Question

阅读下面短文，根据其内容写一篇60词左右的内容概要。

The everyday signs of conscientiousness (认真尽责) ——being punctual, careful in doing work, self-disciplined, and scrupulous (一丝不苟的) in attending to responsibilities ——are typical characteristics of the model organizational citizen, the people who keep things running as they should. They follow the rules, help out, and are concerned about the people they work with. It’s the conscientious worker who helps newcomers or updates people who return after an absence, who never abuses sick leaves, who always gets things done on deadline.

Conscientiousness is a key to success in any field. In studies of job performance, outstanding effectiveness for almost all jobs, from semi-skilled labor to sales and management, depends on conscientiousness. It is particularly important for outstanding performance in jobs at the lower levels of an organization: the secretary whose message taking is perfect, the delivery truck driver who is always on time. Conscientiousness also offers a buffer (缓冲) against the threat of job loss in today’s constantly changing market, because employees with this quality are among the most valued.

But conscientiousness in the absence of social skills can lead to problems. Since conscientious people demand so much of themselves, they can hold other people to their own standards, and so be overly judgmental when others don’t show the same high levels of model behavior. Factory workers in Great Britain and the United States who were extremely conscientious, for example, tended to criticize co-workers even about failures that seemed unimportant to those they criticized, which damaged their relationships.

When conscientiousness takes the form of living up to expectations, it can discourage creativity. In creative professions like art or advertising, openness to wild ideas and spontaneity (自发性) are scarce and in demand. Success in such occupations calls for a balance, however; without enough conscientiousness to follow through, people become mere dreamers, with nothing to show for their imaginativeness.

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Answer

Conscientious people have a lot in common: they are strict with themselves and helpful to others while at work. (要点1) On the one hand, conscientiousness contributes to better job performances especially for those who work at lower levels and therefore means lower chance of unemployment.（要点2） On the other hand, for lack of adequate social skills and novel ideas, their relationship with co-workers can be unpleasant and their work less satisfactory. （要点3）

【解析】

本题要求写一篇概要，属于说明文。

首先，阅读材料，了解文章的基本内容。本篇阅读材料的核心内容是: 首先是对于“认真尽责”的定义（要点1），其次，指出在工作中具备认真尽责的态度的重要性：工作更出色且是不容易失业（要点2），最后，说明认真尽责可能导致的问题：与同事之间关系紧张且工作中缺少创造力（要点3）。本篇文章的写作思路就是围绕“什么是认真尽责——认真尽责的优点——认真尽责的缺点”展开。文章简明扼要，涵盖所有内容，结构层次清晰，在衔接词（for one thing, for another, however, therefore, thus等）的使用上也非常合理，使文章更顺畅。