My First Job
Jay Leno is a very famous TV host in NBC．He started his talk show titled The Jay Lena Show in September 2009．It was a very popular TV programm in America．Here is the story of his first job．
I gained a very strong work concept from my parents, both of whom lived through a hard period of time-the Great Depression （大萧条）．They couldn't ___36___ people who didn't work regularly．I once told my mom that Sylvester Stallone was getting $12 million for ten weeks of work．"What's he going to do the rest of the _37__?" she asked．
I took my first job at Wilmington Ford near my homerown of Andover, Massachusetts, when I was 16．I worked until five or six o'clock on school days and __38____ 12-hour days during the summer as a prepper（擦洗汽车的小工）．This meant washing and polishing the new cars, and making sure the paper floor mats were in __39__．Another responsibility was taking off the hubcaps (车轮毂盖） at night, so they wouldn't get stolen, and 40 them the next day．This was 41 work because we had about seven acres of 42 One day, carrying an armful of hubcaps 43 a corner, I almost __44__ our new general manager．Scared, I dropped them all．He __45 me on the spot．
I was too ashamed to tell my parents．Every day for about two weeks, I stayed __46 until evening．Then I would go home and say I had a ．__47___ day at work．
Trying to make a last 48 , I wrote a letter to Henry Ford II and told him what happened．I said that we were a reliable Ford family and that when I was old enough, I was going to buy a Mustang． __49__ the owner of the dealership(经营店） called．"I don't know who you know in Detroit．" he said．"but if you want your job back, you've 50 it.”
Later, during college, I wanted to work at a Roils-Royce dealership, but the owner said there were no openings．So 1 started washing cars there anyway．When the ___51__ noticed me, I said I was working until he _52__ me．He did．And the second day, I started to work there as a sales clerk．
It 53 persistence (坚持） to succeed．Attitude 54_ matters．I have never thought I was better than anyone else, but I have always believed I couldn't be _ 55 ．
A．see B．know C．understand D．love
A．day B．month C．week D．year
A．put in B．took up C．gave out D．stuck to
A．place B．need C．shape D．fashion
A．changing B．selling C．replacing D．cleaning
A．hard B．normal C．regular D．plain
A．mats B．cars C．areas D．floors
A．at B．in C．beyond D．around
A．broke into B．looked across C．crashed into D．came across
A．fired B．left C．punished D．forgot
A．calm B．busy C．still D．alone
A．stressful B．relaxing C．bad D．great
A．effort B．change C．dialogue D．decision
A．Gradually B．Eventually C．Temporarily D．Hopefully
A．reached B．passed C．got D．caught
A．prepper B．owner C．clerk D．customer
A．helped B．tired C．hired D．called
A．makes B．shows C．carries D．takes
A．also B．even C．never D．ever
A．followed B．scolded C．defeated D．interrupted
In the middle of a beautiful day, I was feeling lost, as if the world was crashing on me. didn't know which way to go, except to head out to the countryside. I went to the spot where I used to take my kids-when I still had kids. Now they had and were leaving.
I was sitting alone in my car when I saw a man in his seventies, whose problem appeared bigger than mine. He stood near the edge of the road, a kite spindle(风筝线锭) in his hands. Apparently, lost in thought, he stared skyward. I my neck to see how successful he had been in the clouds. Following his string with my eyes, I almost lost 0f the other end. Finally, the kite rested on what seemed to be the highest branch of the tree in the park. Obviously, that was his grandson's kite! The kite was a replica (复制品) of a beautiful bald eagle, and its wings spread 0pen. Grandpa had only one to his problem: cut the string.
"You wanted it to fly as high as it could. Bill. didn't you?" "Yes, Grandpa, wanted to keep it forever. " "There just comes a time when the only thing you can do is to cut the string and let it go. Perhaps by doing that, when it flies very high like real eagles do, it will come back to us. " Grandpa said.
I how the old man cut the string to let fly the kite. As the two walked away, looked to the . There I saw my answer, too. Today I have to cut the final strings that kept my two boys my reach. Though I want to keep them forever, I have taught them to fly like an eagle. Maybe by doing this, when it's time to soar like real eagles do. one day they would come back to me.
