又到了一年的畢業(yè)求職季，許多學(xué)生都會為此感到壓力重重，工作的面試結(jié)果成為他們?nèi)粘＝徽勚凶钇毡榈脑掝}。由于擔(dān)心找不到稱心的工作，一些學(xué)生寢食難安。有人甚至還出現(xiàn)了抑郁癥的癥狀。來自北京的知名教育心理專家兼顧問溫方（音譯）建議學(xué)生不要被那些有關(guān)就業(yè)市場不景氣的調(diào)查與報(bào)道所誤導(dǎo)。“失業(yè)率與個(gè)人求職成功概率之間并無關(guān)聯(lián)，”他說道，“一個(gè)人求職成功概率主要由個(gè)人能力決定?！?/p>

Bill： Are you alright Hill？ I couldn’t help but notice that you’ve seemed a bit down in the dumps of late.

Hillary： It’s that obvious huh？

Bill： What’s got you so down？

Hillary： All these stupid job interviews， that’s what. I mean， I’m having trouble sleeping， my 1）appetite’s all but disappeared， and it feels like the weight of the world is on my shoulders.

Bill： Well， I’m not sure if this helps， but you’re not alone.

Hillary： Really， you too？

Bill： Mmm…①Not me， per se， but I read in some job-hunting magazine that three out of every four graduates experience symptoms of stress or even 2）full-fledged depression in the first few years out of school. So it’s quite common.

Hillary： OK. But that doesn’t help much. What else have you heard？

Bill： Have you ever considered lowering your standards a bit， and not aiming so high right out of the gate？

Hillary： Not yet. I know it’d be the 3）prudent choice to lower my expectations， but that’s not how I was brought up. My parents always told me I should shoot for the stars， and not settle for anything less. They said that if I set seemingly 4）unattainable goals of myself， that I’d be able to accomplish more in life and live up to my true potential.

Bill： There is certainly a lot of truth and wisdom in your parents’ words. But you’ve also gotta remember that you’re still young. ②And what you might consider settling for an 5）undesirable job is really just a means to an end. If you want to make your long-term dreams come true， you need experience and a steady income to serve as the foundation for your future career.

Hillary： That’s all well and good， but it’s a 6）moot point if I can’t even land a job at the grassroots level. And all the rejections are starting to take a toll on me. I’ve been getting the 7）jitters both before and after interviews. It’s like I’m overcome with this feeling of dread as soon as I set foot in the office.

Bill： Maybe， next time， you could try some 8）rhythmic breathing or 9）visualization techniques to relax yourself beforehand.③That way， when you go in for the interview， you won’t seem so stressed and on edge when they ask you questions.

Hillary： Does that really work？

Bill： ④It worked for me， but don’t take my word for it. The other day， I heard this 10）renowned psychologist on some show say that clearing all those doubts and gloomy employment figures out of your head is the best way to relieve pre-interview anxiety.

Hillary： That’s actually a great idea. I’ll definitely try it next time. Thank you Bill！

Bill： Don’t mention it. And good luck！

比爾：你還好嗎，希爾？我發(fā)現(xiàn)你最近都很失落。

希拉里：有那么明顯嗎？

比爾：什么事讓你那么沮喪？

希拉里：就是這些可惡的求職面試。我的意思是，我失眠且胃口差，感覺全世界的壓力都在我一個(gè)人身上。

比爾：好吧，我不知道這樣說對你有沒有幫助，但是不只你一個(gè)人這樣。

希拉里：真的嗎？你也是？

比爾：呃……不是我本人，但是我在某本求職雜志上看到，在剛離校的頭幾年，有四分之三的畢業(yè)生都會出現(xiàn)焦慮或者極度沮喪的癥狀。所以這是很正常的。

希拉里：好吧，但這沒有多大幫助。你還聽說了什么？

比爾：你有想過把你的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)降低一點(diǎn)，別一開始就期望那么高嗎？

希拉里：我還不打算這樣。我知道降低我的期待會是謹(jǐn)慎的選擇，但這不是我從小到大接受的教育。我爸媽總是告訴我要銳意進(jìn)取，不要將就任何事情。他們說如果我給自己設(shè)定了一個(gè)看似難以達(dá)到的目標(biāo)，那么我的人生就能得到更多，不辜負(fù)我真正的潛能。

比爾：你父母的話肯定有很多真理和智慧。但是你也必須記著你還年輕。你也許認(rèn)為接受不理想的工作其實(shí)真的只是一種達(dá)到目的的手段。如果你想實(shí)現(xiàn)你的長期理想，你就需要經(jīng)驗(yàn)和穩(wěn)定的收入為你未來的事業(yè)作鋪墊。

希拉里：這樣做是沒錯(cuò)，但是如果我甚至連一份最基層的工作都找不到的話，那么這些事就是無意義的。而一次次被拒已經(jīng)開始折磨我。我在面試前后都會戰(zhàn)戰(zhàn)兢兢。就像我一踏進(jìn)（面試的）辦公室，就有一種難以抗拒的恐懼感。

比爾：也許，下次，你可以在事前試著有節(jié)奏地呼吸或者臆想來放松自己。這樣的話，當(dāng)你進(jìn)去面試，面試官提問的時(shí)候，你就不會看起來那么緊張不安了。

希拉里：那真的有用嗎？

比爾：對我來說有用，但是別信我的話。幾天前我聽到這位著名的心理學(xué)家在某個(gè)節(jié)目上說，將腦子里的所有疑慮和有關(guān)就業(yè)市場不景氣的數(shù)據(jù)清除，就是緩解面試前焦慮的最好方式。

希拉里：這確實(shí)是一個(gè)很好的主意。我下次一定會嘗試的。謝謝你，比爾！

比爾：別客氣。祝你好運(yùn)！

Smart Sentences

① Not me， per se， but I read in some jobhunting magazine that three out of every four graduates experience symptoms of stress or even full-fledged depression in the first few years out of school. 不是我本人，但是我在某本求職雜志上看到，在剛離校的頭幾年，有四分之三的畢業(yè)生都會出現(xiàn)焦慮或者極度沮喪的癥狀。

per se： by or in itself（親身，本身，自身）。例如：

I have nothing against selfie sticks per se， but I deemed the selfie maniacs insane.

我對自拍神器本身并沒有什么意見，只不過我覺得那些自拍狂有點(diǎn)不正常。

② And what you might consider settling for an undesirable job is really just a means to an end. 你也許認(rèn)為接受不理想的工作其實(shí)真的只是一種達(dá)到目的的手段。

a means to an end： sth. that you are not interested in but you do because it will help you to achieve sth. else（達(dá)到目的的方法）。例如：

Sometimes， we seem to forget that technology is only a means to an end.

有的時(shí)候，我們似乎忘了科學(xué)技術(shù)只不過是一種工具罷了。

③ That way， when you go in for the interview， you won’t seem so stressed and on edge when they ask you questions. 這樣的話，當(dāng)你進(jìn)去面試，面試官提問的時(shí)候，你就不會看起來那么緊張不安了。

on edge： tense， nervous， irritable（緊張不安，煩躁）。例如：

You’re always on edge waiting for an important call， because you don’t really know when that phone will ring.在等一個(gè)重要電話時(shí)人總是焦慮不安，因?yàn)檎l也不知道電話什么時(shí)候會響。

④ It worked for me， but don’t take my word for it. 對我來說有用，但是別信我的話。

take sb.’s word for it： believe sb. without checking the facts（相信某人說的是真話）。例如：

If she says she’s sick， you just have to take her word for it.如果她說自己病了，那你也只有相信她的話。