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【英语语言学习】拥有的越少,得到的越多

时间:2016-11-22 05:48来源:互联网 提供网友:yajing   字体: [ ]
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So it’s a weekday morning early in April of 2007 and I’m staring into my mother’s cupboard, a spectacularly cluttered2 cupboard. Having just moved the folks into an old age home the week before, it’s now my responsibility to clean up the house that they have called home for almost 40 years. I have no idea where to begin.
Scanning mom’s cupboard, my eyes land on this pile of towel sets, still in their original packaging. The sight of that makes me a little sad but mostly I’m smiling because I had this image in my mind of dad, scooting up to mom’s cupboard in his wheelchair. His mission: to pick from that pile of forbidden fruit and not get caught. You see mom were saving those towels for a special occasion. So there was no way she was going to let dad wipe his hands on one of them after he’d spent the morning, tinkering in the garage. Looking at them now, all I can see is a pile of missed opportunities, special occasions that in the end never came.
Fast forward to July of 2008 and my partner and I are on the verge3 of selling almost everything that we owned. At the time I didn’t even consider that our decision to downsize might have had anything to do with the way that my parents lived their lives. But looking back now I can see that the two are inextricably linked, because whether they had meant to or not, my parents left behind a very clear message: the less you own, the more you have.
Ask most people what they want out of life and it’s usually the same three things: more money, more time, and less stress. But yet as much as everyone aspires4 to this life of Riley, most people don’t believe it’s possible. So what if I was to tell you that the secret to having it all lies in that message my parents left for me, because as simple as it is, that message is also powerful beyond measure.
Today I’m going to ask you to do just two things. Don’t panic. One of them is not selling everything that you own. I guarantee, though, that if you do these two things, not half-heartedly but as if your life depended upon it, you’ll have more money, more time and be less stressed than you ever imagined possible.
I’ll tell you what those two things are in a little bit. But first, I want to talk about the upsides of downsizing. At the point where we decided5 to sell everything that we owned, my partner and I were living the good life: on the bank’s time. We were in debt to the tune6 of 120,000 Rand and I’m talking actual debt, not car payments or home loans. We had no real investments and no savings7 either. Our financial advisor’s pursed lips said it all. We were up shit creek8 without a paddle.
I’m happy to say that we’ve since paid back everything that we owed. We now have a sizable investment in growing NASDAQ. We live comfortably well within our means. You see, living a debt-free or close to debt-free life is more than possible and it brings with it a whole lot of extra cash — cash that can be put to far better use, doing those things that you love but just never seem to be able to afford: traveling, weekends away, whatever blows your hair back.
And by reducing your monthly overheads you also make way for new career possibilities. You can consider going freelance, taking a sabbatical, heck, you could even change direction completely. But as fantastic as they are, there is more to what I’m proposing than just the financial benefits. You see, stuff, it turns out, is a very demanding mistress, and as soon as we go over the boot, our weekends and, in fact, our whole lives went from being jammed packed with chores to wide open, the less you own, the simpler your life, the more time you have — time that can be put to far better use doing those things that you enjoy but just never seem to get around to: reading, playing sports, taking those all-important afternoon naps.
Now more money and more time are both great, but I also promised that you’d be less stressed. In a study titled Life in the 21st Century, researchers at UCLA observed 32 middle-class families and what they found is that all of their stress hormone9 spiked11 during the time that they spent dealing12 with their belongings13. Stuff makes life unnecessarily complicated. Bigger house just means more to clean, more to maintain, more to fix when things go wrong.
The less you own, the less there is for you to worry about. And this lack of stress comes not just from having fewer things to take care of, it’s also a direct result of having lower those mentally overheads. Because if you no longer have to worry about how you’re going to pay the bills at the end of the month, suddenly life is decidedly rosier14.
My partner and I were never big shoppers but we spent without thinking and we lived beyond our means, which as you can imagine made month end a pretty stressful time in our house. I’m happy to say that we no longer live paycheck to paycheck and I can’t begin to describe how liberating15 that, that feels. There is a saying: Nothing tastes as good as thin feels and for us there is no single object or thing that could ever, ever come close to giving us or measuring up to that sense of freedom that we have, that peace of mind that we’ve experienced since downsizing.
So I have outlined the benefits and I’m sure you’ll agree that’s pretty awesome16. Now let’s look at those two things that you need to do.
Sayonara to the clutter1
The first thing you have to do is say sayonara to the clutter. Remember I promised you wouldn’t have to get rid of everything and I meant it. This process is simply about eliminating the clutter. You know that stuff that you no longer use or even look at, time to bid it farewell. Dump it. Donate it. Do whatever you want with it but ultimately it’s got to go.
