Assignments to chapter 1

Pre-reading instructions

Vocabulary.

Difficult and unfamiliar words and expressions.

expose (v) — to present to view, to uncover;

strive (v) — to try hard, to straggle;

doom (n) — ill fate, ruin or death;

to be doomed to — to be destined to misfortune or destruction;

imply (v) — to mean without stating definitely; to suggest;

self-gratification (n)— pleasing oneself, satisfying one's desires (from gratify (v) — to please);

seductive (adj.)— attractive but wrong, false, phony (from seduce (v)— to tempt, to attract to wrong-doing by persuasion or false promises);

preoccupation (n) — giving attention to nothing but...(from preoccupy (v) — dominate the mind);

inhale (v) — to breathe in;

destination (n) — a place which is set for the end of the journey;

explode (v), (here) — to discredit;

reps (n) — abbreviated from "representatives";

tag (n) — label attached to an object;

to be tagged — to be called;

ads (n) — abbreviated from "advertisements";

fad (n) — a short-lived popular fashion;

City Hall — local government;

to fight the City Hall (figurative) — to fight against the rules and conventions;

to make it happen — to act, to be active and energetic;

to be set in one's ways — to be unable to change one's lifestyle;

to intimidate (v) — to frighten, to threaten;

notoriety (n) — unfavorable reputation;

adulation (n)— excessive admiration, flattery (not necessarily negative);

external (adj.) — outward;

undermine (v) — to weaken or ruin.

From Chapter 1 exposing the success myths

My talking about exposing the success myths may sound as if I'm against the idea of succeeding, but that's not true. What's the purpose of living life unless one strives to be successful?

I don't believe success is something to be possessed, however. Rather, it is the process of becoming all I can and should be. Success has little to do with money, although there is nothing wrong with being a rich success. Some rich people are extremely successful; others are not.

* * *

If you measure your success only by what you purchase or produce, you are doomed to eternal dissatisfaction. There is always someone who can purchase or produce faster or better. There is always someone prettier, more popular, quicker, smarter, stronger.

Why, then, title this book "Being the Best"? What does it mean to be the best? This is a strong value statement. It implies that there are criteria that can help us identify if we are being successful or not. I can say one thing for sure. Many of the traditional values and life principles that have always been associated with success such as truth, morality and integrity, have been replaced with the myths of a value system interested only in self-gratification. Television and other seductive media program us to believe that in whatever arena of life we find ourselves, being the best means there is some kind of standard out there that all of us must reach if we want to be winners. They tell us life is like a big game show, and the prizes one should strive for include the following:

• Instant name recognition

• Wealth

• Constant happiness

• On-going youthful vitality and beauty.

This mythical standard of success is spreading like a cancer through the very fibers of our culture. We need only to look at the preoccupation with material wealth to realize that we are in real danger. But we can't drink or inhale happiness. We can't buy happiness, wear it, drive it, live in it, or travel to it! Happiness is the journey, not the destination. Happiness is rooted in the inner life, the being and living of life – not the outer things, the items we own, the positions we achieve.

What good are fortune and fame if we miss the really valuable things such as love, family, friends, respect, and health, to name only a few?

As one well-to-do invalid was heard to say, "There is nothing special about using a gold bed pan. I'd gladly trade all my possessions for two more healthy years of life".

In this book, I want to explode many of the major myths about attaining success and replace them with basic truths (that will guide you into living successfully no matter what your occupation, training or abilities).

This book – Being the Best – is for everyone. It is for engineers, accountants, computer analysts, sales reps, clerks and cab drivers, as well as people who serve our food or assemble our automobiles. It is for Aunt Martha, Uncle Charlie, and Cousin Jim.

And Being the Best is especially for Mom, Dad, and their kids. This book could easily be tagged, "What we've always wanted our children to learn and remember, but we've sort of forgotten what it was".

We've forgotten because we too easily remember the ads and fads that undermine our real value, potential, and ability. For example, the myth says:

YOU CAN'T FIGHT CITY HALL; YOU'RE A VICTIM OF THE SYSTEM

but the truth is you are never forced to do anything. You can choose your goals, lifestyle, job, and relationships.

Those who are happy to live up to myths, parrot the cliché:

THANK GOD IT'S Friday

but the truth is

THANK GOD IT'S TODAY.

And every day is a new opportunity to reach your goal, make it happen and find real purpose in life.

The myth can set the trap:

CHANGE IS FOR YOUNG,

YOU'RE TOO OLD AND SET IN YOUR WAYS

but the truth is:

YOU CAN REPLACE BAD HABITS WITH GOOD ONES

and you can reshape your life with the right knowledge and positive attitudes.

Unfortunately, it's all so easy to be intimidated by the cynics who teach:

DO IT TO THE OTHERS BEFORE THEY DO IT TO YOU

but the truth is:

DO IT FOR OTHERS AND THEY WILL COME THROUGH FOR YOU.

We tell each other:

TAKE CARE ... DON'T STICK YOUR NECK OUT ... DON'T RISK IT

but the truth is:

FAILURE IS THE FERTILIZER OF SUCCESS

and you can take charge of your life by using your mistakes and disappointments to grow and succeed.

And, of course, there is always the old cliché so often used by coaches and trainers:

NICE GUYS ALWAYS FINISH LAST

but the truth is:

NICE GUYS USUALLY FINISH BEST

because they use discipline, they persevere and make the most of their time to reach their goals.

* * *

I believe there is a way to be happy.

