ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Barry Schwartz - Psychologist
Barry Schwartz studies the link between economics and psychology, offering startling insights into modern life. Lately, working with Ken Sharpe, he's studying wisdom.

Why you should listen

In his 2004 book The Paradox of Choice, Barry Schwartz tackles one of the great mysteries of modern life: Why is it that societies of great abundance — where individuals are offered more freedom and choice (personal, professional, material) than ever before — are now witnessing a near-epidemic of depression? Conventional wisdom tells us that greater choice is for the greater good, but Schwartz argues the opposite: He makes a compelling case that the abundance of choice in today's western world is actually making us miserable.

Infinite choice is paralyzing, Schwartz argues, and exhausting to the human psyche. It leads us to set unreasonably high expectations, question our choices before we even make them and blame our failures entirely on ourselves. His relatable examples, from consumer products (jeans, TVs, salad dressings) to lifestyle choices (where to live, what job to take, who and when to marry), underscore this central point: Too much choice undermines happiness.

Schwartz's previous research has addressed morality, decision-making and the varied inter-relationships between science and society. Before Paradox he published The Costs of Living, which traces the impact of free-market thinking on the explosion of consumerism -- and the effect of the new capitalism on social and cultural institutions that once operated above the market, such as medicine, sports, and the law.

Both books level serious criticism of modern western society, illuminating the under-reported psychological plagues of our time. But they also offer concrete ideas on addressing the problems, from a personal and societal level.

