How many girls in this world fall behind? The answer is hard—too many to count. This is why the phrase “Go Get It Girl” popped up in my head one day. This would be my project. Thus begins the journey of my Cold Award project, the largest and most important step of Girl Scouts (女童子军).

    “Go Get It Girl” is a girl's self-empowerment (自我授权) project centered on a website called gogetitgirl.org. It focuses on areas including education, health, and financial literacy. The education section includes information on applying to college and, maintaining good grades. The health section contains information on basic health and self-respect. Lastly, the financial literacy section has all the information a girl needs to manage her money properly.

    As part of my project, I was able to work one-on-one with girls in elementary, middle, and high school. I gave a speech at a local high school's College Night. I spoke to Hispanic girls and their parents about applying to college. In addition, I worked with an organization called Cool Girls, Inc. Cool Girls is an organization focused on the advancement of girls in all aspects of their development. I worked at the afterschool program, Cool Girls Club. The girls I worked with were primarily minorities, and Cool Girls truly helps them to rise above any current difficulties in their lives.

    To provide inspiration for the girls who visit gogetitgirl.org, I interviewed successful women in my community, including a doctor and business owner.

The project has been a lot of work, arid it's not over yet. It will never be over, hopefully, because I will always look for ways to help girls.

    It is important for everyone to learn how to apologize effectively. You might think a simple “I'm sorry.” will take care of everything.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} There are some situations in which you need to apologize properly.

    Apologize truly.

    Apologizing through a half-hearted “sorry” will get you nowhere.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}. If you are really want to apologize, you must do it truly. Accept the fact that you are wrong.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Contrary to what you might think, apologizing over and over again isn't going to help, especially you are apologizing to someone who is your boss.

    Don't wait too long to apologize.

    One piece of advice on how to apologize effectively is to do it as soon as you realize your mistake. Some people put off giving an apology because they think it will save them from the offended(被冒犯的) person's anger. However, that's just not polite. If you can't approach the person personally at once, send him or her a message first.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Don't expect too much.

    You can't expect that person to forgive you immediately. If you are going to apologize, you have to be prepared for the worst. The conversation isn't going to be the most comfortable one either.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Learning how to apologize effectively is very important. It shows people that you are a very kind person.

A．Don't apologize again and again.

B．However, that's not exactly true.

C．Pay a visit to others ahead of time.

D．You'd better prepare yourself for anything.

E．But make sure you make an apology in person as well.

F．In fact, it might get you into even bigger trouble than before.

G．A lot of people don't know how to make an apology to their boss.

    Before the coming of the first settlers from Europe, Canada's local people had discovered a new kind of food—maple sap(汁液)，which they gathered every spring. According to many historians, the maple leaf began to serve as a Canadian symbol as early as 1700.

    In 1834, the first St. Jean Baptise Society in North America made the maple leaf its sign. In 1836, Le Canadian, a newspaper, referred to it as a suitable symbol for Canada. In 1860, the maple leaf was used widely in decorations for the visit of the Prince of Wales. Alexander Muir wrote The Maple Leaf Forever in 1867; it was regarded as the national song for several decades. The army uniforms created the next year for Ontario and Quebec both included the maple leaf. Later the maple leaf appeared on coins. Between 1876 and 1901, it appeared on all Canadian coins. The modern one-cent piece has two maple leaves on a common twig(细枝)，a design that has gone almost unchanged since 1937.

    During the First World War, the maple leaf was included on the badge(徽章) of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. Since 1921, the Royal Arms of Canada have included three maple leaves as a special Canadian symbol. In 1939, at the time of World War Ⅱ, many Canadian troops used the maple leaf as a special sign.

    With the announcement of Canada's new flag in 1965, the maple leaf has become the Canadian symbol. On February 15 of that year, the red maple leaf flag first appeared as the National Flag of Canada.

Eight Things That Lead to Success

    "What leads to success?" This may be a question asked by those who want to make something of their life. For seven years, Richard. John made 500 interviews. Here he wants to tell you what really leads to success.

    And the first thing is passion.

    Freeman Thomas says, "I'm driven by my passion." TED-sters do it for love; they don't do it for money. Carol Coletta says, "I would pay someone to do what I do." {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

Work

    Rupert Murdoch said to me, "It's all hard work. Nothing comes easily. But I have a lot of fun." Did he say fun? Rupert? Yes! {#blank#}2{#/blank#} I figure, they're not workaholics. They're workafrolics（醉心工作者）.

    Good!