A．grown up B．turned up C．picked up D．taken up
A．carrying B．grabbing C．keeping D．holding
A．raised B．spread C．stretched D．expanded
A．reaching B．touching C．getting D．climbing
A．scene B．sight C．interest D．control
A．thickest B．strongest C．tallest D．largest
A．widely B．wide C．tightly D．closely
A．method B．hope C．solution D．result
A．and B．so C．or D．but
A．sensed B．glanced C．watched D．found
A．car B．sky C．kite D．tree
A．within B．in C．beyond D．with
Most people believe they don’t have much imagination. They are ____. Everyone has imagination, but most of us, once we become adults, forget how to ____ it. Creativity isn’t always ____ with great works of art or ideas. People at work and in their free time ____ think of creative ways to solve problems. Maybe you have a goal to achieve, a tricky question to answer or you just want to expand your mind! Here are three techniques to help you.
Making connections This technique involves taking ____ ideas and trying to find links between them. First, think about the problem you have to solve or the job you need to do. Then find an image, word, idea or object, for example, a candle. Write down all the ideas/words ____ with candles: light, fire, matches, wax, night, silence, etc. Think of as many as you can. The next stage is to relate the ____ to the job you have to do. So imagine you want to buy a friend an original ____; you could buy him tickets to a match or take him out for the night.
No limits! Imagine that normal limitations don’t ____. You have as much time/space/money, etc. as you want. Think about your goal and the new ____. If your goal is to learn to ski, ____, you can now practice skiing every day of your life (because you have the time and the money). Now ____ this to reality. Maybe you can practice skiing every day in December, or every Monday in January.
Be someone else! Look at the situation from a ____ point of view. Good businessmen use this technique in trade, and so do writers. Fiction writers often imagine they are the ___ in their books. They ask questions: What does this character want? Why can’t she get it? What changes must she make to get what she wants? If your goal involves other people, put yourself in their ____. The best fishermen think like fish!
A．wrong B．unbelievable C．reasonable D．realistic
A．put up with B．catch up with C．make use of D．keep track of
A．equipped B．compared C．covered D．connected
A．skillfully B．routinely C．vividly D．deeply
A．familiar B．unrelated C．creative D．imaginary
A．presented B．marked C．lit D．associated
A．ideas B．ambitious C．achievement D．technique
A．experience B．service C．present D．object
A．work B．last C．exist D．change
A．possibilities B．limitations C．tendency D．practice
A．in fact B．in particular C．as a whole D．for example
A．devote B．adapt C．lead D．keep
A．private B．global C．different D．practical
A．features B．themes C．creatures D．characters
A．positions B．dreams C．images D．directions
How often do you change your hairstyle or ask for new dresses? You may be __ to follow trends in Western countries, but young people in the United States don’t care as much about__ as you do.
A recent survey among high school ____ in China, Japan, South Korea and the US found that __ teenagers care more about their appearance than young people in the US.
This survey was held in 156 high schools in the four countries. More than 7,000 teenagers were__ about their views on life and the world. South Koreans, at 83 percent, cared most about their looks. They were__ by the Chinese and Japanese, while US students showed the least interest in fashion at only 33 percent.
“The different results show ___ of cultural background,” said Sun Yunxiao from the China Youth and Children Research Centre. He explained that in the US there are many different__ of beauty, so teens are more__ to be confident about their appearance.
US teenagers’ high self-confidence is displayed in the___ . About 85 percent are happy with themselves. The percentage of self-confident Chinese students stands at only 30 percent.
What’s __ , US students showed more individuality, with 88 percent____ _ that “people should follow their own interests rather than__ of others”. This is much__ than South Korea’s 69 percent, China’s 49 and Japan’s 48.
Japanese students, at 52 percent, are most dissatisfied with modern society. Chinese and Koreans follow at second and___ most dissatisfied.
“__ to the survey, Chinese students are happy and disciplined. They have a strong wish to make a difference.__ Chinese students need to be more independent and learn how to relax,” said Sun.
The students have different___ backgrounds. But home and places where friends gather are the favorite places all teens seek happiness.
Exams and worries about life after graduation cause much___ _ among most of the teens ____ for the survey.
A．absorbed B．willing C．careless D．unhappy
A．hairstyle B．dresses C．fashion D．culture
A．teachers B．students C．citizens D．colleagues
A．Asian B．American C．African D．Western
A．answered B．requested C．persuaded D．questioned
A．followed B．decreased C．reduced D．compared
A．relations B．barriers C．customs D．differences
A．awareness B．standards C．consciences D．expenses
A．admirable B．confused C．likely D．unbelievable
A．survey B．setting C．reference D．paper
A．worse B．better C．less D．more
A．disagreeing B．observing C．agreeing D．puzzling
A．those B．that C．it D．one
A．lower B．larger C．smaller D．higher
A．first B．third C．fourth D．last
A．leading B．devoting C．appealing D．According
A．But B．And C．So D．Or
A．political B．cultural C．economical D．commercial
A．expectation B．hesitation C．concern D．ambition
A．interviewed B．advised C．overlooked D．invested
Failure，they say, is the best teacher. We learn and have more confidence in what we know through trial and error, which onetime or another has failure. You don’t have to your failure if what you really want to achieve is .
