He replied, "Really?"
He reached under the table and pulled out a 5)bucket of 6)gravel, then dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the space between the big rocks.
He asked the group once more, "Is the jar full?"
By this time the class was on to him. "Probably not," one of them answered.
"Good!" he replied.
He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, "Is the jar full?"
"No!" the class shouted.
Once again he said, "Good!"
Then he grabbed a 7)pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the 8)brim. Then he looked at the class and asked, "What is the point of this illustration?"
One eager student raised her hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things in!"
"Good answer, but no," the speaker replied, "that's not my point. The truth this illustration teaches us is: If you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all. What are the 'big rocks" in your life? In my life they are my children... my wife... my loved ones... my education... my dreams... charities and worthy causes... teaching or mentoring others... doing things that I love... time for myself... my health... Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you'll never get them in at all."
If you 9)sweat the little stuff then you'll fill your life with little things to worry about that don't really matter, and you'll never have the real quality time you need to spend on the big, important stuff (the big rocks).
大石块
一天，一名时间管理专家在对一群学习商业的学生讲话时，为了论证一个论点，他用了一个令学生们永远难忘的表述方式。
站在这群出类拔萃的学生面前，他说：“来，做个小测试。”他拿出一个一加仑的广口玻璃瓶，放在他们面前的桌上。
接着他拿出一小堆拳头大小的石块，小心翼翼、一块一块地放进瓶子里。等石块装满到瓶子，再也塞不下时，他问：“瓶子满了吗？”
大家都说：“满了。”
他问∶“真的满了吗？”
他伸手到桌下提出一桶碎石，将碎石倒进瓶子里，摇晃瓶子让碎石漏进石块的间隙里去。
他又问学生：“瓶子装满了吗？”
这时学生们领悟过来了。“可能还没满吧!”一个学生回答说。
“好！”他说道。
他伸手从桌底下拎出了一桶沙，把沙往瓶子里倒，沙子塞满了石块与碎石的缝隙，他又一次问：“满了吗？”
“没满！”全班学生大声回答。
再一次，他说道：“好!”
然后他又拿出一大罐水往瓶子里倒，一直倒到水升到瓶口高。他看着学生们问：“这个演示说明了什么？”
一个学生急忙举手说：“说明了：不管时间安排得多紧，只要你想办法，总是可以见缝插针地做更多的事情。”
“回答得好，不过，”专家说：“这不是我想说的。这个例子告诉我们一个事实：如果你不是先放大石块，以后它们就永远摆不进去。你生活中的“大石块”是什么呢？在我的生活中，那就是我的孩子、妻子、所爱的人、学习、梦想、善行和有价值的事业、教导他人、做我喜欢做的事、留给自己的时间、健康，等等。要记住，必须先放“大石块”，否则它们永远放不进去。”
如果你奔忙于琐事，那么这些无关紧要的小事就会充斥你的生活，让你成天操心，你就永远没办法腾出有质量的时间来处理你的大事和要事（大石块）。
注释:
1) drive home 使人理解
2) illustration n. 例证
3) gallon n. 加仑
4) Mason jar有金属螺盖的玻璃瓶
5) bucket n. 水桶
6) gravel n. 石砾
7) pitcher n. 带柄的大水罐
8) brim n. （杯，碗的）边
9) sweat v. 费力地操作
★★《2003年07月号-第41期-Disc02-04》★★
The Millionaire next door
Twenty years ago we began studying how people become wealthy. 1)Initially, we did it just as you might imagine: by surveying people in so-called up-scale neighbourhoods across the country. In time, we discovered something odd: Many people who live in expensive homes and drive 2)luxury cars do not actually have much wealth. Then, we discovered something even odder: Many people who have a great deal of wealth do not even live in up-scale neighbourhoods.
What is so 3)profound about these discoveries? Just this: Most people have it all wrong about wealth in America. Wealth is not the same as income. If you make a good income each year and spend it all, you are not getting wealthier. You are just living high. Wealth is what you 4)accumulate, not what you spend. How do you become wealthy? Here, too, most people have it wrong. It is seldom luck or 5)inheritance or advanced degrees or even intelligence that enables people to amass fortunes. Wealth is more often the result of a lifestyle of hard work, perseverance, planning, and most of all, self-discipline.
Ask the average American to define the term "Wealthy", most would give the same definition found in Webster's. "Wealthy" to them refers to people who have an 6)abundance of material 7)possessions. We define "wealthy" differently. In this program we define the 8)threshold level of being wealthy as having a net worth of a million dollars or more. Based on this definition, only 3.5 million or 3.5% of the 100 million households in America, are considered wealthy. About 95% of millionaires in America have a net worth of between one million and ten million dollars. Much of the discussion in this program centers on this 9)segment of the population. Why focus on this group? Because this level of wealth can be attained in one generation. It can be attained by many Americans.
