厄爾·南丁格爾/Earl Nightingale
95 percent of people never succeed because they're following the wrong group.
Processionary caterpillars travel in long, undulating lines, one creature behind the other. Jean Hanri Fabre, the French entomologist, once lead a group of these caterpillars onto the rim of a large flowerpot so that the leader of the procession found himself nose to tail with the last caterpillar in the procession, forming a circle without end or beginning.
Through sheer force of habit and, of course, instinct, the ring of caterpillars circled the flowerpot for seven days and seven nights, until they died from exhaustion and starvation. An ample supply of food was close at hand and plainly visible, but it was outside the range of the circle, so the caterpillars continued along the beaten path.
People often behave in a similar way. Habit patterns and ways of thinking become deeply established, and it seems easier and more comforting to follow them than to cope with change, even when that change may represent freedom, achievement, and success.
If someone shouts, "Fire!" It is automatic to blindly follow the crowd, and many thousands have needlessly died because of it. How many stop to ask themselves: Is this really the best way out of here?
So many people "miss the boat" because it's easier and more comforting to follow-to follow without questioning the qualifications of the people just ahead—than to do some independent thinking and checking.
A hard thing for most people to fully understand is that people in such numbers can be so wrong, like the caterpillars going around and around the edge of the flowerpot, with life and food just a short distance away. If most people are living that way, it must be right, they think. But a little checking will reveal that throughout all recorded history the majority of mankind has an unbroken record of being wrong about most things, especially important things. For a time we thought the earth was flat and later we thought the sun, stars, and planets traveled around the Earth.
Both ideas are now considered ridiculous, but at the time they were believed and defended by the vast majority of followers. In the hindsight of history we must have looked like those caterpillars blindly following the follower out of habit rather than stepping out of line to look for the truth.
It's difficult for people to come to the understanding that only a small minority of people ever really get the word about life, about living abundantly and successfully. Success in the important departments of life seldom comes naturally, no more naturally than success at anything—a musical instrument, sports, fly-fishing, tennis, golf, business, marriage, parenthood.
But for some reason most people wait passively for success to come to them—like the caterpillars going around in circles, waiting for sustenance, following nose to tail—living as other people are living in the unspoken, tacit assumption that other people know how to live successfully.
It's a good idea to step out of the line every once in a while and look around to see if the line is going where we want it to go. If it is not, it might be time for a new leader and a new direction.
95%的人從來沒有成功過，隻因為他們選擇了錯誤的跟從對象。
毛蟲排著長長的隊伍爬行著，一個接著一個。法國昆蟲學家吉恩·亨利·法布爾曾引導一支毛蟲隊伍來到一個大花盆的邊沿上，領隊的毛蟲追上了隊尾的那隻，首尾相接，形成了一個圓圈。
完全出於習慣，當然還有本能的因素，這支隊伍繞著花盆爬行了七天七夜，最後筋疲力盡，饑餓而死。其實在它們附近就有充足的食物，而且這些食物顯而易見，隻不過它們被放在了毛蟲的圈外。毛蟲就這樣一直沿著錯誤的路線爬行下去。
人類也經常這樣行事。當做事習慣與思考方式已經形成時，人們更容易遵循貫有的方式，而不是創新，即使這種改變可能意味著自由、功績和成功。
如果有人喊“著火了”，人們就會無意識地、盲目地跟著人群跑，很多人因此而白白喪生。有多少人停下來問問自己：這個方法真的是逃生的最佳方案嗎？
太多人因為輕率地跟從而“錯失了良機”，跟從總是比獨立思考與驗證更容易、更讓人安心。這些人對於領頭的那個人的能力和資格絲毫沒有質疑。
大多數人都難以理解，有如此多的人都會犯下這樣的錯誤，就像在花盆上轉了一圈又一圈的毛蟲們，食物和生存的希望近在咫尺，最後還是被活活餓死。人們認為，如果大多數人都是這樣生活的，那麽這種生活方式就一定是正確的。但是，隻需稍加驗證便會發現，在整個曆史長河中，大部分人對於許多事情的判斷都是錯誤的，尤其是在一些重要的事情上。曾經，我們認為地球是方的，後來我們又認為太陽、星星和其他的行星都是圍繞地球旋轉的。
現在，人們認為這兩個觀點荒謬至極，但是在當時，人們都相信這是正確的，都支持它們。在後來的曆史中，我們就像是那些盲目追隨的毛蟲，而不是跳出隊伍尋求真理的人。
隻有小部分的人曾經真正領悟生活的真諦，成功而精彩地生存。生活中重要領域的成功得來艱難，絕不比任何方麵——彈奏樂器、體育運動、釣魚、打網球、打高爾夫、經商、結婚或為人父母的成功來得容易，這實在令人難以理解。
但是，大多數人消極地等待成功自己到來——就像毛蟲們首尾相連，一圈一圈地爬行著等待食物送上門來一樣——默默地按照別人的生活方式生活著，默默地認為他人懂得如何成功生活。
不時地跳出常規路線，觀望一下這條路是不是通向目的地，這是個很不錯的主意。如果不是，或許現在還來得及選擇一個新的向導、新的方向。
undulate[??ndjuleit]v.波動；使……起伏；震動
We soon see a field of wheat undulate in the breeze.
我們很快看到一片在微風中起伏的麥田。
ridiculous[ri?dikjul?s]adj.荒謬的；可笑的
He had a ridiculous mind.
他的想法很荒謬。
sustenance[?s?stin?ns]n.生計；食物
There's not much sustenance in a glass of orange squash.
一杯橙汁飲料沒有什麽營養。
tacit[?t?sit]adj.心照不宣的
Attention is a tacit and continual compliment.
關注是無聲的、連續不斷的讚賞。
95%的人從來沒有成功過，隻因為他們選擇了錯誤的跟從對象。
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不時地跳出常規路線，觀望一下這條路是不是通向目的地，這是個很不錯的主意。
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如果不是，或許現在還來得及選擇一個新的向導、新的方向。
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Habit patterns and ways of thinking become deeply established, and it seems easier and more comforting to follow them than to cope with change, even when that change may represent freedom, achievement, and success.
cope with：對付；應付；克服
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It's a good idea to step out of the line every once in a while and look around to see if the line is going where we want it to go.
in a while：一會兒
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