Schwartz is the author of the TED Book, Why We Work

More profile about the speaker
Barry Schwartz | Speaker | TED.com
TED2009

Barry Schwartz: Our loss of wisdom

巴瑞.斯瓦兹-我们所遗失的智慧

Filmed:
4,075,680 views

巴瑞.斯瓦兹激情的呼吁,用“实践的智慧”作为解药,来拯救这个被官僚愚弄的社会。他激烈的争辩说,规则条例常常让我们失望,很多动机也都事与愿违,而实际的日常生活的智慧却可以帮助我们重建我们的世界。
- Psychologist
Barry Schwartz studies the link between economics and psychology, offering startling insights into modern life. Lately, working with Ken Sharpe, he's studying wisdom. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
In his inaugural就职 address地址,
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在他的就职演讲当中,
00:14
Barack巴拉克 Obama奥巴马 appealed上诉 to each of us to give our best最好
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奥巴马呼吁我们每个人都极尽所能
00:18
as we try to extricate解脱 ourselves我们自己 from this current当前 financial金融 crisis危机.
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以摆脱当前的金融危机。
00:24
But what did he appeal上诉 to?
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但他呼吁什么?
00:26
He did not, happily高高兴兴, follow跟随 in the footsteps步伐 of his predecessor前任,
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很庆幸,他没有像前总统布什,
00:30
and tell us to just go shopping购物.
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就仅仅叫我们去购物而已,
00:34
Nor也不 did he tell us, "Trust相信 us. Trust相信 your country国家.
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也没有告诉我们“相信我们,相信美国,
00:38
Invest投资, invest投资, invest投资."
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投资,投资,再投资”
00:42
Instead代替, what he told us was to put aside在旁边 childish幼稚 things.
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相反的,他告诉我们把幼稚的事情放在一边,
00:47
And he appealed上诉 to virtue美德.
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呼吁美德.
00:51
Virtue美德 is an old-fashioned过时 word.
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美德是一个过时的词。
00:55
It seems似乎 a little out of place地点 in a cutting-edge前沿 environment环境 like this one.
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这样的词在像这样的前沿环境里似乎并不合适,
01:00
And besides除了, some of you might威力 be wondering想知道,
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而且,有些人可能会想:
01:03
what the hell地狱 does it mean?
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到底什么是美德?”
01:06
Let me begin开始 with an example.
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让我从一个例子开始。
01:09
This is the job工作 description描述 of a hospital醫院 janitor门警
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这是一所医院里的一个清洁工的工作说明,
01:12
that is scrolling滚动 up on the screen屏幕.
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在屏幕上滚动着。
01:15
And all of the items项目 on it are unremarkable不起眼.
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这上面所写的东西都很平常。
01:20
They're the things you would expect期望:
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这都是一些你能预料得到的事情:
01:23
mop拖把 the floors地板, sweep them, empty the trash垃圾, restock进货 the cabinets橱柜.
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扫地,清理垃圾,倒垃圾筒,进货机柜,等。
01:28
It may可能 be a little surprising奇怪 how many许多 things there are,
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这些事的数量可能有点令人惊讶,
01:31
but it's not surprising奇怪 what they are.
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但是这些事的内容却很平常。
01:33
But the one thing I want you to notice注意 about them is this:
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但是在这里面,有个现象,我想让你们注意:
01:36
even though虽然 this is a very long list名单,
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尽管这个清单很长,
01:39
there isn't a single thing on it that involves涉及 other human人的 beings众生.
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但是里面没有一条是涉及到其他人的。
01:44
Not one.
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一个都没有。
01:47
The janitor's看门人 job工作 could just as well be doneDONE in a mortuary停尸间 as in a hospital醫院.
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该清洁工的工作也同样可以在一个医院的停尸间里进行。
01:52
And yet然而, when some psychologists心理学家 interviewed采访 hospital醫院 janitors校工
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然而,当一些心理学家去采访一些这样的清洁工,
01:57
to get a sense of what they thought their jobs工作 were like,
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以了解这些人是怎么看待他们自己的工作的,
02:00
they encountered遇到 Mike麦克风,
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他们遇见了迈克
02:03
who told them about how he stopped停止 mopping扫荡 the floor地板
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迈克告诉他们他之所以没有继续拖地
02:06
because Mr先生. Jones琼斯 was out of his bed getting得到 a little exercise行使,
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因为琼斯先生起床做简单的运动,
02:09
trying to build建立 up his strength强度, walking步行 slowly慢慢地 up and down the hall大厅.
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试着恢复他的元气,慢慢的在楼里上下走动。
02:13
And Charlene夏琳 told them about how she ignored忽视 her supervisor's监督员 admonition警告
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而查丽告诉他们说,她之所以没有听从上司的警告,
02:19
and didn't vacuum真空 the visitor's访客 lounge休息室
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没有用真空吸尘器打扫访客的休息室,
02:22
because there were some family家庭 members会员 who were there all day, every一切 day
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因为有一些家庭成员天天在那里。
02:25
who, at this moment时刻, happened发生 to be taking服用 a nap小憩.
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现在,有人正在里面休息呢。
02:28
And then there was Luke卢克,
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接下来他们采访了鲁克,
02:30
who washed the floor地板 in a comatose昏睡的 young年轻 man's男人的 room房间 twice两次
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鲁克对一个昏迷病人的房间的地板洗刷了两次,
02:34
because the man's男人的 father父亲, who had been keeping保持 a vigil守夜 for six months个月,
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因为这个病人的父亲,他在这里守夜六个月,
02:39
didn't see Luke卢克 do it the first time,
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鲁克第一次打扫的时候,他并没有看见,
02:42
and his father父亲 was angry愤怒.
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所以这个病人的父亲生气了。
02:44
And behavior行为 like this from janitors校工, from technicians技师, from nurses护士
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像这样的行为,不管是来自清洁工,技术人员,护士,
02:50
and, if we're lucky幸运 now and then, from doctors医生,
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有的时候我们幸运一点,还会是医生,
