下面是一篇短文，讲述了如何在现在艰难的经济环境下取得成功的方法。试着在不去了解习语定义的情况下，先阅读该文掌握大意。在第二次阅读时，你可以利用前面的定义来学习新的习语，从而来帮助你理解全文。最后，请完成故事末尾的小测验。

　　The Road to Success

　　成功之路

　　The road to success is paved with failures.

　　成功的道路由失败铺就

　　That's a hard truth, but one that needs to be faced when considering how you are going to makea go of itin life. It's really quite simple, to come out ahead we need to find careers that we can do with all our heart and soul, but that also allow us to come out ahead at the end of the day. Unfortunately, we can't live off the fat of the land although indigenous people did so for thousands of years. We now live in an era that is highly structured and requires us all to make sacrifices as we jockey for position in life.

　　虽然这是一个残酷的事实，但在你思考怎样在人生的道路上取得成功时，你还是需要面对它。将自己全身心投入的事情做好很简单，但是我们也需要笑到最后。不幸的是，虽然原住民们千百年来都是靠土地吃饭，但我们不是这样的。我们现在处于一个高度结构化的时代，需要我们竭尽所能来获取利益。

　　Let's call a spade a spade: It's dog eat dog out there in the real world! There are so many stumbling blocks for young adults these days. From high unemployment to the high price of higher education - not to mention all the red tape we have to deal with - it's hard to succeed! However, with dedication, it's possible to succeed in the long run. In fact, with dedication, we can find something that really appeals to us.

　　直言不讳的说吧：现实世界是很残酷的。现在的年轻人会遇到许多的阻碍。从高失业率到高昂的高等教育费用，更不用提各种繁文缛节了，成功的道路太艰难了!但是，如果我们全身心投入的话，总有一天会获得成功的。事实上，只要我们尽力去做，就会发现许多有趣的事。

　　Once we find our special talent, we can carry the torch of the tradition we have chosen. This might be in education, health care, having your own business, or even in politics! Each of us is capable of doing something that takes everyone's breath away if only for a moment. Getting there might mean that we have to fly by the seat of our pants from time to time, but, as they say, necessity is the mother of invention.

　　当我们发现自己的天赋后，我们就可以将自己选择的事坚持下去。你选择的事业可能是教育、医疗、自主创业、或者甚至是从政!我们每一个人都能够完成使别人眼前一亮的事。为了成功，我们有时得去冒险。但是，就如同他们所说，需要是发明的动力。

　　Along the way, we'll need to figure out how to foot the bill, but on the horizon, we'll have the hope of doing something more purposeful with our time.

　　在通往成功的旅途上，我们需要明白怎样去付出，但眼前我们需要的是拥有完成某事的决心。

　　Idioms Used in the Selection

　　选文中的习语

　　by the seat of one's pants = improvising, handling something as it happens

　　某事发生时凭直觉或即兴发挥来解决

　　call a spade a spade =, to tell the truth about something, even if it is difficult to accept

　　直言不讳

　　carry the torch = continue a tradition

　　坚持传统

　　come out ahead = be profitable or advantageous in the end

　　获利或占上风

　　dog eat dog = extremely competitive

　　极度好斗的

　　fit in = do something that helps you belong to something

　　使自己适应某事

　　foot the bill = pay for something

　　付账

　　in nothing flat = very quickly

　　非常快速

　　in the long run = over a long period of time

　　从长远来看

　　jockey for position = try to get into an advantageous position

　　试图取得有利地位

　　live off the fat of the land = survive based on what nature provides

　　靠自然的供给生活

　　make a go of it = succeed

　　成功

　　on the horizon = coming in the not too distant future

　　即将来临

　　red tape = official forms that you need to take care of to do something

　　完成某事时的繁文缛节

　　stumbling block = a problem or obstacle that blocks your way

　　阻碍你做某事的问题或障碍

　　take someone's breath away = surprise someone with beauty

　　使某人大为惊讶的美

　　with all one's heart and soul = with complete commitment and dedication

　　全身心投入

　　测验

　　We'll _____________ for all your expenses.

　　We see many changes coming ____________.

　　There's a lot of ____________ during the application process.

　　She _______ his __________. He'd never seen such a beautiful woman.

　　We've had a lot of costs on this project, but we'll ______________ in the end.

　　The weekend will be over ____________. Time goes so quickly!

　　Big cities are often _________________, at least as far as business goes.

　　Let's move to the country and ___________________.

　　答案

　　foot the bill

　　on the horizon

　　red tape

　　took his breath away

　　come out ahead

　　in nothing flat

　　dog eat dog

　　live off the fat of the land