Economy

There is no mystery to what an “economy” is. Whether we are talking about the economy of Los Angeles, of the United States, or of the whole world, an economy is just a group of people interacting with one another as they go about their lives. Because the behavior of an economy reflects the behavior of the individuals who make up the economy, we start our study of economics with four principles of individual decision making.

PRINCIPLE 1: PEOPLE FACE TRADEOFFS

The first lesson about making decisions is summarized(总结) in the adage: “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” To get one thing that we like, we usually have to give up another thing that we like. Making decisions requires trading off one goal against another.
Consider a student who must decide how to allocate her most valuable resource “her time”. She can spend all of her time studying economics; she can spend all of her time studying psychology; or she can divide her time between the two fields. For every hour she studies one subject, she gives up an hour she could have used studying the other. And for every hour she spends studying, she gives up an hour that she could have spent napping, bike riding, watching TV, or working at her part-time job for some extra spending money.

The turning point of my life was the day I was given an advance copy of this book. During the last three months, I have practically(almost) lived with this book, studying every page, desperately trying to find a new way of life. The change that has occurred in my mental outlook and emotional stability is almost unbelievable. I am now able to endure(bear) the battles of each passing day. I now realise that in the past, I was being driven half mad not by today’s problems but by the bitterness and anxiety over something that had happened yesterday or that I feared might happen tomorrow.

But now, when I find myself starting to worry about anything, I immediately stop and start to apply some of the principles I learned from studying this book. If I am tempted to tense up over something that must be done today, I get busy and do it immediately and get it off my mind.

When I am faced with the kind of problems that used to drive me half crazy, I now calmly set about trying to apply the three steps outlined in Chapter 2, Part One. First, I ask myself what is the worst that can possibly happen. Second, I try to accept it mentally. Third, I concentrate on the problem and see how I can improve the worst which I am already willing to accept- if I have to.

Foreword

What Do You Want Most? Is It Money, Fame, Power, Contentment, Personality, Peace of Mind, Happiness?

The Thirteen Steps to Riches described in this book offer the shortest dependable philosophy of individual achievement ever presented for the benefit of the man or woman who is searching for a definite goal in life.

present:
to show or offer sth for other people to look at or consider 提出；提交
~ sth (to sb)
The committee will present its final report to Parliament in June.
委员会将于六月向议会提交最后的报告
~ sth (for sth)
Eight options were presented for consideration.
已提出八项备选方案供审议。
Are you presenting a paper at the conference?
你要在大会上宣读论文吗？

Before beginning the book you will profit greatly if you recognize the fact that the book was not written to entertain. You cannot digest the contents properly in a week or a month. After reading the book thoroughly, Dr. Miller Reese Hutchison, nationally known Consulting Engineer and long-time
associate of Thomas A. Edison, said— “This is not a novel. It is a textbook on individual achievement that came directly from the experiences of hundreds of America’s most successful men. It should be studied, digested, and meditated upon. No more than one chapter should be read in a single night. The reader should underline the sentences which impress him most. Later, he should go back to these marked lines and read them again. A real student will not merely read this book, he will absorb its contents and make them his own. This book should be adopted by all high schools and no boy or girl should be permitted to graduate without having satisfactorily passed an examination on it. This philosophy will not take the place of the subjects taught in schools, but it will enable one to organize and apply the knowledge acquired, and convert it into useful service and adequate compensation without waste of time.