Another way of defining whether or not a person, household or family is wealthy, is based on one's expected level of net worth. A person's income and age are strong 10)determinants of how much that person should be worth. In other words, the higher one's income, the higher one's net worth is expected to be, assuming one is working and not retired. Similarly, the longer one is 11)generating income, the more likely one will accumulate more and more wealth. So higher-income people who are older should have accumulated more wealth than lower-income producers who are younger. For most people in America with annual realized incomes of $50,000 or more, and for most people 25 to 65 years of age, there is a 12)corresponding expected level of wealth. Those who are significantly above this level can be considered wealthy in relation to others in their income-slash-age 13)cohort.
Whatever your age, whatever your income, how much should you be worth right now? Here's a simple rule of thumb for 14)computing your expected net worth: 15)Multiply your age times your realized 16)pretax annual 17)household income from all sources except inheritances; divide by ten. This, less any inherited wealth, is what your net worth should be. For example, if Mr. Anthony O. Duncan is 41 years old, makes $143,000 a year, and has investments that return another $12,000, he would multiply $155,000 by 41. That equals $6,355,000. Dividing by 10, his net worth should be $635,500. Given your age and income, how does your net worth match up?
Where do you stand along the wealth 18)continuum? If you're in the top 19)quartile for wealth accumulation, you are a P.A.W. or 20)Prodigious Accumulator of Wealth. If you are in the bottom quartile, you are a U.A.W. or Under-Accumulator of Wealth. Are you a P.A.W., a U.A.W., or just an A.A.W. - Average Accumulator of Wealth?
隔壁家的百万富翁
20年前，我们开始研究人们的致富秘诀。我们最初的做法估计你也知道，就是调查全国各地住在所谓“高级住宅区”里的人。时过不久，我们就发现了些怪事：许多住在高级住宅区里、开着豪华小车的人实际上并不富有。随后，我们又发现了更奇怪的事∶许多富豪并不住在高级住宅区里。
这些发现到底有什么深远意义呢？那就是：许多美国人对财富的理解完全错了。财富与收入不同。如果你每年的收入很高，却把它花得精光，那你并没有富起来。你只是过着高水准的生活罢了。财富是指你的累积，花销掉的不算是财富。怎么样才能富起来呢？这点上，大多数人又理解错了。让人积累起财富的不是靠运气、遗产、高学历和智力。财富更多靠的是勤奋工作、持之以恒和计划，其中，最重要的是要自律。
让寻常的美国人来给“财富”下定义，大部分人会给出《韦氏词典》里的解释，“财富”对于他们来说，是指拥有大量的物质财产。我们对“财富”则另有定论。在调查中，我们将“财富”的门槛定为拥有100万美元以上的净财产。在美国，合乎这个标准的只有350万户，也就是说在一亿户人家里只有3.5%的比率可算得上是“富有”的。美国的百万富翁中大约有95%的人拥有的净财产介于100万到1000万美元之间。我们的调查主要针对这一人群进行调查。为什么要以这一人群为重点呢？因为这个标准的财富可由一代人来实现。许多美国人都能做得到。
鉴定一个人、一户人家、一个家庭是否富有的另一种办法，是看他们有望挣多少净财产。一个人的收入与年龄是决定一个人身家几何的重要因素。换句话，假设某人一直工作而不退休，那么他的收入越高的话，他的净财产就会越高。同样地，一个人创造收入的时间越长，他就有可能积攒下更多财富。因此，高收入年龄较长的人应比低收入年纪较轻的人富有。对于许多实际年收入在5万美元以上、年龄在25岁到65岁之间的美国人，可望拥有与此水平相当的财富。那些财富收入远远高出这个标准的人相对于他们那一个年龄收入层来说，就可视为“富有”。
如果不算年龄，不算收入，怎么判断你目前的身家是多少呢？用一个简单的公式，一下就能算出你能大概挣到多少财产：用你的年龄乘以全家一年各种渠道所得的税前收入，不包括遗产，然后除以10。不包括继承来的任何财产在内，就得出你应有的净财产值。举个例子：安东尼·都肯先生，41岁，年收入是143000美元，另有投资收益12000美元，那么他要用155000乘以41得出6355000美元，用6355000除以10，他的净资产值应为635500美元。按你的年龄及收入，你的净财产应该等于多少呢？
在财富各类集合中，你究竟处于哪个位置？如果在财富累积的四分位数中，你位于顶端，那你就是巨富（PAW）；如是位于底部，你就是财富欠积累（UAW）。你是巨富呢还是欠积累，或者是中等积累（AAW）？
注释:
1) initially adv. 最早
2) luxury a. 奢华的
3) profound a. 深刻的
4) accumulate v. 积聚
5) inheritance n. 遗产，遗传
6) abundance n. 丰富
7) possessions n. 财产
8) threshold n. 门槛，界限
9) segment n. 段，节
10) determinant n. 决定因素
11) generate v. 产生
12) corresponding a. 相应的
13) cohort n. 一群
14) compute v. 计算，处理
15) multiply v. 乘
16) pretax a. 扣除税前的
17) household n. 家庭
18) continuum n. 闭联集
19) quartile n. 统计学的四分位数
20) prodigious a. 巨大的
★★《2003年07月号-第41期-Disc02-05》★★
Speaking Sparkles (3)
Chevy Chase: Good evening, Hollywood 1)phonies.
