GMAT考试写作指导：Issue写作范文三九

　　Are professional success and a fulfilling personal life mutually exclusive?

　　Probably not, although it is more difficult today to achieve both.

　　Undeniably, todays professionals must work long hours to keep their heads above

　　water, let alone to get ahead in life financially. This is especially true in Japan, where

　　cost of living, coupled with corporate culture, compel professional males to all but

　　abandon their families and literally to work themselves to death. While the situation

　　here in the states may not be as critical, the two-income family is now the norm, not by

　　choice but by necessity.

　　However, our societys professionals are taking steps to remedy the problem. First,

　　they are inventing ways―such as job sharing and telecommuting―to ensure that

　　personal life does not take a backseat to career. Second, they are setting priorities and

　　living those hours outside the workplace to the fullest. In fact, professional success

　　usually requires the same time-management skills that are useful to find time for family,

　　hobbies, and recreation. One need only look at the recent American presidents--Clinton,

　　Bush, Reagan, and Carter―to see that it is possible to lead a balanced life which

　　includes time for family, hobbies, and recreation, while immersed in a busy and

　　successful career. Third, more professionals are changing careers to ones which allow

　　for some degree of personal fulfillment and self-actualization. Besides, many

　　professionals truly love their work and would do it without compensation, as a hobby.

　　For them, professional fulfillment and personal fulfillment are one and the same.

　　In conclusion, given the growing demands of career on todays professionals, a

　　fulfilling personal life remains possible by working smarter, by setting priorities, and by

　　making suitable career choices.