首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
(1) Procrastination comes in many disguises. We might resolve to tackle a task, but find endless reasons to defer it. We mig
(1) Procrastination comes in many disguises. We might resolve to tackle a task, but find endless reasons to defer it. We mig
admin
2021-11-24
32
问题
(1) Procrastination comes in many disguises. We might resolve to tackle a task, but find endless reasons to defer it. We might prioritize things we can readily tick off our to-do list—answering emails, say—while leaving the big, complex stuff untouched for another day. We can look and feel busy, while artfully avoiding the tasks that really matter. And when we look at those rolling, long-untouched items at the bottom of our to-do list, we can’t help but feel a little disappointed in ourselves.
(2) The problem is our brains are programmed to procrastinate. In general, we all tend to struggle with tasks that promise future upside in return for efforts we take now. That’s because it’s easier for our brains to process concrete rather than abstract things, and the immediate hassle is very tangible compared with those unknowable, uncertain future benefits. So the short-term effort easily dominates the long-term upside in our minds—an example of something that behavioral scientists call present bias.
(3) How can you become less myopic about your elusive tasks? It’s all about rebalancing the cost-benefit analysis: make the benefits of action feel bigger, and the costs of action feel smaller. The reward for doing a pestering task needs to feel larger than the immediate pain of tackling it.
(4) To make the benefits of action feel bigger and more real:
(5) Visualize how great it will be to get it done. Researchers have discovered that people are more likely to save for their future retirement if they’re shown digitally aged photographs of themselves. Why? Because it makes their future self feel more real—making the future benefits of saving also feel more weighty. When we apply a lo-fi version of this technique to any task we’ve been avoiding, by taking a moment to paint ourselves a vivid mental picture of the benefits of getting it done, it can sometimes be just enough to get us unstuck. So if there’s a call you’re avoiding or an email you’re putting off, give your brain a helping hand by imagining the virtuous sense of satisfaction you’ll have once it’s done—and perhaps also the look of relief on someone’s face as they get from you what they needed.
(6) Pre-commit, publicly. Telling people that we’re going to get something done can powerfully amplify the appeal of actually taking action, because our brain’s reward system is so highly responsive to our social standing. Research has found that it matters greatly to us whether we’re respected by others—even by strangers. Most of us don’t want to look foolish or lazy to other people. So by daring to say "I’ll send you the report by the end of the day" we add social benefits to following through on our promise—which can be just enough to nudge us to bite the bullet.
(7) Confront the downside of inaction. Research has found that we’re strangely averse to properly evaluating the status quo. While we might weigh the pros and cons of doing something new, we far less often consider the pros and cons of not doing that thing. Known as omission bias, this often leads us to ignore some obvious benefits of getting stuff done. Suppose you’re repeatedly putting off the preparation you need to do for an upcoming meeting. You’re tempted by more exciting tasks, so you tell yourself you can do it tomorrow (or the day after). But force yourself to think about the downside of putting it off, and you realize that tomorrow will be too late to get hold of the input you really need from colleagues. If you get moving now, you have half a chance of reaching them in time—so finally, your gears creak into action.
(8) To make the costs of action feel smaller:
(9) Identify the first step. Sometimes we’re just daunted by the task we’re avoiding. We might have "learnt French" on our to-do list, but who can slot that into the average afternoon? The trick here is to break down big, amorphous tasks into baby steps that you don’t feel as effortful. Even better; identify the very smallest first step, something that’s so easy that even your present-biased brain can see that the benefits outweigh the costs of effort. So instead of "learn French" you might decide to "email Nicole to ask advice on learning French. " Achieve that small goal, and you’ll feel more motivated to take the next small step than if you’d continued to beat yourself up about your lack of language skills.
(10) Tie the first step to a treat. We can make the cost of effort feel even smaller if we link that small step to something we’re actually looking forward to doing. In other words, tie the task that we’re avoiding to something that we’re not avoiding. For example, you might allow yourself to read lowbrow magazines or books when you’re at the gym, because the guilty pleasure helps dilute your brain’s perception of the short-term "cost" of exercising. Likewise, you might muster the self-discipline to complete a slippery task if you promise yourself you’ll do it in a nice cafe with a favorite drink in hand.
