I love challenging myself. I like to set a goal that seems difficult or even impossible and then do everything I can to reach that goal. It's not always easy, and sometimes I don't reach the goal--heck, sometimes I don't come anywhere close to reaching it--but it's still something that I love to do. Sometimes the challenges I take on are physical, such as running a very long distance, and sometimes they're more mental, such as writing a book. Sometimes they're very abstract¹, such as trying to deal with my fear of heights or my uneasiness² in crowds. But no matter what kind they are, I feel fortunate that I'm able to identify challenges and then take them on.

我喜欢挑战自己，我喜欢设定看似难以完成甚至不可能实现的目标，然后尽一切努力达到这一目标。这件事不总是容易做到，有时我达不到目标——管他呢，有时与目标还相差甚远——但这仍然是我喜欢做的。有时我迎接的挑战是身体方面的，比如说长跑；有时更多的是精神上的，比如说写一本书；有时非常抽象，比如说努力摆脱恐高或人多时的不安。但无论是什么挑战，我都感觉很幸运能够认清挑战，然后迎接挑战。

I actually meet many of them. I've run one hundred miles in 26 hours, I've written a few novels, and I've done some other things that I didn't think I could do at first. Nowadays, though, after taking on so many challenges, I never really feel that something is impossible--I pretty much know that anything is possible with the right attitude and enough effort. That's not to say that nowadays I meet every challenge successfully, because I don't. I just don't start out by thinking that I can't do it.

我确实完成过很多挑战，我曾用26小时跑了一百英里，写过几篇小说，还做过一些其他起初以为自己做不到的事情。然而现在，接受过如此多挑战之后，我永远不会感觉有什么是不可能的——我大体上知道只要态度正确而且足够努力的话一切皆有可能。我不是说我现在能成功地应对一切挑战，因为我做不到。我只是不会在做事之前就觉得自己不行。

And I've learned³ that my attitude towards a challenge is one of the most important keys to meeting it. If I see a challenge ahead and I'am overwhelmed⁴ or intimidated⁵, then the chances are very good that I won't be successful in meeting it.

我学会了面对挑战的态度是应对挑战最关键的因素之一。如果我看到面前有挑战，就不知所措或者被吓倒了，应对挑战时很有可能会失败。

If, on the other hand, I see a challenge and immediately start thinking of different ways that I might be able to meet it, the chances are good that I shall meet it successfully.

相反，如果我看到了挑战，马上换个思路，认为自己有能力应对挑战，那我最终很有可能会成功。