向前一步:第42期 往桌前坐(10)

 When I don't feel confident, one tactic¹ I've learned is that it sometimes helps to fake it. 当感觉不到自信时，我告诉你一个窍门，就是要假装自信。有时候这招很管用。

I discovered this when I was an aerobics² instructor³ in the 1980s 这个诀窍是我在20世纪80年代教健美操时发现的

(which meant a silver leotard, leg warmers, and a shiny headband, all of which went perfectly⁴ with my big hair). （你可以想象我穿着银色的紧身衣、暖腿袜套、发套——这些和我的大蓬头非常相配）。

Influenced by the gospel of Jane Fonda, aerobics also meant smiling solidly for a full hour. 受简·方达信条的影响，练习健美操意味着得整整一个小时保持微笑。

Some days, the smile came naturally. 有些时候，笑容是自然流露的；

Other days, I was in a lousy mood and had to fake it. 有些时候，我心情很糟糕，就不得不假笑。

Yet after an hour of forced smiling, I often felt cheerful. 不过，在强迫自己微笑一个小时后，我常常会觉得快乐了许多。

Many of us have experienced being angry with someone and then having to pretend everything's great in public. 我们中许多人都有过这样的经历：正生着某人的气时，又必须马上在众人面前装出“一切都很好”的样子。

My husband, Dave, and I have our moments, and just when we are getting into it, it will be time to go to a friend's house for dinner. 我和丈夫戴夫就有过这种体会。有一次，当我们两人之间因争吵而导致气氛逐渐紧张时，突然发现不得不去一个朋友家吃晚饭。

We put on our "everything's great" smiles, and amazingly, after a few hours, it often is. 于是，我们便挂上“一切都很好”的假笑容。奇妙的是，在几个小时后，之前的不快都自动消散，一切似乎真的已经变好了。

Research backs up this "fake it till you feel it" strategy. 现有的研究都很支持这种“假装自信，直到变得自信”的策略。

One study found that when people assumed a high-power pose (for example, taking up space by spreading their limbs) for just two minutes, 一项研究表明，当人们采取大幅度的动作时（比如肢体的伸展运动），只要持续两分钟，

their dominance hormone⁵ levels (testosterone) went up and their stress hormone levels (cortisol) went down. 主导力的荷尔蒙水平（即睾酮，男性荷尔蒙的一种）就会上升，而压力荷尔蒙水平（即皮质醇）就会下降，

As a result, they felt more powerful and in charge and showed a greater tolerance⁶ for risk. 从而让人感到自己更有力量、更有责任感，也更愿意承担风险。

A simple change in posture⁷ led to a significant change in attitude. 这说明，简单的姿势变化会让态度产生重要的变化。

 

1 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。

2 aerobics   

n.健身操，健美操，韵律操

参考例句：

• Doing aerobics is a good way to improve one's health.做有氧健身操是改善健康状况的一个好方法。
• Aren't you going to the aerobics class this morning?今天上午你不是去上有氧运动课吗？

3 instructor   

n.指导者，教员，教练

参考例句：

• The college jumped him from instructor to full professor.大学突然把他从讲师提升为正教授。
• The skiing instructor was a tall,sunburnt man.滑雪教练是一个高高个子晒得黑黑的男子。

4 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

5 hormone   

n.荷尔蒙，激素，内分泌

参考例句：

• Hormone implants are used as growth boosters.激素植入物被用作生长辅助剂。
• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body.这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。

6 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

7 posture   

n.姿势，姿态，心态，态度；v.作出某种姿势

参考例句：

• The government adopted an uncompromising posture on the issue of independence.政府在独立这一问题上采取了毫不妥协的态度。
• He tore off his coat and assumed a fighting posture.他脱掉上衣，摆出一副打架的架势。