(11) Remove the hidden blockage. Sometimes we find ourselves returning to a task repeatedly, still unwilling to take the first step. We hear a little voice in our head saying, "Yeah, good idea, but...no. " At this point, we need to ask that voice some questions, to figure out what’s really making it unappealing to take action. This doesn’t necessarily require psychotherapy. Patiently ask yourself a few "why" questions—"why does it feel tough to do this?" and "why’s that?"—and the blockage can surface quite quickly. Often, the issue is that a perfectly noble competing commitment is undermining your motivation. For example, suppose you were finding it hard to stick to an early morning goal-setting routine. A few "whys" might highlight that the challenge stems from your equally strong desire to eat breakfast with your family. Once you’ve made that conflict more explicit, it’s far more likely you’ll find a way to overcome it—perhaps by setting your daily goals the night before, or on your commute into work.
(12) So the next time you find yourself mystified by your inability to get important tasks done, be kind to yourself. Recognize that your brain needs help if it’s going to be less short-sighted. Try taking at least one step to make the benefits of action loom larger, and one to make the costs of action feel smaller. Your languishing to-do list will thank you.
Which rhetorical device is used in " ...nudge us to bite the bullet" in Para.6?
选项
A、Personification.
B、Metaphor.
C、Hyperbole.
D、Contrast.
答案
B
解析
语义修辞题。根据题干提示定位至第六段最后一句。结合上下文可知这句话要表达的意思为:告诉别人自己会按时完成任务使我们的承诺增加了社会价值,这足以敦促我们去硬着头皮努力完成任务。由此可见,作者是用bullet表示难以完成的任务,因此这里使用的是metaphor“暗喻”手法,故B为答案。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/CeIK777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
NoEnglishmanbelievesinworkingfrombooklearning.Hesuspectseverythingnew,anddislikesit,unlesshecanbecompelledb
(1)Thepoundingrainbeganinthemiddleofthenight.ThepeopleofJackson,Ohioawoketothesoundthenwentbacktosleep.T
Humanityusesalittlelessthanhalfthewateravailableworldwide.Yetoccurrencesofshortagesanddroughtsarecausingfami
PASSAGETWOWhatmessagedostatisticsonearningsaftergraduationandcollegerankingsconvey?
ThingstobeTaughtinEverySchoolI.Introduction:Importanceofstudents’abilitytodealwiththerealworld.A.Speaker’so
StoryTellingI.StatusofstorytellingA.Inthepastprovidedcultural【T1】______【T1】______providedmoraleducation
A、Partiallyincluded.B、Alreadycovered.C、Partiallystamped.D、Alreadyexcluded.B在谈到邮资的问题上,女士说到,邮局会出售挂号信封,且这些信封已经包含了first-clas
(1)IwasjustaboywhenmyfatherbroughtmetoHarlemforthefirsttime,almost50yearsago.WestayedattheHotelTheresa,
(1)Proponentsofdifferentjazzstyleshavealwaysarguedthattheirpredecessors’musicalstyledidnotincludeessentialchara
A、Theywereablueprintbutnotcomplete.B、Theycontainedtoomanydetailsaboutfunding.C、Theydidnotincludeindigenousloa
随机试题
农民画[河北2018]
不良
患者男性,60岁,心尖区听到舒张期隆隆样杂音,同时可听到收缩中晚期喀喇音,该患者可能是
“衣食住行”是人生最基本的需要。居住往往是其中实现的期间最长、所需资金数额最大的一项。根据规划目标的不同,居住规划主要分为3类,下列不属于这三类的是( )。
某市物资贸易公司总经理张某(系该市人大代表,住该市A区)与其公司职工李某(住该市B区)在该市C区的一家饭店吃饭。席间与该饭店服务员(住该市D区)发生争执。张某与李某将该服务员殴打造成重伤。公安机关将张某、李某实施刑事拘留,并报请检察院批准子以逮捕,侦查终
根据企业所得税法律制度的规定,企业缴纳的税金中,不得在计算企业应纳税所得额时扣除的是()。
人际交往必须以一定的___________为交往工具才有可能实现,___________和___________是主要的人际交往工具。
面对具有威胁性的突发事件,恐慌心理是人们进行自我保护的本能反应。但是,过度的恐慌反应,常常会导致比事件危害本身更为严重的消极后果。经验显示,在突发性公共事件中,许多损失可能不是事件本身造成的,而是由人们的过度恐慌导致的。这段文字意在强调(
Access中通配符“_”的含义是
说明:根据下列内容写一封邀请信。1.写信日期:2015年2月13日2.邀请人:张建国,东方集团公司人力资源部经理3.被邀请人:人事部门经理4.事由:召开人事管理研讨会5.主要内容:研讨新形势下人事管理的新模式和新方法6.主题报告人:滨海大学管
最新回复
(
0
)