    Alex Garden says, "To be successful put your nose down in something and get damn good at it"

    There's no magic; it's practice, practice, practice.

    And it's focus.

    Norman Jewison said to me, "I think it all has to do with focusing yourself on one thing."

    And push!

    David Gallo says, "Push yourself. Physically, mentally, you've got to push, push, push. You gotta push through shyness and self-doubt." Goldie Hawn says, "I always had self-doubts. I wasn't good enough; I wasn't smart enough. I didn't think

    I'd make it." {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (Laughter) Frank Gehry said to me," My mother pushed me."

    Serve!

    Sherwin Nuland says, "It was a privilege to serve as a doctor."{#blank#}4{#/blank#} And the first thing I say to them is: "OK, well you can't serve yourself; you gotta serve others something of value. Because that's the way people really get rich."

    Ideas!

    TE D-ster Bill Gates says, "I had an idea: founding the first microcomputer software company." I'd say it was a pretty good idea. And there's no magic to creativity in coming up with ideas- it's just doing some very simple things. And I give lots of evidence.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Joe Kraus says, "Persistence is the number one reason for our success." You got to persist through failure. You got to persist through CRAP! Which of course means "Criticism, Rejection, Assholes and Pressure." (Laughter)

A. So why don't I ask them what helped them succeed, and pass it on to kids?

B. And the interesting thing is: If you do it for love, the money comes anyway.

C. Now a lot of kids tell they want to be millionaires.

D. LED-sters do have fun working. And they work hard.

E. Persist!

F. Investing their money in pursuing a future lifestyle rather than in an academic conquest.

G. Now it's not always easy to push yourself, and that's why they invented mothers.

    Test anxiety can be a real problem if you're so stressed out over a test that you can't get past the nervousness to focus the test questions and do your best work. Feeling ready to meet the challenge can kept test anxiety at a manageable level.

    Be prepared. Some students think that going to class is all it takes to so well on tests. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} You will find your test anxiety eases when you start to study more regularly. The reason is that the more you know the material, the more confident you'll feel. Having confidence going into a test means you expect to do well.

    Watch what you're thinking. If expecting to do well in a text can help you relax, what about if you expect you won't do well? {#blank#}2{#/blank#} They can contribute to your anxiety. If you find yourself having these thoughts, replace them with positive ones. Not unrealistic positive message, of course, but ones practical and true.

    Accept mistakes. Another thing you can do is to learn to keep mistakes in view-especially if you are a perfectionist or you tend to be hard on yourself. Everyone makes mistakes, and you may have heard teachers refer to mistakes as learning opportunities. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} If sitting for a test gets you so stressed out that your mind goes blank and causes you to miss answers that you know, then your level of test anxiety probably needs some attention. Your teacher or your school guidance counselor（顾问）can be good people to talk to.

    Take care of yourself. For some people, this might mean learning a simple breathing exercise. Practice breathing exercise regularly when you feel stressed. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Then you can calm yourself down and get centered.

A. Ask for help.

B. Learn to praise yourself.

C. This helps your body receive a signal to relax.

D. But good study habits and skills are more important.

E. So it's time to regard small failures as valuable experiences.

F. Then you will become more interested in asking questions.

G. You may send yourself some negative messages about the test.

    When it comes to medical care, many patients and doctors believe "more is better." But what they do not realize is that overtreatment—too many scans, too many blood tests, too many procedures—may bring harm. Sometimes a test leads you down a path to more and more testing, some of which may be invasive, or to treatment for things that should be left alone.

    Terrence Power, for example, complained that after his wife learned she had Wegener's disease, an uncommon disorder of the immune system, they found it difficult to refuse testing recommended by her doctor. The doctor insisted on office visits every three weeks, even when she was feeling well. He frequently ordered blood tests and X－rays, and repeatedly referred her to specialists for even minor complaints. Even when tests came back negative, more were ordered, and she was hospitalized as prevention when she developed a cold. She had as many as 25 doctor visits during one six－month period. The couple was spending about $30,000 a year for her care.

    After several years of physical suffering and near financial ruin from the medical costs, the couple began questioning the treatment after discussing with other patients in online support groups. "It's a really hard thing to determine when they've crossed the line," Mr. Power said. "You think she's getting the best care in the world, but after a while you start to wonder: What is the purpose?" Mr. Power then spoke with his own primary care doctor, who advised him to find a new specialist to oversee Mrs. Power's care. Under the new doctor's care, the regular testing stopped and Mrs. Power's condition stabilized. Now she sees the doctor only four or five times a year.