#131. Only people who earn a lot of money are successful?
China is host to over one billion people. While the majority of China's population is not rich; in fact, it is a very small percentage of people who hold the status of being wealthy. Does this mean that the vast majority of Chinese people are unsuccessful? The answer to this is irrefutably "no".
There are many measures of success, and money is one of them. However, money is far from the main measure of success. To prove this point, one need only consider the possibility that a man could be wealthy beyond belief, but not consider himself successful. Perhaps he inherited his money, and has done nothing of value in his life. Perhaps he earned the money through ill means. Whatever the situation, it is more than possible that a rich man could be considered unsuccessful, either by himself, or by others.
Many people believe that the main measure of success is happiness, rather than material goods. Without happiness, even a person with money, status and children would not be successful. However, a low paid schoolteacher might think he/she was very successful if he/she succeeded in getting children to learn their material well. Or perhaps a housewife, who makes no money of her own, would feel successful if she raised a healthy, well-adjusted child and kept her home looking wonderful.
It is also important to look at the difference between self-perceived success and one's success in the eyes of another person. Perhaps the outside world views a man as unsuccessful if he does not have a lot of money, but he views himself as very successful because of his achievements in life. Whose opinion is more important? I believe that if one thinks he/she is successful, then he/she is, no matter what other people say.
In conclusion, money is not the only measure of success. Anyone can be successful, whether they are rich or poor. What matters is how one views himself/herself; if one is proud of one's achievements in life, and feels that he/ she has lived a fulfilling life, then he/she is successful.
131. 只有有钱人才算是成功人士？
中国拥有十亿多的人口。然而大部分中国人都不富裕；事实上，只有很少一部分人称得上富裕。这是否就意味着，绝大部分的中国人就不成功呢？对此的回答是无可争议的“不是”。
对于成功有很多衡量标准，而金钱是其中之一。但是，金钱远不是成功的主要量度。为了证明这一点，人们只需要考虑一下这种可能性，一个人也许富裕得无法想象，但他并不认为自己是成功的。或许他的钱是继承得来的，一生中并未做任何有价值的事情。或许他的钱是通过卑劣的手段挣来的。不管是哪种情形，一个有钱人也许要么自己觉得要么被别人认为是不成功的，这非常有可能。
许多人相信成功的主要衡量标准并非物质，而是幸福。如若没有幸福，即使一个有钱、有地位、有儿女的人也不会是成功人士。然而，一个低收入的中小学教师如果成功地让孩子们学好了他们的教材，也许就会认为自己是有成就的。或者一个自己并不赚钱的家庭主妇，也可能会觉得很有成就感，因为她抚养了一个健康、有教养的孩子，而且把家里收拾得非常漂亮。
自己认为的成功和他人眼中一个人的成功，比较它们之间的差别也很重要。如果一个人没有很多钱，可能外部世界会认为他不成功，但是他却因为自己在生活上的成就认为自己非常成功。谁的意见更重要呢？我相信，无论别人怎么说，如果一个人认为自己成功，他或她就是成功的。
- status ［ˈsteitəs］ n. 身份，地位
- majority ［məˈdʒɔ:riti］ n. 大多数
- irrefutably ［iˈrefjətəbli］ adv. 无可辩驳地
- measure ［ˈmeʒə］ n. 衡量标准，量度
- ill ［il］ adj. 卑劣的；恶劣的
- self-perceived ［ˌselfpəˈsi:vd］ adj. 自认为的
- fulfilling ［fulˈfiliŋ］ adj. 有成就的