and children or to improve the way you manage your time.

    Covey begins by discussing habits and effectiveness,and why they are both important to success.According to Covey,for an action,such as listening to others,to become a habit,you must know what to do and why you should do it.However,you also must want to do.On the other hand,effectiveness means having a balance between success and a good relationship with the people around you.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}However,if the company does not respect its workers,the profits will eventually decline.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}The first three habits focus on personal growth.The next three habits are about how to get along with others.The seventh habit shows how to achieve physical,emotional and mental health.

    Covey includes exercises to help you analyse your life.He challenges you to identify what you want to contribute to society in your lifetime.He does this by asking you to think about what people to say about you after you die{#blank#}4{#/blank#}For example,if you want your children to say that you were always willing to spend time with them, then you will spend more time with them and less time at work{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A.It has the potential to really improve your life.

B.In this way,you can challenge yourself to make your dreams and ambitions come true.

C.However,its principles can be applied to any area of life.

D.In order to be successful,you must have habits that make you able to deal effectively with others and your own personal life.

E.For example,a company might focus completely on making a profit.

F.Your answer to this question will help you make better decisions about how to spend your time.

G.Covey also introduces the seven habits of highly effective people.

How to become a professional athlete?

    Everyone wants to be a superstar athlete. However, there is a lot of competition to make it. So if you want to be a professional athlete, you have to know all the tricks of the trade to rise up above the rest.

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    To play your sport better than anyone else, you have to practice your skills with lots of repetition. For example, you have to shoot 100 free throws every day for basketball.

    Make steady improvements

    If you are a baseball pitcher (投手) and your fastball is stuck at about 60 miles per hour, change it up! Try to walk your first step a little bit longer, bring in your elbow a little bit tighter, or try to reach higher when you're following through{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

Quality coaches

    Have you ever noticed that a lot of kids with parents who are professional athletes will often become professional athletes in the same sport? They have access to a professional athlete's tips and tricks{#blank#}3{#/blank#} You should try to find coaches or professional athletes that are willing to answer your questions.

Diet of champions

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} If you can change your diet to a healthy one, you're going to be stronger.

    Friends and enemies

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} By having great teammates or competitors, it pushes you to try harder and that always results in getting better.

A. Practice makes perfect

B. Better late than never

C. The big secret to advancing your skills above anyone else is to improve.

D.The biggest thing that most kids often ignore is their diet.

E.Surrounding yourself with quality teammates and competitors is the best way to get better.

F. These little improvements are things that will help you advance your skills.

G.But don't get discouraged if you don't have parents who were professional athletes.

How to not be a slave to technology

    Schwartz, CEO of The Energy Project, shared four of his most important tools for applying technology more productively, and building a work life that supports—rather than wastes—your energy.

    Build daily rituals (习惯).{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Build highly specific behaviors that you do at precise times over and over again until it becomes as automatic as brushing your teeth at night. The best way to prioritize (优先考虑) what's important to us and make sure we actually do the things we care about is to create highly specific habits.

    Take a “first things first” approach to your mornings.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Ninety-five percent of people have more energy early in the morning than they do as the day wears on, and they also have fewer distractions(干扰). So if that's the case, why wouldn't you do the most important thing when you have the most energy?

    Use technologies selectively. If you expose yourself to different forms of technology continuously, they will pull you in the way a drug would, even when you know it is not serving you well. Keep technological temptations (诱惑) away when you find yourself getting too distracted—or as Schwartz puts it: “{#blank#}3{#/blank#}”

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Many of us live our lives in a gray zone—were not fully focused on work when were working, and during our leisure time, we're not fully relaxed. This leaves us feeling distracted. Schwartzs advice? {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Applying less than your full focus doesn't just make you less productive; distraction keeps you from being fulfilled by and connected to your work. Distraction is the enemy to meaning.

