每年年初，宣揚(yáng)“新的一年，新的自己”之類的文章和廣告到處皆是，全球群眾對(duì)于自我提升的渴望似乎毫無(wú)減弱跡象。Flag 倒是年年都立，但我們當(dāng)中有多少人能夠堅(jiān)持自己的決心呢？
2012年《臨床心理學(xué)雜志》上的一項(xiàng)研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，盡管幾乎一半的美國(guó)人會(huì)制訂新年決心，但只有8%的人能真正完成。美國(guó)斯克蘭頓大學(xué)的心理學(xué)教授 John C. Norcross 將這種陡降現(xiàn)象歸因于所謂“破堤效應(yīng)”，即在一段自我加強(qiáng)的戒斷期后故態(tài)復(fù)萌時(shí)所體驗(yàn)到的消極認(rèn)知反應(yīng)。
雖然新年決心并非不可能實(shí)現(xiàn)，但如果計(jì)劃不當(dāng)，我們的努力可能會(huì)適得其反。《習(xí)慣的力量》一書(shū)的作者 Charles Duhigg 認(rèn)為，如果你想改掉某個(gè)壞習(xí)慣，那就把它當(dāng)作一個(gè)長(zhǎng)期計(jì)劃，而不是新年決心。他說(shuō)：“相比設(shè)定一個(gè)遙不可及的目標(biāo)，比如跑馬拉松，更重要的是制訂一個(gè)可以立即開(kāi)始行動(dòng)的眼前計(jì)劃。”改變應(yīng)該是日積月累的，不應(yīng)當(dāng)強(qiáng)設(shè)一個(gè)時(shí)間限制。
本篇課程首發(fā)于2019年1月1日，選自 Vogue
The Impossibility Of Keeping New Year's Resolutions
① We all know the feeling. The goals we set ourselves in January, after a month of excess and guilt, are often unachievable – and if somehow you manage to achieve them, you are left wondering "were they ambitious enough?"
② Our intentions are admirable, but the ensuing pressure can set us up for a fall. How many of us manage to keep the resolutions we make?
③ A 2012 study in the Journal of Clinical Psychology found that while almost half of Americans make New Year's resolutions, only eight per cent actually see them through. As a result, unfulfilled New Year's resolutions can fuel our anxiety, adding to this sense of never having done enough.
④ While New Year's resolutions are not impossible to keep, the lengths we go to can be counterproductive. "Much more important than setting a far off goal, like running a marathon, is to set an immediate plan that you can start right away," says Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit.
▍生詞好句
keep New Year's resolutions: 遵循新年決心
set sb. goals / a goal: 為某人設(shè)立目標(biāo)
excess /?ekses, ?k?ses/: n. 過(guò)量；過(guò)度
guilt /ɡ?lt/: n. 愧疚；自責(zé)
unachievable /??n??t?i?v?bl/: adj. 無(wú)法完成的
ambitious /?m?b???s/: adj. 宏大的；艱巨的
admirable /??dm?r?b?l/: adj. 值得稱頌的；極好的
ensuing /?n?sju???/: adj. 隨后的；因而發(fā)生的
set sb. up: 導(dǎo)致；陷害
see sth. through: 讓某事有始有終；完成某事
unfulfilled resolutions /??nf?l?f?ld/: 未完成的決心
fuel /?fju??l/: vt. 加劇；增強(qiáng)
add to: 增加；加強(qiáng)
counterproductive /?ka?nt?pr??d?kt?v, ?ka?nt?rpr??d?kt?v/: adj. 適得其反的；產(chǎn)生相反效果的
far off: 遙遠(yuǎn)的；久遠(yuǎn)的
run a marathon /?m?r?θ?n, ?m?r?θɑ?n/: 跑馬拉松
start right away: 馬上開(kāi)始
▍詞匯拓展
1. keep New Year's resolutions: 遵循新年決心
keep /ki?p/: vt. 保持；遵循
keep one's word 遵守諾言
Keeping New Year's resolutions is a mission impossible.
遵循新年決心是不可能完成的任務(wù)。
resolution /?rez??lu???n/: n. 決議；決心
Making New Year's resolutions is easy, but keeping them is not that easy, sometimes even impossible.
制定新年計(jì)劃很容易，但要堅(jiān)持卻沒(méi)那么容易，有時(shí)甚至是不可能的。
2. set sb. goals / a goal: 為某人設(shè)立目標(biāo)
· 等于 set goals / a goal for sb.
I set a goal for you, and meanwhile, I set myself one too.
我給你定了一個(gè)目標(biāo)，同時(shí)我也給自己定了一個(gè)目標(biāo)。
3. unachievable /??n??t?i?v?bl/: adj. 無(wú)法完成的
· 等于 unattainable
The goal is achievable/attainable.
這個(gè)目標(biāo)是可以實(shí)現(xiàn)的。
The goals are unachievable/unattainable.
這些目標(biāo)是無(wú)法實(shí)現(xiàn)的。
4. ambitious /?m?b???s/: adj. 宏大的；艱巨的
an ambitious engineering project 宏偉的工程項(xiàng)目
5. set sb. up: 導(dǎo)致；陷害
You set me up.
你（竟然）設(shè)計(jì)陷害我。
You set him up on a date.
你給他安排了相親。
6. see sth. through: 讓某事有始有終；完成某事
· see /si?/: vt. 確保
I'll see it through.
我確保這件事情完成。
7. unfulfilled resolutions: 未完成的決心
· fulfilled resolutions: 完成了的決心
8. fuel /?fju??l/: vt. 加劇；增強(qiáng)
fuel our motivation 推動(dòng)我們的積極性
fuel our anxiety 增添我們的焦慮情緒
9. counterproductive /?ka?nt?pr??d?kt?v, ?ka?nt?rpr??d?kt?v/: adj. 適得其反的；產(chǎn)生相反效果的
Sending young offenders to prison can be counterproductive.
把少年犯送進(jìn)監(jiān)獄，會(huì)產(chǎn)生適得其反的效果。
10. far off: 遙遠(yuǎn)的；久遠(yuǎn)的
In those far off days it never entered anyone's mind that a woman could be a prime minister.
在那些久遠(yuǎn)的日子里，絕沒(méi)有人會(huì)想到一個(gè)女人可以當(dāng)上首相。