For every achievement, there have been one or more failures. But those who we call successful are those who to accept failure and believe success is the other side of failure. The incandescent light (白炽灯) was after 1,000 failures. If Thomas Edison had after he tried 100 times without the desired result, what would have been the of such effort?
Any time you see products and new inventions, think in terms of failures that are not accepted. everything in a microform (微缩过程) today is a result of failure not accepted.
Any time your effort is not bringing a(n) result, you don’t have to call it a failure. Call it a challenge. What is the between the two? One is negative, the other is ; one demotivates , the other motivates.
What you need is positive thinking and motivation to success. Failure is an end thing; is an open thing. Failure means there is no way out, no alternative, but a challenge is a question mark another way out of the situation, an alternative to the problem.
Keep dreaming, keep moving; that is the solution to success.
A wise man once said if you cannot fly, run. If you cannot ,walk. If you cannot walk, crawl; just keep moving. If you fall down, you have to and start moving. If not, other people will step on you towards their . What you call failure and is what someone will step into with just a little additional effort to reach achievement.
A．come from B．resulted in C．resulted from D．come across
A．deny B．receive C．accept D．gain
A．dreams B．imaginations C．barriers D．success
A．successful B．creative C．difficult D．important
A．prepare B．try C．refuse D．attempt
A．used B．discovered C．found D．invented
A．forgot B．stopped C．regretted D．succeeded
A．meaning B．importance C．result D．cause
A．Moreover B．Therefore C．However D．Otherwise
A．desired B．imagined C．poor D．final
A．similarity B．characteristic C．relationship D．difference
A．reasonable B．meaningful C．positive D．beneficial
A．achieve B．enjoy C．miss D．avoid
A．chance B．motivation C．challenge D．effort
A．reflecting B．asking C．suggesting D．offering
A．response B．key C．entrance D．solution
A．rise B．fly C．run D．stand
A．lie flat B．get up C．sit still D．run away
A．advantage B．destination C．achievement D．strength
A．quit B．hate C．prefer D．continue
My sister and I grew up in a little village in England. Our father was a struggling , but I always knew he was . He never criticized us, but used to bring out our best. He’d say, “If you pour water on flowers, they flourish (繁盛). If you don’t give them water, they die.” I as a child I said something about somebody, and my father said, “ time you say something unpleasant about somebody else, it’s a reflection of you.” He explained that if I looked for the best people, I would get the best . From then on I’ve always tried to the principle in my life and later in running my company.
Dad’s also always been very . At 15, I started a magazine. It was a great deal of my time, and the headmaster of my school gave me a : stay in school or leave to work on my magazine.
I decided to leave, and Dad tried to persuade me to change my decision, any good father would. When he realized I had made up my mind, he said, “Richard, when I was 23, my dad me to go into law. And I’ve regretted it. I wanted to be a biologist, I didn’t pursue (追寻) my . You know what you want. Go fulfill (完成) it.”
As turned out, my little publication went on to become Student, a national for young people in the U.K. My wife and I have two children, and I’d like to think we are bringing them up in the same way Dad me.
A．biologist B．manager C．lawyer D．gardener
A．strict B．honest C．special D．learned
A．praise B．strength C．power D．warmth
A．think B．imagine C．remember D．guess
A．unnecessary B．unkind C．unimportant D．unusual
A．another B．some C．any D．other
A．on B．in C．at D．about
A．in case B．by turns C．by chance D．in return
A．revise B．set C．review D．follow
A．understanding B．experienced C．serious D．demanding
A．taking up B．making up C．picking up D．keeping up
A．suggestion B．decision C．notice D．choice
A．and B．as C．even if D．as if
A．helped B．allowed C．persuaded D．suggested
A．always B．never C．seldom D．almost
A．rather B．but C．for D．therefore
A．promise B．task C．belief D．dream
A．this B．he C．it D．that
A．newspaper B．magazine C．program D．project
A．controlled B．comforted C．reminded D．raised