02:53
doesn't just make people feel a little better,
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不仅仅让人们感觉好点,
02:56
it actually其实 improves提高 the quality质量 of patient患者 care关心
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这些行为实际上改善了病人护理的质量
02:59
and enables使 hospitals医院 to run well.
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并且让医院良好的运作。
03:02
Now, not all janitors校工 are like this, of course课程.
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当然,现在的社会,不是每一个清洁工都这样。
03:05
But the ones那些 who are think that these sorts排序 of human人的 interactions互动
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但是,这样做的人都认为这些人与人的交流,
03:11
involving涉及 kindness善良, care关心 and empathy同情
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涉及到善良,关怀和体谅,
03:14
are an essential必要 part部分 of the job工作.
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正好是这项工作最核心的部分。
03:16
And yet然而 their job工作 description描述 contains包含 not one word about other human人的 beings众生.
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然而,在工作说明里面没有包含一个与其他人相关的词汇。
03:21
These janitors校工 have the moral道德 will to do right by other people.
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这些清洁工有道德的意愿去正确的对待他人。
03:27
And beyond this, they have the moral道德 skill技能 to figure数字 out what "doing right" means手段.
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除此之外,他们还具有道德的技能去判断到底什么是正确的做法。
03:34
"Practical实际的 wisdom智慧," Aristotle亚里士多德 told us,
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亚里士多德告诉我们,“实践的智慧”
03:39
"is the combination组合 of moral道德 will and moral道德 skill技能."
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“就是道德的意愿和道德的技能的结合”。
03:42
A wise明智的 person knows知道 when and how to make the exception例外 to every一切 rule规则,
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一个明智的人知道什么时候以及如何去对每一条规定做特殊的处理,
03:49
as the janitors校工 knew知道 when to ignore忽视 the job工作 duties职责 in the service服务 of other objectives目标.
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就像这些清洁工知道在为他人服务的时候什么时候可以不用在意工作本身的职能要求。
03:55
A wise明智的 person knows知道 how to improvise凑合,
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一个明智的人知道如何随机应变,
03:59
as Luke卢克 did when he re-washed重新洗 the floor地板.
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像鲁克就知道再去洗刷一次地板。
04:02
Real-world真实世界 problems问题 are often经常 ambiguous暧昧 and ill-defined不明确
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现实世界的问题常常很暧昧和模糊,
04:05
and the context上下文 is always changing改变.
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而且问题的内容还常常变换。
04:08
A wise明智的 person is like a jazz爵士乐 musician音乐家 --
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一个明智的人就像爵士乐手一样,
04:11
using运用 the notes笔记 on the page, but dancing跳舞 around them,
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看着歌谱演奏的时候并不会完全遵从,
04:14
inventing发明了 combinations组合 that are appropriate适当 for the situation情况 and the people at hand.
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会即兴创作来与当时的情形和周围的人相适宜。
04:21
A wise明智的 person knows知道 how to use these moral道德 skills技能
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一个明智的人知道如何使用道德技能
04:24
in the service服务 of the right aims目标.
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为一个正确的目的而工作。
04:27
To serve服务 other people, not to manipulate操作 other people.
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为他人服务,而不是应付他人。
04:31
And finally最后, perhaps也许 most important重要,
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最后,也许也是最重要的,
04:34
a wise明智的 person is made制作, not born天生.
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一个明智的人不是天生的,而是后天形成的。
04:37
Wisdom智慧 depends依靠 on experience经验,
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智慧依赖于经验,
04:40
and not just any experience经验.
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但不是依赖于所有的经验。
04:43
You need the time to get to know the people that you're serving服务.
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你需要时间去了解你正在服务的人。
04:47
You need permission允许 to be allowed允许 to improvise凑合,
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你需要得到许可去做一些临时的决定,
04:50
try new things, occasionally偶尔 to fail失败 and to learn学习 from your failures故障.
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尝试新的事物,常常会失败,那就从失败中学习。
04:55
And you need to be mentored辅导 by wise明智的 teachers教师.
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你也需要一个明智的导师来指导你。
04:58
When you ask the janitors校工 who behaved like the ones那些 I described描述
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当你问那些刚才我所提到的清洁工,
05:03
how hard it is to learn学习 to do their job工作,
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学会做他们那样的工作有多难,
05:06
they tell you that it takes lots of experience经验.
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他们会告诉你需要很多经验才行。
05:09
And they don't mean it takes lots of experience经验 to learn学习 how to mop拖把 floors地板 and empty trash垃圾 cans.
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他们的意思不是说学习擦地板倒垃圾需要花很多时间累积经验,
05:13
It takes lots of experience经验 to learn学习 how to care关心 for people.
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而是说要学会关心护理人需要很多经验。
05:19
At TEDTED, brilliance is rampant猖獗.
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在TED,才华无限制的蔓延着。
05:23
It's scary害怕.
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有点可怕。
05:25
The good news新闻 is you don't need to be brilliant辉煌 to be wise明智的.
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好消息是,要想成为明智的人你不必聪明绝顶。
05:30
The bad news新闻 is that without wisdom智慧,
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坏消息是如果没有智慧,
05:34
brilliance isn't enough足够.
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仅仅有才华是不够的。
05:37
It's as likely容易 to get you and other people into trouble麻烦 as anything else其他.
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这就好像其他很多让你和他人烦心的事一样。
05:43
(Applause掌声)
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掌声
05:46
Now, I hope希望 that we all know this.
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现在呢,我希望我们都清楚这一点。
05:49
There's a sense in which哪一个 it's obvious明显,
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这是很显然的,
05:52
and yet然而, let me tell you a little story故事.
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不然,我再给你们讲一个小故事。
05:55
