上个周末我在看书用英文怎么表达？第147天关于在错误中前行

Day 147: On Walking by Your Mistakes

第147天：关于在错误中前行

Far too often we let little things slide. But just turn on the news and listen as the anchors lament an auto-part defect leading to deaths and multibillion-dollar recalls or a small leak in a gas pipeline causing an explosion that endangers wildlife. Recognizing when something is wrong, big or small, and holding people accountable can save industries billions and citizens their lives. Sergeant Bowen instilled in me instantly that if you do walk by a mistake, then you just set a new, lower standard.

我们常常对小事听之任之。

但只要打开新闻，听一听主播们对汽车零件缺陷导致死亡和数十亿美元的召回，或天然气管道的小泄漏导致爆炸危及野生动物的哀叹。

认识到问题的大小并追究责任可以为企业节省数十亿美元，并挽救公民的生命。

鲍恩******当即向我灌输了这样一个理念：如果你确实走错了路，那么你就是制定了一个新的、更低的标准。

—Ann Dunwoody

When you make an unimportant mistake, there’s a temptation to let it go and ignore it. After all, it isn’t a big deal, so why bother? If your dishes aren’t pristinely clean, it won’t change much in the grand scheme of things, and most certainly won’t hurt anybody.

当你犯了一个无关紧要的错误时，很可能会听之任之，置之不理。

毕竟，这又不是什么大事，何必大惊小怪呢？

如果你的盘子没有洗得干干净净，那也不会改变什么大局，更不会伤害到任何人。

The problem is that walking by your mistakes sets a precedent of tolerating small errors. You’re also missing out on a valuable exercise in self-control: making sure that all that you do is done with the utmost care.

问题是，对自己的错误不以为意，就开创了容忍小错误的先例。

同时，你也失去了自我控制的宝贵机会：确保你所做的一切都是尽心尽力的。

I’m the last person to say that from now on you need to make sure that everything that you do is flawless. I’m fully aware that it isn’t feasible, and I’d be a hypocrite to say that; my favorite tea mug is never entirely free of tea stains!

我是最后一个说从现在起你必须确保你所做的每一件事都完美无瑕的人。

我很清楚这是不可行的，如果我这么说就太虚伪了。

我最喜欢的茶杯上从来就没有茶渍！

However, whenever you can, try to exercise a little bit of self-control and correct a little thing that you consider unimportant. It can be a small tweak in your posture, making sure that you sit properly in front of the computer. It can be making an effort to speak more clearly and improve your articulation. It can be ensuring that your bed is made properly or slicing a loaf of bread with more precision.

不过，只要有可能，就试着自我控制一下，纠正一下你认为不重要的小事。

这可以是姿势上的一个小调整，确保你在电脑前坐姿正确。

可以是努力把话说得更清楚，改善发音。

它可以是确保你的床铺得合适，也可以是更精确地切一条面包。

I often spend several minutes trying to fix a paragraph that I don’t consider up to my standards. In the grand scheme of things, one single paragraph doesn’t mean much. However, when the little things are repeated over and over again, it does have an effect on the final outcome and carries the risk of establishing a precedent — in this case, of my being lazy with my writing.

我经常会花上几分钟的时间来修改一个我认为不符合我标准的段落。

从大的方面来说，一个段落并不意味着什么。

然而，当这些小事一再重复时，确实会对最终结果产生影响，并有可能开创先例——在这种情况下，就是我懒于写作的先例。