Billy Crystal: Welcome to the Oscars, or as it's known tonight, 2)"Cape Fear".
Whoopi Goldberg: This is magic night! This is Oscar Night! And the world is watching.
Richard Pryor: This show is going out to 75 million people. None of them are black.
Johnny Carson: Tonight, the winners all thank the little people... they've stepped on all year.
Roslyn Russel: I am Robin Russel and I am live.
Robin Williams: Hello, my name is Robin Leach! Welcome once again to the "Lifestyles of the Rich and Nervous"!
Sammy Davis, Jr.: They gave me the wrong envelope. Wait till the 3)NAACP hears about this.
Bob Hope: Don't you miss dancing?
Fred Astaire: I sit in my rocking chair and cry all day long.
Dudley Moore: Good evening. My pants are killing me.
Dave Letterman: I've had to take a 4)pee since 6:15. You don't hear me 5)whining about it.
Miss Piggy: I am not Oscar material.
Johnny Carson: Oscar Meyer, maybe...
Chevy Chase: You don't want people coming out of here and winging things. They don't want us to 6)ramble on.
妙语连珠
切维·查丝：各位好莱坞大骗子，你们好！
比利·克里斯托：欢迎收看奥斯卡--又名“海角惊魂夜”。
胡比·戈德伯格：这是一个魔幻夜！这是奥斯卡之夜！全球都在收看。
理查德·普里奥：有7500万人收看这个节目，只可惜他们都不是黑人。
强尼·卡森：得奖者今晚要感谢这一年来……自己践踏过的无名小卒。
罗沙琳·罗素：我是罗宾·罗素，我还健在。
罗宾·威廉姆斯：大家好，我是罗宾·利奇！欢迎再次来到“富豪及紧张人士生活方式之夜”！
小萨米·戴维斯：他们给错了我信封，听到这个有色人种促进会肯定不会罢休。
鲍伯·霍普：你不想跳跳舞吗？
弗雷德·阿斯泰尔：我坐在安乐椅上流了一天的眼泪。
达德利·摩尔：晚上好。我的裤子简直要了我的命。
戴维：莱特曼：我六点一刻就想去方便。可我没抱怨过一句。
皮吉小姐：我可不是奥斯卡的料子。
强尼·卡森：也许是当奥斯卡·梅耶的料子吧……
切维·查丝：谁都不想在台上语无伦次。他们不希望大家胡诌乱侃。
注释:
1) phony n. 假冒者，伪造者
2) 1991年罗伯·德尼路主演的《海角惊魂》
3) NAACP: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (美国) 全国有色人种促进协会
4) pee n. 小便
5) whine v. 抱怨，发牢骚
6) ramble on 闲聊，漫谈
★★《2003年07月号-第41期-Disc02-06》★★
Opening Remarks at The Oscar
Thank you. Well, I'm glad they 1)cut back on all the 2)glitz. You probably noticed there was no fancy red carpet tonight. That'll send them a message!
Now, I am so excited to be back. I didn’t host the show last year because I was - how do you say it - not asked. But, everybody has been so supportive of my hosting this year.
Writers, directors, actors. If we’re stuck here tonight and we run out of food, that’s the order of whom we eat.
Now, before we go any further, I have a 3)confession to make. Just before I came out here, I 4)licked all the Oscars.
And many great stars are here tonight: Olivia DeHavilland is here. We have Kirk Douglas. And Margaret O’Brien. Mickey Rooney is here. Now, not a lot of people know this, but Mickey Rooney is the same age as the earth. At one point, Mickey Rooney was the biggest box office star in all the 38 states. Mickey, I salute you! Where are you, Mickey? Hey! Hey! Mickey, I’m sorry we couldn’t get you a better seat but Vin Diesel is here. Oh good. Mickey is 5)heckling me. Now today’s movie stars make millions of dollars but Mickey Rooney was paid in shiny beads.
