音频下载[点击右键另存为][00:00.99]Passage 34. Laziness

[00:04.49]Laziness is a sin: everyone knows that.

[00:11.16]We have probably all had lectures pointing out that laziness is immoral,

[00:15.98]that it is wasteful, and that lazy people will never amount to anything in life.

[00:20.68]But laziness can be more harmful than that,

[00:24.19]and it is often caused by more complex reasons than the simple wish to avoid work.

[00:28.78]Some people who appear to be lazy are suffering from much more serious problems.

[00:34.14]They may be so distrustful of their fellow workers

[00:37.43]that they are unable to join in any group task for fear of being laughed at

[00:41.36]or fear of having their ideas stolen.

[00:43.55]These people who seem lazy may be deadened by a fear of failure

[00:47.71]that prevents fruitful work.

[00:49.35]Or other sorts of fantasies may prevent work:

[00:52.41]some people are so busy planning,

[00:54.27]sometimes planning great deals of fantastic achievements,

[00:57.77]that they are unable to deal with whatever“lesser” work is on hand.

[01:01.16]Still other people are not avoiding work,strictly speaking;

[01:04.88]they are nearly procrastinating—rescheduling their day.

[01:08.06]Laziness can actually be helpful.

[01:11.11]Like procrastinators,some people look lazy when they are really thinking,

[01:15.59]planning,researching.

[01:17.23]We should all remember that some great scientific discoverise occurred by chance.

[01:21.83]Newton wasn’t working in the orchard when the apple hit him

[01:25.44]and he devised the theory of gravity.

[01:27.63]All of us would like to have someone “lazy” build the car or stove we buy,

[01:33.10]particularly if that “laziness”

[01:35.62]—were caused by the worker’s taking time to check each step of his work

[01:39.56]and to do his job right.

[01:41.63]And sometimes,being “lazy”, that is,

[01:44.04]taking time off for a rest is good for the overworked students or executive.

[01:48.86]Taking a rest can be particularly helpful to the athlete who is trying too hard

[01:54.76]or the doctor who’s simply working himself overtime too many evenings at the clinic.

[01:59.25]So be careful when you’re tempted to call someone lazy.

[02:02.96]That person may be thinking,

[02:04.94]resting or planning his or her next book.