Question

    Is there a “success personality”—some winning combination of qualities that leads almost essentially to achievement? If so, exactly what is that secret success formula (公式), and can anyone develop it?

At the Gallop Organization we recently focused in depth on success, digging into the attitudes of 1500 brilliant people selected at random (随机) from Who’s Who in America. Our research finds out a number of qualities that occur regularly among top achievers. Here is one of the most important, that is, common sense.

Common sense is the most popular quality shared by the top achievers. Seventy-nine percent award themselves a top score in this quality. And 61 percent say that common sense was very important in contributing to their success.

To most, common sense means the ability to present sound, practical judgments on everyday affairs. To do this, one has to sweep aside extra ideas and get right to the heart of what matters. A Texas oil and gas businessman puts it this way: “The key ability for success is simplifying. In conduction of meeting and dealing with industry, reducing a complex problem to the simplest term is highly important.”

Is common sense a quality a person is born with, or can you do something to increase it? The oil man’s answer is that common sense can definitely be developed. He attributes (归咎) his to learning how to debate in school. Another way to increase your store of common sense is to observe it in others, learning from their and your own mistakes.

Besides common sense, there are many other factors that influence success: knowing your field, self-reliance, intelligence, the ability to get things done, leadership, creativity, relationships with others, and of course, luck. But common sense stands out. If you develop these qualities, you’ll succeed. And you might even find yourself listed in Who’s Who someday.

1.Roughly how many people in the survey listed common sense as the most important quality?

A.80. B.60. C.1200. D.900.

2.In paragraph 4, the example of the oil and gas businessman is used to prove_______.

A.common sense can be judged B.common sense means simplifying

C.common sense can be developed D.common sense is quite complex

3.What do we know about common sense?

A.It’s rooted in common people. B.It is a side effect of mistakes.

C.It is taught by our parents. D.It can be trained by ourselves.

4.What is the best title of the passage?

A.Common Sense B.The Success Personality

C.Personal Qualities D.A Popular Formula

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.D

4.B

【解析】

这是一篇议论文。研究发现，成功最重要的人格是常识。还有许多其他因素会影响成功，但最突出的是常识。

1.

细节理解题。根据第二段 At the Gallop Organization we recently focused in depth on success, digging into the attitudes of 1500 brilliant people selected at random (随机) from Who’s Who in America. （在Gallop组织，我们最近对成功进行了深入研究，研究了1500名从美国名人中随机挑选出来的杰出人士的态度）和第三段中Seventy-nine percent award themselves a top score in this quality. 79%的人认为自己在这方面得分最高。由1500*79%=1185，可知大概有1200人在调查中把常识列为最重要的品质。故选C项。

2.

推理判断题。根据第四段中A Texas oil and gas businessman puts it this way: “The key ability for success is simplifying. In conduction of meeting and dealing with industry, reducing a complex problem to the simplest term is highly important.” 一位德克萨斯州的石油和天然气商人这样说：“成功的关键能力是简化。在召开会议和处理工业问题时，将复杂问题简化为最简单的术语是非常重要的。”可知用一位石油和天然气商人的例子来证明常识意味着简化。故选B项。

3.

推理判断题。根据倒数第二段中Another way to increase your store of common sense is to observe it in others, learning from their and your own mistakes. 另一种增加你常识储备的方法是观察别人，从他们和你自己的错误中学习。可知常识可以由我们自己训练。故选D项。

4.

主旨大意题。根据第一段中Is there a “success personality”—some winning combination of qualities that leads almost essentially to achievement? 是否存在一种“成功品质”——某种成功的品质组合，几乎可以从本质上导致成功？第二段中Our research finds out a number of qualities that occur regularly among top achievers. Here is one of the most important, that is, common sense. 我们的研究发现了一些在顶级成功者中经常出现的品质。这是最重要的一点，也就是常识。再通读全文，可知本文主要讲述了成功最重要的人格是什么，因此选项B“成功的人格”符合题意。故选B项。