In his book The Success Principles, Jack17 Canfield talks about cleaning up your messes and incompletes. His theory, and I happen to know it works because I’ve tasted it, is that by clearing away the extraneous18 you automatically make way for more of the good stuff to flow into your life. Now he’s referring to your to-do-list as well but for the purposes of today’s talk, I’m going to focus purely19 on those things you have lying around the house, in that junk drawer in the kitchen, guys that means your man drawer as well, in the garage, the spare bedroom and pretty much anywhere else that you’ve managed to store stuff you no longer use, yet feel compelled to hold on to.
I’ve got a challenge for you today. Get rid of just one thing a day for next 30 days. That’s it. One thing a day for 30 days. I promise at the end of those 30 days, you’re going to be feeling so light and free and easy that you’ll just want to keep going. So do that. Keep going and don’t stop until you’ve gotten rid of absolutely everything you no longer use.
These days my partner and I employ the three-month rule. If we haven’t used something in three months, it’s gone. Now get that for newbies that may be a little bit extreme. So to begin with, you could try the six-month rule, or to push the one-year rule. But if you’re angling for anything more than that, maybe the first thing you need to do is place a call to Hoarders Anonymous20.
Stop buying just for buying sake
Now for the second part of the bargain. Stop buying just for buying sake. Because no matter what those marketing21 moguls would have you believe, you won’t find happiness in a brand new car or the latest iPhone. Now maybe some of you are thinking hickeys, I’d be happy with a new car. Sure you probably would but once that initial excitement of cruising down Chapman’s Peak drive in your new BMW or jeep or whatever your favorite car might be, once that excitement wears off, and it will, you still have to make the monthly payments.
Retail22 therapy is a costly23 exercise with negligible results. You’re happy in the moment, sure but that’s only because the thrill is in the chase. Ultimately that void you’re trying to fill will not be filled with stuff. Ironically everywhere we turn now, adverts24 telling us how stuff will make us happy but it simply isn’t true. Happiness is a state of being, it’s not a state of having. Think about it.
It’s always the experiences that you remember: that weekend away with your best friends, your honeymoon25, the time you took the kids to Disneyland when they were so little. That’s the good stuff. Now I’m not saying you need to look like the Amish. All I’m telling you is to think carefully before you hand over your cash. Ask yourself: do I really need this or I just wanted because I wanted. In other words, are you behaving like a five-year-old with a wallet and the driver’s license26? If you are, and you’ll know, you might not want to admit it but deep down you will know, the best thing you can do in that situation is to put your money back in your pocket and get the heck out of the mall.
Choose instead to spend your money on experiences that are going to feed your soul, instead of stuff that’s just going to clutter up your life. What am I basing this on? Well, in a study titled Affective Forecasting, professors at Harvard University concluded that people have the tendency to overestimate27 how long something will keep them happy. Their finding showed that the time it takes for that dream come true car to turn into just another noose28 around your neck is always a lot shorter than you might imagine. Six months later to indulge.
Positive psychology29 expert Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar says this is because once we’ve reached a goal that we’ve been striving towards, we experience a spike10 in our happiness levels. But before long things go back to the way they were. Only now we’re also disappointed because we really believed that car would make us happy.
The cool thing is that our brains don’t adapt nearly as successfully to experiences. So while physical things may weigh out the welcome, experiences can provide increasing benefits over time. A memorable30 trip gets better the more we talk about it. And in fact, even those less than stellar adventures provide stories that grow in value as the years pass.
My mom was one of the sweetest, kindest and funniest people I have ever had the good fortune of knowing. And I’m blessed to have many wonderful memories of her. But occasionally my mind still goes back to that pile of towel sets in her cupboard. And when it does I invariably find myself adrift in a sea of what ifs. Turn it that be your legacy31. Downsize your stuff. You will automatically supersize your quality of life.
