So,it seems to me that desires to evolve are universal and so are symbiotic relationships that lead to the evolution of the whole to occur via the pursuit of individuals’ self-interests. However, what differentiates man from other species is man’s greater ability to learn. Because we can learn, we can evolve more and faster than other species.

想进化是很正常的，追逐个人利益时，与社会的共生关系会推动整个社会进化，这也是很普遍的。人类与别的物种的不同之处在于人类善于学习。我们会学习，所以我们比别的物种进化得快。

I also believe that all things in nature have innate attributes that are both good and bad, with their goodness and their badness depending on what they are used for. For example, the thorns on a rose bush, the stinger on a bee, the aggressiveness of a lion, the timidity of a gazelle are all both good and bad, depending on their applications. Over time, nature evolves toward the right balance through the process of natural selection—e.g., an overly aggressive animal will die prematurely, as will an overly timid animal. However, because man has the ability to look at himself and direct his own change, individuals have the capacity to evolve.

所有事物都有其内在的固有属性，都有好与坏两面，这取决于用途。比方说玫瑰上的刺，蜜蜂身上的刺，狮子的攻击性，小羚羊的怯弱，这些都既是好的也是不好的，取决于在什么地方应用。攻击性过强或太胆小的动物都可能还没发育完全就死掉了。而人类有能力审视自己，指导自身变化，有能力进行进化。

Most of us are born with attributes that both help us and hurt us, depending on their applications, and the more extreme the attribute, the more extreme the potential good and bad outcomes these attributes are likely to produce. For example, highly creative, goal- oriented people who are good at imagining the big picture often can easily get tripped up on the details of daily life, while highly pragmatic, task-oriented people who are great with the details might not be creative. That is because the ways their minds work make it difficult for them to see both ways of thinking. In nature everything was made for a purpose, and so too were these different ways of thinking. They just have different purposes. It is extremely important to one’s happiness and success to know oneself—most importantly to understand one’s own values and abilities—and then to find the right fits. We all have things that we value that we want and we all have strengths and weaknesses that affect our paths for getting them.The most important quality that differentiates successful people from unsuccessful people is our capacity to learn and adapt to these things.

我们大多数人生来具备的特质，即可能会帮助我们，也可能伤害到我们，根据用途而有别。程度越极端，特质带来的积极或消极影响就相对应越大。例如，创造力很强、目标很清晰，善于把握大局的人可能就会在生活细节上吃亏。而重实务、关注具体任务、能完美处理细节的人可能不怎么有创造力。因为我们思维的特性，很难两者兼顾。事事都存之有理，不同的思维方式也存之有理，因为要服务于不同的结果目的，这对于个人幸福感和自身了解极为重要，对于理解自身价值和能力最重要，这样才能进一步找到合适的定位。人人都有珍视之物，都有渴望之事，都有影响我们实现梦想的优缺点。区分成功人士与平庸之辈最重要的品质就是学习能力和适应能力。

Unlike any other species, man is capable of reflecting on himself and the things around him to learn and adapt in order to improve. He has this capability because, in the evolution of species man’s brain developed a part that no other species has—the prefrontal cortex. It is the part of the human brain that gives us the ability to reflect and conduct other cognitive thinking. Because of this, people who can objectively reflect on themselves and others —most importantly on their weaknesses are—can figure out how to get around these weaknesses, can evolve fastest and come closer to realizing their potentials than those who can’t.

和别的物种不同，人类能够进行自身反思，对周遭事物展开思考，进而获得学习与提高。人类拥有这些能力是因为在进化过程中大脑形成了前额叶皮层，这是别的生物所没有的。它使得人类具备自省、开展其他认知思维的能力。鉴于此，人类能客观地反思自己和别人，最重要的是反思自身的缺点，指出解决这些缺点的办法，能最快进化、开发潜能。

However, typically defensive, emotional reactions—i.e., ego barriers—stand in the way of this progress. These reactions take place in the part of the brain called the amygdala. As a result of them, most people don’t like reflecting on their weaknesses even though recognizing them is an essential step toward preventing them from causing them problems. Most people especially dislike others exploring their weaknesses because it makes them feel attacked, which produces fight or flight reactions; however, having others help one find one’s weaknesses is essential because it’s very difficult to identify one’s own. Most people don’t like helping others explore their weaknesses, even though they are willing to talk about them behind their backs. For these reasons most people don’t do a good job of understanding themselves and adapting in order to get what they want most out of life. In my opinion, that is the biggest single problem of mankind because it, more than anything else, impedes people’s abilities to address all other problems and it is probably the greatest source of pain for most people.

然而某些抵抗性的情绪反应，如自我设障，阻碍着我们进步的过程。这些情绪由大脑内杏仁体掌管。鉴于这种反应的存在，大多数人都不爱反省自身缺点，即便他们都知道反省缺点是避免出现问题的重要一步。大家尤其讨厌别人挖掘自己的缺点，令人深感冒犯，可能给予战斗还是逃跑的反应。其实有人指出自己的缺点很重要，因为自己很难发现自身缺点。大多数人都不喜欢指出别人的缺点，不过背地里倒是挺愿意讨论别人的缺点。所以芸芸众生，真正了解自己的人甚少，也就无法适应环境、实现梦想了。我认为，这是人类面临最简单却最大的问题，深深阻碍着人们解决问题的能力，也是大多数人感到痛苦的根源。

Some people get over the ego barrier and others don’t. Which path they choose, more than anything else, determines how good their outcomes are. Aristotle defined tragedy as a bad outcome for a person because of a fatal flaw that he can’t get around. So it is tragic when people let ego barriers lead them to experience bad outcomes.

有人能克服自我设障这种情绪反应，但并非全部。选什么路，就会走向何种结果。亚里士多德认为悲剧是人类无法克服致命弱点而带来的不好结果。如果人们被自我设障这种情绪牵着鼻子走，碰了一鼻子灰，就是悲剧。

The Personal Evolutionary Process

个人成长过程

As I mentioned before, I believe that life consists of an enormous number of choices that come at us and that each decision we make has consequences, sothe quality of our lives depends on the quality ofthe decisions we make.

我提过，人生由大量选择构成，我们要依次做出抉择，得到结果，所以生活质量取决于我们所作抉择的质量。

We aren’t born with the ability to make good decisions; we learn it.We all start off as children with others, typically parents, directing us. But, as we get older, we increasingly make our own choices. We choose what we are going after (i.e., our goals), which influences our directions. For example, if you want to be a doctor, you go to med school; if you want to have a family, you find a mate; and so on. As we move toward our goals, we encounter problems, make mistakes, and run into personal weaknesses. Above all else, how we choose to approach these impediments determines how fast we move toward our goals.

我们不是天生就会做出明智的决策，是通过学习才拥有这种能力的。我们从小都是和大人一起成长，尤其是父母，他们指导我们的生活，但日渐长大后我们就要靠自己做选择了。我们选择追寻什么样的目标影响着我们成长的方向。例如，你想成为一名医生，就会攻读医学院校，你想组建家庭，就会先找到伴侣，诸如此类。实现目标的征途中，我们遇到困难，犯错，发现自己的缺点。选择何种方式应对这些困难，决定着我们实现梦想的速度。

Of course it is true that people are born with differences in their various innate abilities. However, judgment is primarily learned. Of course it is true that people are born with differences in their various innate abilities. However, judgment is primarily learned.

当然，人们各种与生俱来的能力都确实存在差异，但判断力基本是靠学习获得的。当然，人们各种与生俱来的能力都确实存在差异，但判断力基本是靠学习获得的。