Confidence is very important in daily life. It can help you to develop a healthy attitude. A study shows that the people who are more confident are much happier. They can have more chance to make themselves successful. But how to be more confident? Here are some suggestions:

    Speak loud    When you are not confident, you can't do well what you want to do. You speak in a voice so low that other people can hardly hear you. Try to speak loud enough so that people can hear you clearly. The high voice can help you become more confident.

    Play sports   Physical exercise makes you tired but completely relaxed. A strong body helps you be full of confidence.

    Encourage yourself    Write down a list of things you did during the day to see how many things you have done well. Did you finish your homework? Did you tell a joke that made everybody laugh? Give yourself praise for the good things you've done.

    Get rid of (消除) fear    Fear comes along with failure. But it's easy to overcome (克服) if you know that failure is part of your life. Don't hide your head just because you said something stupid last time. Try to start again and believe you can do better.

    Pick up a hobby    If you like singing, sing as much as you can. In some ways, a hobby can make you outstanding. And it will make you happy and confident.

    Here is a story of a dog. It saved his owner, Audrey Stone, who was a lady and had poor vision (视力).

    Figo, an eight-year-old dog, is Audrey Stone's third service dog. "He protects me and loves me. We are friends," Stone said.

    On a Monday, Stone and Figo were on their way back from their "usual daily walk". When they prepared to cross a street, "I gave him the order to cross the street," Stone said.

    "I said, 'Forward.' And we were in the middle of the street and it happened so quickly, but people said he just jumped at the school bus and saved me," Stone said.

    The school bus was carrying two children to a learning center. Luckily they were not injured. Stone said she didn't remember much of the accident, but one image (画面) stayed with her: a wounded Figo staying by her side, holding up his wounded right paw (爪子).

    "I knew he was hurt," she continued. "I remember Figo standing there, looking at me, trying to get close to me, but he didn't know what to do. Because he knew I was hurt." Figo had an operation (手术) on his right front leg. Figo's vet (兽医) said his leg was getting better.

    Stone said she was sure of one thing, "I'd have been sad if he had got killed." But, she added, they both lived to tell the story.

Information Card

    Mona has an interesting hobby. She collects stamps(邮票). She spends a lot of time on her stamp collection after school. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} They are all in color. Mona likes stamps with pictures of animals and birds on them. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} She also borrows books on animals and birds from her school library. She learns many things about them. Sometimes Mona has many stamps of the same kind. She gives them to her classmates. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Mona writes to her friends in many countries. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} In return, they send her stamps of their countries. Mona's father also gives her stamps.

    He brings them home from his office and he often enjoys the stamps with her. But Mona's mother never gives her stamps because she thinks spending too much time on them is bad for study. Many of Mona's friends collect other things. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} But, all of them say that Mona's collection is the most interesting of all.