A. Be intentional with your energy.

B. Do the most important thing first every day.

C. Taking breaks throughout the workday is a nice thought.

D. If you're trying to lose weight, don't have cup--cakes in the fridge.

E. We've crossed the line of being able to effectively manage all of the information coming at us.

F. When you're working, you're really working; and when you're relaxing, you're really relaxing.

G. The only way to ensure that things that aren't urgent but are important happen is to develop habits.

    Every person wants to achieve the goals set at the beginning of a new school year. The following are some ways to help you achieve your goals.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}When it comes to choosing your goal, ensure that it states precisely what it is that you want to achieve. Don't generalize. Your goal should involve both what you want to achieve and the effort that you will put in to achieve it. 

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Having a copy of your goal makes it real. You can write you goal in a journal you'll be keeping all year, or you can write it on a poster and stick it on your desk so that you can look at it each day. Every time you remind yourself of your goal, you're training your brain to accept the effort needed to make the goal happen.

    Try various methods. One may not work while another may be just right for you. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Some people learn best through writing, some through listening and reading, and some through talking it through. Once you realize which way works for you, you can work better and achieve your goal easily.

    Think positive. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Negative thoughts are unhelpful and they became roadblocks. Stop telling yourself you can't and start telling yourself you can, and talk about you are doing rather than hoping you can do something. Always believe that you're capable, even if you have difficulty along the way.

    Reward yourself along the way. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Occasionally, when you've achieved certain “milestones” in your goal plan, take a break and reward yourself. Watch a movie, visit a friend who lives across town, go to the ice cream shop with your friends or buy yourself something new.

A. Write down your goal.

B. Choose specific and realistic goals

C. Be aware of the way you learn best

D. Remember that everyone makes mistakes

E. Set aside some time each week for exercise

F. All study and no reward can break your spirit

G. If you're not in the right state of mind, you won't be able to succeed.

    Good learners can inspire students or anybody to learn well. Here are some characteristics of good learners.

    Good learners are curious. They wonder about all sorts of things, often about knowledge beyond their areas of expertise(专长). {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Finding out about something they didn't know satisfies them for the moment, but their curiosity is addictive.

    Good learners don't give up easily. A few things may come easily to learners but most knowledge arrives after effort. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} They try to search out new information. They read, analyze, and evaluate the information they've found. Then they study more and work at what they don't understand.

    Good learners know that a lot of learning isn't fun. The journey to understanding generally isn't all that exciting. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Others need a tiresome attention to detail, and still others need periods of intense mental focus. Your backs hurt, your arms and legs get tired, and your coffee gets cold.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}There's always more to know. Good learners are never satisfied with how much they know about anything. They are pulled around by questions—the ones they still can't answer, or the ones without very good answers. Those questions follow them like day follows night with the answers bringing daylight.

    Good learners share what they've learned. Good learners are teachers committed to sharing with others what they've learned. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Good learners can also explain what they know in ways that make sense to others. They are connected to the knowledge passed on to them and committed to leaving what they've learned with others.

A. Some learning tasks require boring repetition.

B. Good learners are willing to put in the time.

C. Some knowledge can broaden our views.

D. Good learners stay positive.

E. They write about it, and talk about it.

F. They love the discovery part of learning.

G. Good learners never run out of questions.

    Keeping the memory in shape is important at any age, but it requires a bit more work as we grow. There are some simple activities that can improve your memory.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Awaken your senses.

    Use your senses to help your memory store(储存) needed information. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}You can ask yourself like this: Is the sky a light blue or deep purple? The more involved(参与的) you can be in the information, the easier it is for your brain to store it.

    Use imagination and relation.

    Trying to remember names? Let's say you meet a man named Frank Parker. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Tie the two together by picturing Frank dressed up in a hot dog costume(服装) parking his car in the parking lot. Now each time you see Frank, you should easily recall his name.

    Breathe deeply and relax.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Relax, breathe deeply and slowly and let your mind ease up for a minute. Being relaxed makes it easier for information to be both stored and remembered.

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    When you come upon something you need to remember, say to yourself, “Hey, pay attention and remember this!” You are giving yourself a wake-up call as well as giving your mind a marker that it can use to help in storing the new information.

A. Give yourself an order.

B. Get a good night's sleep.

C. Here are four of them to get you started.

D. Picture a hot dog for Frank and a car for Parker.

E. For example, note the colors of a picture you want to remember.

F. When we try hard to remember something we often become nervous.

G. The way you live influences not only your physical health but also your memory.