成功是一趟持续的旅程-TED英语演讲

 Richard St. John: "Success is a continuous¹ journey"英语演讲稿：

Why do so many people reach success and then fail? One of the big reasons is, we think success is a one-way street. So we do everything that leads up to success, but then we get there. We figure we've made it, we sit back in our comfort zone, and we actually stop doing everything that made us successful. And it doesn't take long to go downhill². And I can tell you this happens, because it happened to me.

Reaching success, I worked hard, I pushed myself. But then I stopped, because I figured, "Oh, you know, I made it. I can just sit back and relax."

Reaching success, I always tried to improve and do good work. But then I stopped because I figured, "Hey, I'm good enough. I don't need to improve any more."

Reaching success, I was pretty good at coming up with good ideas. Because I did all these simple things that led to ideas. But then I stopped, because I figured I was this hot-shot guy and I shouldn't have to work at ideas, they should just come like magic. And the only thing that came was creative block. I couldn't come up with any ideas.

Reaching success, I always focused³ on clients⁴ and projects, and ignored the money. Then all this money started pouring in. And I got distracted⁵ by it. And suddenly I was on the phone to my stockbroker⁶ and my real estate⁷ agent, when I should have been talking to my clients.

And reaching success, I always did what I loved. But then I got into stuff⁸ that I didn't love, like management. I am the world's worst manager, but I figured I should be doing it, because I was, after all, the president of the company.

Well, soon a black cloud formed over my head and here I was, outwardly very successful, but inwardly very depressed⁹. But I'm a guy; I knew how to fix it. I bought a fast car. (Laughter) It didn't help. I was faster but just as depressed.

So I went to my doctor. I said, "Doc, I can buy anything I want. But I'm not happy. I'm depressed. It's true what they say, and I didn't believe it until it happened to me. But money can't buy happiness." He said, "No. But it can buy Prozac." And he put me on anti-depressants. And yeah, the black cloud faded¹⁰ a little bit, but so did all the work, because I was just floating along. I couldn't care less if clients ever called. (Laughter)

And clients didn't call. (Laughter) Because they could see I was no longer serving them, I was only serving myself. So they took their money and their projects to others who would serve them better.

Well, it didn't take long for business to drop like a rock. My partner and I, Thom, we had to let all our employees¹¹ go. It was down to just the two of us, and we were about to go under. And that was great. Because with no employees, there was nobody for me to manage.

So I went back to doing the projects I loved. I had fun again, I worked harder and, to cut a long story short, did all the things that took me back up to success. But it wasn't a quick trip. It took seven years.

But in the end, business grew bigger than ever. And when I went back to following these eight principles, the black cloud over my head disappeared altogether. And I woke up one day and I said, "I don't need Prozac anymore." And I threw it away and haven't needed it since.

I learned¹² that success isn't a one-way street. It doesn't look like this; it really looks more like this. It's a continuous journey. And if we want to avoid "success-to-failure-syndrome," we just keep following these eight principles, because that is not only how we achieve success, it's how we sustain¹³ it. So here is to your continued success. Thank you very much. (Applause)

关于Richard St. John： 

自我形容为是一名凡人，透过做自己喜爱的事而获致成功，Richard St. John花了超过十年的时间研究成功的要素，最后淬炼出八字箴言、三分钟演讲及一本畅销书。

为何要听他演讲： 

Richard St. John已知道自己的成功之道 ─ 即透过他的营销公司St. John Group，他曾包装过的客户像 Nortel 和 BlackBerry/Research in Motion，但无法忘怀一个问题：为什么是他？他自视是名凡人，在校表现并不具天份、也不特别帅或是幸运，所以他花了超过十年的时间访问 500 名他定义为成功的人士 ─ 从建筑大师 Frank¹⁴ Gehry到一般没没无闻，但在其各自生活中很成功的人士。

访问集结成书：《成功的要素》Spike's Guide to Success: Stupid, Ugly, Unlucky and RICH为 St. John 开创出另一条成功大道，他成为一名励志讲师及脱口秀明星。他的最新著作名为《成功的八个秘诀》8 to Be Great: The 8 Traits¹⁵ that Lead to Great Success。

1 continuous   

adj.继续的，连续的，持续的，延伸的

参考例句：

• She finally got in after 10 years'continuous effort.坚持不懈地努力了十年后，她终于当选了。
• We must be continuous to study.我们必须不断学习。

2 downhill   

adj.下坡的，倾斜的；adv.往下，每况愈下

参考例句：

• Is Western society going downhill?西方社会是在走下坡路吗？
• This restaurant has definitely gone downhill since I last came here.从我上次来过之后，这家餐馆越来越糟。

3 focused   

adj.聚焦的v.（使）集中， （使）聚集( focus的过去式和过去分词 )；调整（镜头，眼睛）焦点[焦距]以便看清；（光、声等的）焦点；集中（光束于）

参考例句：

• Research has focused on improving the car's aerodynamics. 研究的重点是改善轿车的流线型。
• The discussion focused on three main problems. 讨论集中在三个主要问题上。

4 clients   

n.顾客( client的名词复数 )；当事人；诉讼委托人；[计算机]客户端

参考例句：

• a lawyer with many famous clients 拥有许多著名委托人的律师
• She understood the importance of establishing a close rapport with clients. 她懂得与客户建立密切和谐的关系的重要性。

5 distracted   

a.注意力分散的，思想不集中的

参考例句：

• When working, one should concentrate and not allow oneself to be distracted. 工作时要集中精力，不要分心。
• Noise outside distracted her mind from her studies. 门外的噪音使她心神不宁，无法集中注意力学习。

6 stockbroker   

n.股票（或证券），经纪人（或机构）

参考例句：

• The main business of stockbroker is to help clients buy and sell shares.股票经纪人的主要业务是帮客户买卖股票。
• My stockbroker manages my portfolio for me.我的证券经纪人替我管理投资组合。

7 estate   

n.所有地，地产，庄园；住宅区；财产，资产

参考例句：

• My estate lies within a mile.我的地产离那有一英里。
• The great real estate brokers do far more than this.而优秀的房地产经纪人做得可比这多得多。

8 stuff   

n.原料，材料，东西；vt.填满；吃饱

参考例句：

• We could supply you with the stuff in the raw tomorrow.明天我们可以供应你原材料。
• He is not the stuff.他不是这个材料。

9 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

10 faded   

a.褪了色的

参考例句：

• All colour had faded from the sky. 天上的颜色都退去了。
• a faded pair of blue jeans 一条退了色的蓝色牛仔裤

11 employees   

n.雇工，雇员( employee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She is always polite and considerate towards her employees. 她对待雇员总是客客气气，关心体谅。
• The company has a strict dress code—all male employees are expected to wear suits. 公司有严格的着装规定—所有男职员都要穿西服。

12 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

13 sustain   

vt.保持，供养，维持，支持，经受

参考例句：

• During the war we had just enough food to sustain us.战争期间，我们的食物仅够维持生活。
• These four posts sustain the entire building.这四根柱子支撑着整座建筑物。

14 frank   

adj.坦白的，直率的，真诚的

参考例句：

• A frank discussion can help to clear the air.坦率的谈论有助于消除隔阂。
• She is frank and outgoing.她很爽朗。

15 traits   

n.人的个性，显著的特点，特征( trait的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We do not know which behavioural traits are inherited and which acquired. 我们不知道哪些行为特征是遗传的，哪些是后天养成的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His generosity is one of his good traits. 慷慨大方是他的好品质之一。 来自《简明英汉词典》