大学体验英语第四册Unit7-Passage A

Facing the Fears of Retirement¹　
"The day you retire, you're finished - you're dead." This simple, widely believed statement was uttered often by a 77-year-old business founder² even before he came out of retirement and took back control of the firm from his son. For many, retirement from the business they built seems a matter of life and death. No wonder so few have the courage or the inclination³ to face it. This fear of retirement often shows up early in unwillingness⁴ or inability to engage in succession planning. We find three prevalent beliefs held by those who cannot conclude - or even begin - succession planning:
" "Retirement scares me."
" "We could lose it all."
" "This business is who I am." 　

　Retirement is frightening. It is a new, uncertain journey - at a time when peace in life is treasured. Personal financial security is a powerful motivator to keep control of the business. The inability to "let go" is even more difficult for those who founded their businesses at a time of unemployment or family poverty.　
　For many who build successful enterprises, their business is their identity. It is said of one woman business owner, still in control in her 90s, that "work is her oxygen." Some entrepreneurs started their businesses at least in part to prove themselves to former bosses who had rejected or doubted them. We find that they cling to their creations more strongly than most.　

　 For these reasons and others, too many business founders⁵ refuse to retire. They insist that only they are capable of running the business. Jealousy⁶ or insecurities relating to declining power generate interpersonal conflicts that spoil succession planning or even the performance of potential successors.　

　If an executive has not quite achieved what he had hoped, he often wants the opportunity to stay in the game. Rather than a graceful⁷ transition, the succession process can become a war. The parties to such a combat, however, should remember Winston Churchill's warning to the House of Commons: "If we open a quarrel between the past and the present, we shall find that we have lost the future." 　

　 Fortunately, many business owners manage to face succession planning - courageously⁸, openly, and early. And because entrepreneurial succession is perhaps the most critical issue for family-business continuity, we're keenly interested in the makeup⁹ and background of those who do. 　

　Our conclusion: It's all a matter of outlook or attitude. Business owners who can plan succession and who can let go don't come necessarily from larger or smaller businesses. They don't come from businesses that are more or less fragile or that require more or less hands-on involvement. They don't necessarily even have more or less qualified¹⁰ successors to whom they can turn over their creations. They just have a different outlook or attitude toward the subject. For them, the glass is half full, not half empty.　
?Here are some attitudes about retirement that can help the process:
"There's life after succession." Many business owners have personally observed the unhappy experience of someone else who "died in the saddle." They had a partner or a friend who died young and never had a chance to retire. Or they succeeded parents who couldn't let go, and now they can't imagine imposing¹¹ that oppression on another generation. These business owners see retirement as a stage in life they don't want to miss.

? "I've got so much I want to do!" We find those who plan succession properly are already eager to do more and different things at a relatively¹² young age - 50 or 55. They are already active in new interests (for example, teaching, politics, another venture, or philanthropy) and are pushing the preparation of their successors so they have more time - full time - for these other activities. They don't retire from their previous work but rather move up to new opportunities. 　

　 "There was a business here before me." In our experience, business owners who purchased their firms as part of a management buyout face succession planning more readily than business founders. It seems they recognize that presidents change but the business goes on. As one leader says, "I wasn't hanging on because I was indispensable to the business but because the business was indispensable to me." With that understanding, he found other ways to build meaning into his life and moved on. 　
　Unfortunately, our culture does not provide acclaim¹³ for those who make the hard decision to do succession planning, even though so much is at stake. We worship founders, builders, chiefs - but rarely do we read about or cheer those who gracefully¹⁴ and successfully turn their jobs over to their successors. That seems to be an even rarer talent and accomplishment¹⁵. 　
Perhaps that is the reason management authority Peter Drucker refers to succession planning as a leader's "final test of greatness." And having passed that test, the leader goes on to new challenges and satisfactions.　

1 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

2 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

3 inclination   

n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好

参考例句：

• She greeted us with a slight inclination of the head.她微微点头向我们致意。
• I did not feel the slightest inclination to hurry.我没有丝毫着急的意思。

4 unwillingness   

n. 不愿意，不情愿

参考例句：

• Her unwillingness to answer questions undermined the strength of her position. 她不愿回答问题，这不利于她所处的形势。
• His apparent unwillingness would disappear if we paid him enough. 如果我们付足了钱，他露出的那副不乐意的神情就会消失。

5 founders   

n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
• The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句

6 jealousy   

n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌

参考例句：

• Some women have a disposition to jealousy.有些女人生性爱妒忌。
• I can't support your jealousy any longer.我再也无法忍受你的嫉妒了。

7 graceful   

adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的

参考例句：

• His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
• The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。

8 courageously   

ad.勇敢地，无畏地

参考例句：

• Under the correct leadership of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, the army and civilians in flooded areas fought the floods courageously, reducing the losses to the minimum. 在中共中央、国务院的正确领导下，灾区广大军民奋勇抗洪，把灾害的损失减少到了最低限度。
• He fought death courageously though his life was draining away. 他虽然生命垂危，但仍然勇敢地与死亡作斗争。

9 makeup   

n.组织；性格；化装品

参考例句：

• Those who failed the exam take a makeup exam.这次考试不及格的人必须参加补考。
• Do you think her beauty could makeup for her stupidity?你认为她的美丽能弥补她的愚蠢吗？

10 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

11 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

12 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

13 acclaim   

v.向…欢呼，公认；n.欢呼，喝彩，称赞

参考例句：

• He was welcomed with great acclaim.他受到十分热烈的欢迎。
• His achievements earned him the acclaim of the scientific community.他的成就赢得了科学界的赞誉。

14 gracefully   

ad.大大方方地；优美地

参考例句：

• She sank gracefully down onto a cushion at his feet. 她优雅地坐到他脚旁的垫子上。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line. 新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

15 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。