Thank you.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 clutter HWoym     
n.零乱,杂乱;vt.弄乱,把…弄得杂乱
参考例句:
  • The garage is in such a clutter that we can't find anything.车库如此凌乱,我们什么也找不到。
  • We'll have to clear up all this clutter.我们得把这一切凌乱的东西整理清楚。
2 cluttered da1cd877cda71c915cf088ac1b1d48d3     
v.杂物,零乱的东西零乱vt.( clutter的过去式和过去分词 );乱糟糟地堆满,把…弄得很乱;(以…) 塞满…
参考例句:
  • The room is cluttered up with all kinds of things. 零七八碎的东西放满了一屋子。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The desk is cluttered with books and papers. 桌上乱糟糟地堆满了书报。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
3 verge gUtzQ     
n.边,边缘;v.接近,濒临
参考例句:
  • The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
  • She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。
4 aspires e0d3cbcde2a88805b7fd83a70eb48df3     
v.渴望,追求( aspire的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • The fame to which he aspires was beyond his reach. 他追求的名誉乃是他所不能及的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • An old steed in the stable still aspires to gallop a thousand li. 老骥伏枥,志在千里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
6 tune NmnwW     
n.调子;和谐,协调;v.调音,调节,调整
参考例句:
  • He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子,并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
  • The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。
7 savings ZjbzGu     
n.存款,储蓄
参考例句:
  • I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假,那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
  • By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时,他的存款已全部用完。
8 creek 3orzL     
n.小溪,小河,小湾
参考例句:
  • He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
  • People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。
9 hormone uyky3     
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。
10 spike lTNzO     
n.长钉,钉鞋;v.以大钉钉牢,使...失效
参考例句:
  • The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。
  • They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。
11 spiked 5fab019f3e0b17ceef04e9d1198b8619     
adj.有穗的;成锥形的;有尖顶的
参考例句:
  • The editor spiked the story. 编辑删去了这篇报道。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • They wondered whether their drinks had been spiked. 他们有些疑惑自己的饮料里是否被偷偷搀了烈性酒。 来自辞典例句
12 dealing NvjzWP     
n.经商方法,待人态度
参考例句:
  • This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
  • His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。
13 belongings oy6zMv     
n.私人物品,私人财物
参考例句:
  • I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
  • Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。
14 rosier c5f556af64144e368d0d66bd10521a50     
Rosieresite
参考例句:
  • Rosier for an instant forgot the delicacy of his position. 罗齐尔一时间忘记了他的微妙处境。
  • A meeting had immediately taken place between the Countess and Mr. Rosier. 伯爵夫人和罗齐尔先生已经搭讪上了。
15 liberating f5d558ed9cd728539ee8f7d9a52a7668     
解放,释放( liberate的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Revolution means liberating the productive forces. 革命就是为了解放生产力。
  • They had already taken on their shoulders the burden of reforming society and liberating mankind. 甚至在这些集会聚谈中,他们就已经夸大地把改革社会、解放人群的责任放在自己的肩头了。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
16 awesome CyCzdV     
adj.令人惊叹的,难得吓人的,很好的
参考例句:
  • The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
  • That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.
17 jack 53Hxp     
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克
参考例句:
  • I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
  • He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。
18 extraneous el5yq     
adj.体外的;外来的;外部的
参考例句:
  • I can choose to ignore these extraneous thoughts.我可以选择无视这些外来的想法。
  • Reductant from an extraneous source is introduced.外来的还原剂被引进来。
19 purely 8Sqxf     
adv.纯粹地,完全地
参考例句:
  • I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
  • This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。
20 anonymous lM2yp     
adj.无名的;匿名的;无特色的
参考例句:
  • Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
  • The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。
21 marketing Boez7e     
n.行销,在市场的买卖,买东西
参考例句:
  • They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
  • He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。
22 retail VWoxC     
v./n.零售;adv.以零售价格
参考例句:
  • In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
  • These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。
23 costly 7zXxh     
adj.昂贵的,价值高的,豪华的
参考例句:
  • It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
  • This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用,左不过贵了些。
24 adverts c82a22098d5133b18bfb64b60b66048d     
advertisements 广告,做广告
参考例句:
  • the adverts on television 电视广告
  • The adverts are not very informative. 这些广告并没有包含太多有用信息。
25 honeymoon ucnxc     
n.蜜月(假期);vi.度蜜月
参考例句:
  • While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
  • The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。
26 license B9TzU     
n.执照,许可证,特许;v.许可,特许
参考例句:
  • The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
  • The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。
27 overestimate Nmsz5Y     
v.估计过高,过高评价
参考例句:
  • Don't overestimate seriousness of the problem.别把问题看重了。
  • We overestimate our influence and our nuisance value.我们过高地估计了自己的影响力和破坏作用。
28 noose 65Zzd     
n.绳套,绞索(刑);v.用套索捉;使落入圈套;处以绞刑
参考例句:
  • They tied a noose round her neck.他们在她脖子上系了一个活扣。
  • A hangman's noose had already been placed around his neck.一个绞刑的绳圈已经套在他的脖子上。
29 psychology U0Wze     
n.心理,心理学,心理状态
参考例句:
  • She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
  • He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。
30 memorable K2XyQ     
adj.值得回忆的,难忘的,特别的,显著的
参考例句:
  • This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
  • The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。
31 legacy 59YzD     
n.遗产,遗赠;先人(或过去)留下的东西
参考例句:
  • They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
  • He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。
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