A mere seven years after my graduation day， I had failed on an epic scale.
An exceptionally short-lived marriage had imploded， and I was jobless， a lone parent， and as poor as it is possible to be in modern Britain， without being homeless. AThe fears my parents had had for me， and that I had had for myself， had both come to pass， and by every usual standard， I was the biggest failure I knew.
That period of my life was a dark one. I had no idea how far the tunnel extended， and for a long time， any light at the end of it was a hope rather than a reality.
So why do I talk about the benefits of failure？Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. BI stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was， and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me.
CHad I really succeeded at anything else， I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged.
I was set free， because my greatest fear had already been realized， and I was still alive， and I still had a daughter whom I adored， and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.
Failure gave me an inner security that I had never attained by passing examinations. Failure taught me things about myself that I could have learned no other way.I discovered that I had a strong will， and more discipline than I had suspected；I also found out that I had friends whose value was truly above rubies.
You will never truly know yourself， or the strength of your relationships， until both have been tested by adversity. Such knowledge is a true gift， for all that it is painfully won， and it has been worth more to me than any qualification I ever earned.
难点重点，一目了然！
长难句解析Sentence Structures
AThe fears my parents had had for me， and that I had had for myself， had both come to pass， and by every usual standard， I was the biggest failure I knew.
父母对我的担心，我对自己的担心，我都经历过了，不论按照何种通常的标准，我知道自己是最大的失败者。
这是一句含有定语从句的复合句。my parents had had for me， and that I had had for myself修饰fears，作为fears的定语。
BI stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was， and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me
我不再开始伪装自己，找到了自我，并开始把所有精力集中于完成唯一一件对我最重要的工作上。
other than 除……之外。例如：She has no close friends other than him.她除了他没有好朋友。
CHad I really succeeded at anything else， I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged.
要是我在其他事情上成功过，我也许就永远不会有这样的决心，在深信真正属于自己的舞台上取得成功。
这是if条件句的虚拟语气，是对过去事件的虚拟。分句中用的是倒装，原句应该是If I really succeeded at anything else。
110.How to Choose如何选择
Track 110. MP3
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总词汇量：0399词汇
每篇好演讲都有灵魂！
今日关键语导读Today"s Key Points
成功就是逐步实现有价值的理想，有多少人为它而不断奋斗，有多少人为它而不断成长，人只要努力就能成功。在成功的道路上，不付出一番心血，那就一定不会有成就。那么在通往成功的道路上该如何选择呢？
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I have listened to you talk about the choices ahead of you， I have heard you articulate your worries about the relationship of success and happiness—perhaps， more accurately， how to define success so that it yields and encompasses real happiness， not just money and prestige.The most remunerative choice， you fear， may not be the most meaningful and the most satisfying.But you wonder how you would ever survive as an artist or an actor or a public servant or a high school teacher？AHow would you ever figure out a path by which to make your way in journalism？Would you ever find a job as an English professor after you finished who knows how many years of graduate school and dissertation writing？
The answer is：you won"t know till you try. But if you don"t try to do what you love—whether it is painting or biology or finance；if you don"t pursue what you think will be most meaningful， you will regret it.Life is long.BThere is always time for Plan B.But don"t begin with it.
I think of this as my parking space theory of career choice， and I have been sharing it with students for decades. Don"t park 20 blocks from your destination because you think you"ll never find a space.Go where you want to be and then circle back to where you have to be.
But what is ultimately most important here is that you are asking the question—not just of me but of yourselves. You are choosing roads and at the same time challenging your own choices.You have a notion of what you want your life to be and you are not sure the road you are taking is going to get you there.This is the best news.Noticing your life， reflecting upon it， considering how you can live it well， wondering how you can do good.
CThe surest way to have a meaningful， happy life is to commit yourself to striving for it. Don"t settle.Be prepared to change routes.Remember the impossible expectations we have of you， and even as you recognize they are impossible， remember how important they are as a lodestar guiding you toward something that matters to you and to the world.The meaning of your life is for you to make.
难点重点，一目了然！
长难句解析Sentence Structures
AHow would you ever figure out a path by which to make your way in journalism？
然而，你们可曾想过，如果你的梦想是新闻业，怎样才能想出一条通往梦想的道路呢？
这是定语从句，介词by放在关系代词which前，起关系副词的作用。make one"s way 前进。例如：He makes his way in life.他在生活中有所成就。
BThere is always time for PIan B.
你总有时间去给自己留“后路”。
PIan B指后路。
CThe surest way to have a meaningful， happy life is to commit yourself to striving for it.
想过上有价值的、幸福的生活，最可靠的途径就是为了你的目标去奋斗。
strive for 努力奋斗。例如：He has been striving for success all his life.他毕生都力争获得成功。
111.There is No“There”There 在那里没有“那里”
Track 111. MP3
朗读指数：◆◆◆
背诵指数：◆◆
难度指数：◆◆◆
总词汇量：0368词汇
每篇好演讲都有灵魂！
今日关键语导读Today"s Key Points
人人都有追求自己梦想的权力，都为了自己的梦想而努力奋斗，实现梦想虽然艰难，但并不能阻止我们追求梦想的脚步。着名编剧和制片人杰里·朱克是如何一步一步最终实现他的梦想的呢？
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障碍词先听为快Words and Expressions
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好英文娓娓动听Words and Expressions