大学英语六级阅读：谈大学生如何增强意志力

　　习惯成自然

　　The absolute best thing you can do to ensure you have the willpower to persist in the face of challenges and temptations, is to simply conserve it. One way to do this by turning as much positive activity as possible into habitual behavior. I assume you dont have to exert willpower to brush your teeth every day and that doing so has just become an automatic part of your daily routines.

　　最好的做法就是在挑战和诱惑面前坚定不移，把这些积极的做法形成你的习惯。你看，每天早上刷牙，你需要毅力吗?那是每天例行的。

　　Make it a Habit

　　About 10 years ago I went on a very strict diet for about 1 year. I went cold turkey on a bunch of crap I had been stuffing myself with for decades. This took a lot of willpower at first, but after a few months on the diet it took absolutely no self-control to maintain. I simply got in the habit of refusing to eat certain foods. There was no decision involved. I didnt have to continually debate whether I should or I shouldnt eat something and I thereby preserved my willpower resources for other issues. Over the subsequent years, when I applied less strict standards, I found myself failing to eat properly much more frequently. This was especially true when my willpower was drained at the end of a stressful day.

　　10年前，我节食了一年，我每天就胡乱吃了一点冻火鸡。这一开始的确需要很大的意志力，但几个月之后，我就不用控制自己了。不用多想也不用纠结，我习惯不吃一些东西了。这样我就不用把有限的意志力放在这个问题上了。接下来几年，我的节食没那么严格了，于是我的饮食规律开始有点不正常，尤其是在我劳累一天，毅力耗尽之时。

　　避免诱惑

　　You simply need to avoid putting yourself in situations that will constantly require you to exercise control of some tendency or urge. This may seem counter-intuitive, but the evidence of depletion is convincing.

　　你用不着总是把自己放在时不时考验毅力的境地里。这似乎有点反直觉，但是许多证据表明那样的话，你的意志力很容易就耗尽了。

　　做有意义的事

　　Value-based decisions are easier to make. They require less deliberate control. You are creating rules for your behavior ahead of time. A deep commitment to the values that are thus represented, make the decisions to act or to refrain from acting much easier as the individual situations arise.

　　基于自己价值观念的决定更容易做出来，因为你可以用自己一贯的自我准则，而不用怎么下意识地控制自己。所以坚持自己的原则。

　　计划在先

　　When you are attacking a project, try to plan ahead for problems and challenges. By creating some black and white rules for how you will act under certain circumstances, you can reduce the need for stressful deliberation.

　　要对可能遇到的问题做打算，想好对策，这样就算遇到了也不会焦头烂额。

　　关键字眼

　　Create a keyword or short phrase to remind yourself of whatever deep value you are trying satisfy and then use that keyword whenever you find yourself weakening. It will remind you and motivate you to continue. Furthermore you will create a habit of responding positively to the keyword.

　　给自己创造一个关键词或者短语，在自己脆弱的时候提醒自己不要忘了自我价值观。这会激励你不断前进，继而使你对关键词做出积极的反应。

　　不要分散意志力

　　If you try to tackle too many projects or goals at once, you will likely not have enough willpower reserve to accomplish them all.

　　如果你贪图一举多得、一劳永逸，那么很有可能你没有足够的意志力去完成。

　　控制自己的思想

　　Willpower is directly connected to mind control. Once you realize that you have the ability to eject negative thoughts from you mind and inject positive thoughts into the void, you have taken a gigantic step toward a lifetime of self-discipline as and when you need it. Jim Randel

　　意志力与思想控制有直接的联系。一旦你意识到你能够让积极的思想排挤掉消极的思想，你就朝着自律一生前进了一大步。--吉姆兰德尔

　　学会分解

　　It takes a lot of willpower to create momentum and get started on projects for which there is a large gap between where you are now and where you need to get to. Instead, focus on the first tiny step that you can almost fall into.

　　为自己创造动力实现较高的目标是需要很大意志的。那么，把一个大的目标分解成一个个小目标，一一实现会简单许多。

　　给自己一点时间恢复

　　If you have just finished a willpower sucking activity, give yourself a break before starting anything else that requires self-discipline.

　　如果刚完成了消耗巨大意志的任务，那么你就要让自己休息一阵再去实现下面的目标。

　　Since your willpower is strongest in the morning, it just makes sense to undertake those activities that require the most willpower as early in the day is possible. For example if you are starting an exercise program, try to develop the exercise habit in the morning when your willpower is at its strongest.

　　人的意志力在早晨时最强的，所以应该把需要毅力的事放到早上做。假如你想开始锻炼，那么最好是养成早上锻炼的习惯。