閱讀助人長進

文/魯希耶·潘德 譯/鄭秀君

Reading—A practice that has been encouraged ever since we were kids.From watching reruns after reruns of cartoons on TV to insisting on spending all our time playing outside, we sure came up with a lot of excuses not to read as children.The ones who did read a lot were considered “studious”.But as we grew up, we realised the habit of reading is a train to catch as soon as you can! A lot of us have grown up to wish that this habit had always been a part of our lives.And if you’re still looking for reason and motivation to read, then here’s my perspective on this wonderful practice.

閱讀乃是我們從小就被鼓勵去養成的習慣。小時候，不管是收看電視上一次次重播的動畫片，還是執意一天到晚在外面玩耍，我們為了逃避閱讀，的確想出了許多借口。大家會覺得那些實實在在讀了很多書的小朋友“勤奮好學”。但是，隨著我們漸漸長大，我們意識到閱讀的習慣是一趟應該盡早趕上的列車！我們很多人長大后才后悔——真希望閱讀的習慣一直是自己人生中的一部分。如果你還在尋找閱讀的理由和動力，那么以下是我對這一美好習慣的看法。

2Yes, reading improves your vocabulary, grammar and general grasp on language—This is something everyone reiterates about reading books.But its outcome and the change it brings from within is far deeper.

2沒錯，閱讀擴大你的詞匯量、提高你的語法能力、增強你對語言的總體把握。這是每個人在談到閱讀時都會反復提及的。但是，閱讀的作用以及它給人帶來的由內向外的改變要深刻得多。

Helps you stay focused

3Reading a book needs you to pay attention to every detail and movement in the storyline.If one zones out for a few minutes, it takes time to get back on track with what’s going on.Whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, you’re following the stream of thought of someone else, the writer—And that requires you to stay focused through it all.Isn’t this much like the professional process?Losing sight of tasks for the day, or deviating from goals for life—Faltering concentration is something we’ve all experienced, and understandably so!The key to achieving success, whether professional or personal is to keep your eyes on your objective and to know when that objective must change.And reading teaches you this much needed ability to pay attention to detail.

提升專注度

3閱讀一本書需要你留意故事情節中的每個細節和每步發展。一旦走神幾分鐘，就要再花時間回到故事的正軌上。不管你讀的是虛構類還是非虛構類作品，你畢竟是跟著別人（也就是作者）的思路走，所以你必須全程心無旁騖。這和我們做事很像，不是嗎？小到忘記當天的任務，大到偏離人生目標，注意力不集中是我們每個人都經歷過的，也是可以理解的！取得成功的關鍵在于緊盯著你的目標，該調整時就調整，對于事業和生活來說都是如此。閱讀恰恰能教會你注重細節這個至關重要的能力。

Sharpens the mind

4When you read a book, you go on a journey with the characters.You remember every place your favourite character has been, people they’ve met and all the events that have taken place in their lives.Being truly invested in the journey you are following leads the mind to grasp quicker and hold on for longer.This ability to store detailed information, remember facts and of course make connections and observe patterns as you read, ultimately leads to a sharper, more agile brain.This doesn’t just augment memory but also enhances the ability to observe and strategise with learnings from past experience and human behaviour.

活躍思維

4閱讀一本書時，你與故事中的人物一起踏上旅途。你記得你最喜歡的人物去過的每個地方、他們遇到的人以及發生在他們人生中的一切重大事件。當你全心投入這趟旅途，你的大腦會理解得更快，記得更久。閱讀時，在頭腦中儲存詳細的信息，記住每個情節，當然還有建立各種人物關系，觀察規律，這些本領最終能讓你的頭腦更敏銳、思維更敏捷。這樣一來，不僅記憶力變得更好了，同時，觀察分析和鑒古知今的能力也會得到提升。

Builds empathy and cultural understanding

5People from all over the world come together to contribute to literature with their own style, views and opinions.Be it fiction or non-fiction, every writer has a different perspective and background.When we read a book from an author from the other corner of the world, we’re not just reading a story,we’re stepping into a world of different cultures, traditions and values.Books are oceans of knowledge.There’s something to learn in almost every book you’ll ever pick up, whether you like the book or not.Just like Daniel Goleman said inEmotional Intelligence:Why It Can Matter More Than IQ—“In a very real sense, we have two minds,one that thinks and one that feels.” With all these insights into different perspectives and cultures, empathy and a sense of solidarity with the world builds rapidly.

增強同理心，增進文化理解

5來自世界各地的人們一起用自己特有的風格、見解和看法為文學做貢獻。虛構類作品也好，非虛構類也罷，每個作家都有不一樣的觀點和背景。當我們閱讀一本書，而作者來自世界上的另一個角落，那我們不僅僅是在閱讀一個故事，還同時走進了一個擁有不同文化、不同傳統和不同價值觀的世界。書是知識的海洋。你拿起的幾乎每一書（不管你喜不喜歡），都能讓你有所收獲。正如丹尼爾·戈爾曼在《情商：為什么情商比智商更重要》一書中所說：“實際上我們有兩個腦子，一個用來思考，一個用來感覺。”當我們對不同觀點和文化有了這些認識，我們的共情能力就會迅速提高，一種和世界緊密聯結的感覺就會快速產生。

Unleashes creativity

激發創造力

6閱讀一本書時，你會想象書中描寫的每個場景。從達西先生和伊麗莎白·貝內特參加的幾場華麗舞會，到麥克白與三個女巫的會面，正是我們的創造力幫助我們想象每個細節。你讀的每一個故事都會給予你一種看問題的新視角，比如莎士比亞的戲劇，再比如《相約星期二》里的情節——想象一下莫里在看臺上笑問那支球隊：“第二又怎么樣？”閱讀非虛構類作品能教你許多即學即用的生活經驗，它們在激發創新力和創造力上也功不可沒。閱讀把你帶到你從未見過的地方。這種想象力和橫向思維甚至會給你的事業帶來意想不到的幫助。這些只是閱讀帶來的美好變化中的一部分，這些變化會帶來無限可能。馬歇爾·古德史密斯在他的《自律力》一書中說：“任何人都能改變，但首先他得想要改變。”閱讀時，你會開始渴望成長、渴望在生活和工作中變得優秀。付出一點時間鍛煉你的大腦，這同時能讓你更快取得成功。保持閱讀就是保持進步。好了，現在我們再挑本書來讀

怎么樣？ □

6When you read a book, you imagine every scenario described in the book.From the grand parties that Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet attended to Macbeth meeting 3 witches, it was our creativity that helped us imagine every detail.Everything you read gives you a different perspective.Be it a Shakespearean tale or picturing Morrie smiling from the bleachers1bleacher（運動場的）露天看臺。, as he asks the college team, “Why, what’s wrong in being Number Two?” inTuesdays with Morrie.While reading non-fiction can teach you a lot of immediately applicable life lessons, non-fiction deserves its fair share of credit in how it develops innovation and creativity.Reading takes you places you’ve never seen.And the imaginative, lateral thinking2lateral thinking 水平思考，橫向思維（即用想象力尋求解決問題的新方法）。ability can help you even professionally in ways you might not have thought of.These are just a few brilliant changes reading brings, opening countless doors of possibility.Marshall Goldsmith said in his book,Triggers, “Anybody can change,but they have to want to change”.The desire to grow and excel in life and at work gets a kick start when you read.Dedicate some time to exercise your brain and it simultaneously revs up to pursue success.To keep reading is to keep growing.So, how about we pick another book? ■