Barbara Streisand is here, who's just here tonight to enjoy the show and direct. And there's Nicole Kidman. Now here's an interesting fact about Nicole Kidman - not a lot of people know this - Nicole Kidman has worn a fake nose in every movie she's ever made, except The Hours. Looking good, Nicole! Halle Berry is here. And notice, I am standing exactly 22 feet away from Halle Berry in 6)compliance with the court order.
Tonight, Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep made Oscar history. It was backstage and it wasn't pretty. It's a big year for Jack; he also got in a hot tub with Kathy Bates. But hey, who hasn't?
There was a lot of big movies this year. Now I loved Lord of the Rings. That was a great download! - Sorry. Theatrical experience. Now, another big movie, Chicago. Now, I'm just being honest here, Miramax stopped at nothing to make sure Chicago was nominated. Now here's what they did, and you tell me if you think this is fair. They made a really good movie that everybody likes.
Now there were a lot of cutbacks this year in the movie industry - lots of layoffs - and now they're talking about reducing actors' salaries. For God's sake, are we insane? Things are financially tough all over, so right now you should do what Tom Cruise does. At the end of each week, he takes a million dollars and he just puts it away -- like it's not even there -- whether it's been a good week or a bad week, and then at the end of the year, you've got a little 7)cushion.
Oh, sorry. I thought I saw a non-celebrity.
Remember, there are no losers here tonight, but we're about to change all that. I should tell you that if you are a winner and your speech goes on too long, first you'll see flashing lights, and then the band will start to play, and then you'll feel something stick in your neck, and I would suggest that you walk toward the light; to your loved ones who are saying, "Come, you big winner, you!"
奥斯卡开幕致辞
谢谢。我很高兴地看到主办方让本次颁奖晚会回归朴实。你们也许都注意到，就连传统的红地毯都被取消了。这很说明问题！
可以回来当司仪我感到很兴奋。去年我没有份儿主持，因为……怎么说呢，因为没人找我。不过大家都很支持我今年来当司仪。
编剧、导演、演员--万一我们今晚被困在这里，而且绝粮的话，我们就会按这个次序吃掉他们。
现在，在继续开幕辞之前，我要坦白一件事：就在我上台之前，我把所有的奥斯卡奖座都舔了一遍。
今晚许多大明星都来了：奥莉维亚·德哈维兰在这里。还有柯克·道格拉斯、玛格丽特·奥布赖恩。米奇·龙尼也来了。米奇·龙尼与地球同岁，这事儿没多少人知道。值得一提的是他的影片曾经在美国38个州创造了最惊人的票房纪录。米奇，我要向你致敬！你在哪儿，米奇？嘿！嘿！米奇，很抱歉，我们不能为你安排一个更好的座位，因为那个座位坐的是温·迪塞尔。噢，很好，米奇对我嗤之以鼻。今天的电影明星进帐百万，而米奇·龙尼当时的酬劳是亮珠子。
芭芭拉·史翠珊来了，她来是为了……她来欣赏颁奖典礼和当导演。妮歌·基曼也在这里。这儿有一个关于妮歌·基曼的没多少人知道的趣闻，她以前出演的电影里戴的全是假鼻子，除了《此时此刻》这部以外。妮歌，你的假鼻子看起来好漂亮！哈莉·贝瑞就坐在那里，请留意！我与她的距离正好22英尺--完全符合法院规定的距离。
今晚杰克·尼科尔森和梅丽尔·斯特里普创造了奥斯卡之最。这事发生在后台，不那么好看。对于杰克来说这是非常重要的一年; 他还和嘉茜·比丝一起洗热水浴。不过，谁未试过呢？
今年有很多部大片。我喜欢《魔戒二部曲》，从电脑上下载太爽了！--抱歉，应该说剧院效果真是太爽了。另一部是《芝加哥》，坦白地说，米拉麦克斯电影公司不惜一切地确保《芝加哥》获得提名。他们是这么做的，大家评一评这是否公平--他们拍了一部人人都爱看的电影。
电影业今年较为萧条，很多人被裁掉，现在他们考虑要削减演员的薪酬。天啊！难道是我们疯了吗？现在各地的经济形势恶劣，所以大家都应该向汤姆·克鲁斯学习。每个周末他都会收起一百万美元，就好像根本没有过这笔钱一样，不管那一周他赚的多还是少，到年尾都会有一笔积蓄。
哦，抱歉，我以为我见到一个“非名人”。
请记着，今晚没有输家，但是我们很快要开始改变这形势。如果你们有幸得奖而致谢辞过长，那么你首先会看到闪光灯，接着乐队会开始奏乐，然后你会感到颈部有点刺痛，我建议你朝光亮处走去; 走向你的至亲好友，他们会说：“过来吧，大赢家就是你！”
注释:
1) cut back on 大量削减某事物
2) glitz n. 浮华，诱惑力，吸引力