In the following chapters, I want to share essential truths and principles of a lifestyle that will help you run your race at your own speed and win (and remember that no runner is a loser. The real prize in the race is not the first place, but the race itself). Our round table discussion will include the following subjects:

1. We must appreciate and believe in every individual's freedom and inner human worth.

2. It is important to understand individual and collective responsibility to one another.

3. Victory is not gained only at someone's expense. Every victory does not result in a defeat. Being the best is identifying the talent or potential you were born with and using it as fully as possible toward a purpose that makes you feel worthwhile and at the same time benefits others.

4. It is better to earn the trust and respect of one child than to gain notoriety and the adulation of the masses.

5. Unless what you do serves as a healthy role model for your own children, it should not be done at all.

6. In our status-oriented culture, beating others seems more important than being the best by sharing with and caring for others.

7. Success is not a matter of simply gaining financial wealth. (I know I already said that but it's an idea that is worth repeating). I am not against money; in fact, I enjoy having enough of it. But money is like a train or a plane ticket. It will take you nowhere unless you use it. Money is also like a library card. Actually, money and knowledge are very much the same. They mean nothing when you simply collect them.

They mean everything when you employ them, share them, and put them to work.

8. Success is not the problem; the problem is what success does to us. Sharing forces us to consider the needs of others, postponing or giving up some of our own desires.

9. The old definition of being the best, according to external standards set by an ego-driven society, is giving way to a new one. 10) The new view of being the best is based upon God-given, timeless moral principles, which take into account spiritual and ethical values affecting all humankind and the natural world.

Grammar.

1. In the sentence "Television and other seductive mass media program us to believe that in whatever arena of life we find ourselves, being the best means there is some kind of standard out there that all of us must reach if we want to be winners",

program is a verb, the predicate of the sentence, like further in the text: "...title the book", "...parrot the cliche".

2. The sentence "... and the prizes one should strive for include the following" fits the structure NVN in which the former N is modified by an attributive subordinate clause.

2. "We need only to look at the preoccupation with material wealth to realize that we are in real danger". Here the infinitive to realize is used in the function of adverbial modifier of "subsequent events"; it reads: We need only to look... and then we realize...

Comprehension Check

a) Analyze the syntactic structure of the following sentences.

Happiness is rooted in the inner life, the being and living of life— not the outer things, the items we own, the positions we achieve.

I want to explode many of the major myths about attaining success, and replace them with the basic truths (that will guide you into living successfully no matter what your occupation, training or abilities).

Sharing forces us to consider the needs of others, postponing or giving up some of our own desires.

b) Grammar Search.

Find and write down sentences with complex objects.

c) Find in the text the English equivalents of the following:

Богатство не играет большой роли в достижении успеха;

...обречен на постоянную неудовлетворенность;

жизнь похожа на игру;

материальное благосостояние;

счастье на себя не наденешь, его нельзя купить, на нем не поедешь, до него нельзя добраться;

зачем нужны богатство и слава;

бездумно повторять;

непреложная истина;

подскажет вам, как прожить жизнь успешно;

перестроить свою жизнь;

не высовывайся;

придут на помощь в трудной ситуации;

взять в свои руки;

в состязании нет проигравших;

неудача — ключ к успеху;

за счет кого-либо;

нужды других;

непреходящие моральные принципы;

духовные и этические ценности;

отказываться от своих желаний;

стандарты, установленные индивидуалистическим обществом

d) Translate the following sentences or passages into Russian.

"Television and other seductive media program us to believe that in whatever arena of life we find ourselves, being the best means there is some kind of standard out there that all of us must reach if we want to be winners. They tell us life is like a big game show, and the prizes one should strive for include the following: Instant name recognition

Wealth '

Constant happiness

On-going youthful vitality and beauty.

And "Being the Best" is especially for Mom, Dad, and their kids. This book could easily be tagged, "What we've always wanted our children to learn and remember, but we've sort of forgotten what it was". We've forgotten because we too easily remember the ads and fads that undermine our real value, potential and ability.

Those who are happy to live up to the myths, parrot the cliche

THANK GOD IT'S Friday

but the truth is

THANK GOD IT'S TODAY

and every day is a new opportunity to reach your goal, make it happen, and find real purpose in life.

And, of course, there is always the old cliche so often used by coaches and trainers:

NICE GUYS ALWAYS FINISH LAST but the truth is

NICE GUYS USUALLY FINISH BEST because they use discipline, they persevere and make the most of their time to reach their goals.

Victory is not gained only at someone's expense. Every victory does not result in a defeat. Being the best is identifying the talent or potential you were born with and using it as fully as possible toward a purpose that makes you feel worthwhile and at the same time benefits others.

Discussion

1. If you look up the dictionary, some of the definitions you will find of the word "success" are "attainment of what is desired", "the attainment of wealth, fame, etc." What is Denis Waitley's definition? Find the words with which he argues against the conventional interpretation of success.

2. What is the difference between his interpretation of the idea of "being the best" and that of mass media?

3. Who is the book designed for? What does it mean, "It is for Aunt Martha, Uncle Charlie, and Cousin Jim"?

4. What are the six myths Denis Waitley gives as examples of phony values, false conceptions?

5. He says, "I want to explode many of the major myths and replace them with basic truths". What are the "basic truths" the author stands up for?

6. Denis Waitley is deeply convinced that "there is a way to be happy for everyone". What is his conviction based on?

7. Of the subjects Denis Waitley offers for the round table discussion, which one would you personally point out as the closest to you? Explain why.