Topic 54 Appearance

Lincoln, one of the greatest American presidents, was said to be very bad looking. Once when his rival (соперник) accused him to be a "two sided" person, Lincoln replied by saying to the audience, "If I had another face, would I wear this one?" Now what we remember about Lincoln is his character, his deeds (дела), his contribution to the country, no one would care about what he looked like.

I agree with the title statement because a person's inner quality is much more important than his external appearances. Whether a person looks good or bad cannot be decided by himself. A man's external appearances are born and generally cannot be changed. But everyone can improve his inner quality by his own efforts. By reading books, learning from others and working hard, we can make progress and achieve success. It was said that Napoleon was very short, but he was respected and admired by people as an outstanding military and political leader. It is the dream of every man to have a pretty wife, yet it is also widely acknowledged that (широко признается, что) a beautiful woman does not necessarily equal a good wife.

They attributed their success to hard work. — Они приписали свой успех упорному труду.

Many men would rather choose a woman with a common face than a goodlooking one. Because they know that the virtue (целомудрие, качество) of a woman is more important than her outer appearance (внешний вид). A great deal of couples who go hand in hand (идут рука об руку) for their life attribute their happy marriage to loving the other's inner quality instead of loving a pretty face. In business, a boss would never judge his employees by their external appearances; instead what he concerns would be their capability (способность, возможность), their assiduity (усидчивость), and their performance. A person with bad appearances but good performance will more likely be promoted than another one with good appearances but bad performance.

Above all (главное, прежде всего), if a person has good appearances, he should not rely on them because he will unlikely achieve success if he does not work hard. However, on the other hand, if he looks bad, he should not feel depressed because he can make others respect him through his own efforts.

Topic 55 Should one make an important decision alone?

Decision-making is a common phenomenon each one of us undergoes (проходит, подвергается) in our daily life. Its magnitude varies (Его величина зависит от) from trivial issues like choice of a daily wardrobe to making a crucial (решающий) corporate decision involving millions of dollars. A decision may have its implications ranging from (его последствия, начиная от) a single person to the entire universe. Hence it is very important to making a correct decision. But I have a mixed feeling when it comes to the choice of making a decision collectively or as a single person. I feel that the decision making process cannot have its hard and fast rules but has to be tailor made to suit (индивидуально с учетом, адаптировать, портной) a situation. Hence a decision may have to be personally made or in consultation with others as demanded by the situation.

I would like to analyze the decision-making methodology in its two ramifications (два последствия), one involving personal interests and the other for common issues involving business, political or environmental significance (значение). Every person is different and has the rights to make his own destiny. It is this quality of uniqueness which makes the mankind so special. We are the best judges when it comes to making personal decisions, for no one can understand a person better than himself. There are many things in life such as selection of a life partner, or choosing a career that are specific to the taste and likings (симпатии) of an individual. It is always useful to hear the opinion of our well-wishers regarding the deciding issue. However the individual should take final decision after carefully weighing all options. It not only gives us the self-confidence, but also institutes the responsibility in us to live by our decision.

Things are quite different when it comes to decision making involving business, political or environmental issues. The decision made in these cases has serious consequences than that of the personal issues. It puts at stake the wealth (ставит на карту благосостояние), safety and future of many others directly or indirectly involved in these issues. It is here the concept of teamwork, special knowledge etc come into picture.

When taking decision on a business activity, it is always better to have a brainstorming session of all the involved persons to discuss about the issue. It gives the best possible decision after carefully analyzing all the possibilities, with the concurrence of the team (с согласия команды). Also all the members involved in the decision-making are clear about their individual roles in contributing to the success of the decision.

There are some cases, where expert knowledge and experiences required in taking the decisions. In such cases one can resort to the help (прибегнуть к помощи) of the experts or the consulting agencies for the correct solutions. The decision suggested by the consultants can be expected to be more suitable, since most decisions suggested by the experts/consultants are either by scientific methods or based on a reliable statistical data of the past. Consultants are available in almost all fields such as engineering, finance, law, insurance etc to name a few.

Also when it comes to taking decisions that are of international importance, the governing bodies such as the United Nations Organization insist (настаивать, настойчиво требовать) on a Veto for decisionmaking. This method of decision-making ensures that the decisions are in the interests of the member countries.

Hence going by the above decisions, one can take the liberty to chose by self when it comes to personal issues. However when it involves decisions beyond the individual, one should always be a part of the decision making team constructively facilitating the decision (содействие решению), which lies in the best interests of everyone involved.