It's a story故事 about lemonade柠檬汽水.
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这是一个关于柠檬水的故事。
05:58
A dad and his seven-year-old七十岁 son儿子 were watching观看 a Detroit底特律 Tigers老虎 game游戏 at the ballpark球场.
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一个父亲和他七岁的儿子在棒球场看底特律虎队的比赛。
06:04
His son儿子 asked him for some lemonade柠檬汽水
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儿子给他说想喝点柠檬水
06:06
and Dad went to the concession让步 stand to buy购买 it.
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这个父亲就去商店买。
06:09
All they had was Mike's迈克的 Hard Lemonade柠檬汽水,
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但是店里只有Mike‘s Hard柠檬水,
06:12
which哪一个 was five percent百分 alcohol.
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里面有5%的酒精含量。
06:15
Dad, being存在 an academic学术的, had no idea理念 that Mike's迈克的 Hard Lemonade柠檬汽水 contained alcohol.
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这个父亲完全不知道里面(理论上来说)含了酒精。
06:21
So he brought it back.
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所以他就买了回来。
06:24
And the kid孩子 was drinking it, and a security安全 guard守卫 spotted it,
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这孩子就开始喝了,警卫发现了这一点,
06:27
and called the police警察, who called an ambulance救护车
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就叫了警察,警察又叫了救护车
06:30
that rushed to the ballpark球场, whisked护送 the kid孩子 to the hospital醫院.
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冲到棒球场,迅速的把孩子带到了医院。
06:33
The emergency room房间 ascertained确定 that the kid孩子 had no alcohol in his blood血液.
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急诊室后来确定这孩子的血液里没有含酒精。
06:37
And they were ready准备 to let the kid孩子 go.
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然后才可以让这孩子离开。
06:40
But not so fast快速.
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但是不会很快哦。
06:43
The Wayne韦恩 County Child儿童 Welfare福利 Protection保护 Agency机构 said no.
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韦恩县儿童福利保障局不允许孩子马上被带走。
06:47
And the child儿童 was sent发送 to a foster培育 home for three days.
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这孩子被送到了一个抚养孤儿的家庭,待了三天。
06:51
At that point, can the child儿童 go home?
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都这样了,这孩子能回家了吗?
06:54
Well, a judge法官 said yes, but only if the dad leaves树叶 the house and checks检查 into a motel汽车旅馆.
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当然,法官说可以,但是条件是他的父亲离开住处到旅馆住。
07:06
After two weeks, I'm happy快乐 to report报告,
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两周以后,我很高兴向大家报告,
07:09
the family家庭 was reunited重聚.
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这个家庭终于团聚了。
07:11
But the welfare福利 workers工人 and the ambulance救护车 people
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但是福利机构,救护人员,
07:14
and the judge法官 all said the same相同 thing:
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还有法官都说了同样的话:
07:17
"We hate讨厌 to do it but we have to follow跟随 procedure程序."
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“我们也讨厌这么做,但是我们得按规章办事”
07:21
How do things like this happen发生?
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这样的事怎么可能发生呢?
07:25
Scott斯科特 Simon西蒙, who told this story故事 on NPR美国国家公共电台,
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司高特 赛门,在NPR里讲了这个故事。
07:29
said, "Rules规则 and procedures程序 may可能 be dumb,
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他说:“规章制度可能悄无声息,
07:33
but they spare备用 you from thinking思维."
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但是他们会让你不去思考。“
07:36
And, to be fair公平, rules规则 are often经常 imposed征收
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公平点说,规则常常都是强制性的
07:38
because previous以前 officials官员 have been lax
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因为以前的官员比较松懈
07:41
and they let a child儿童 go back to an abusive滥用的 household家庭.
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他们让一个孩子回到了一个充满漫骂和伤害的家庭。
07:44
Fair公平 enough足够.
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理由够充分了。
07:45
When things go wrong错误, as of course课程 they do,
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当事情确实做错了,
07:48
we reach达到 for two tools工具 to try to fix固定 them.
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我们会用两类工具去弥补。
07:52
One tool工具 we reach达到 for is rules规则.
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一类工具就是规则条例。
07:55
Better ones那些, more of them.
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更多,更好的规则。
07:58
The second第二 tool工具 we reach达到 for is incentives奖励.
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我们会寻求的第二类工具就是激励制度。
08:01
Better ones那些, more of them.
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更多,更好的激励制度。
08:04
What else其他, after all, is there?
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究竟还有什么其他的东西呢?
08:07
We can certainly当然 see this in response响应 to the current当前 financial金融 crisis危机.
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我可以轻易的在对现在的经济危机的响应中发现。
08:12
Regulate调节, regulate调节, regulate调节.
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管制,管制再管制。
08:15
Fix固定 the incentives奖励, fix固定 the incentives奖励, fix固定 the incentives奖励 ...
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改善激励制度,改善激励制度,还是改善激励制度...
08:18
The truth真相 is that neither也不 rules规则 nor也不 incentives奖励
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真相是:不管是规章条例还是激励制度
08:21
are enough足够 to do the job工作.
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都不足以完成这样的工作。
08:23
How could you even write a rule规则 that got the janitors校工 to do what they did?
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你要如何去写一条规定让刚才提到的那些清洁工去做他们之前做的那些事呢?
08:27
And would you pay工资 them a bonus奖金 for being存在 empathic感情移入的?
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你会因为他们的同情心而给他们发奖金吗?
08:30
It's preposterous荒谬 on its face面对.
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这看起来太荒谬了。
08:34
And what happens发生 is that as we turn increasingly日益 to rules规则,
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当我们更多的求助于条例制度的时候会发生什么事,
08:39
rules规则 and incentives奖励 may可能 make things better in the short run,
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规章条例和激励制度会在短期内让事情变好,
08:43
but they create创建 a downward向下 spiral螺旋
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但是这些制度和条例建立了向下的漩涡,
08:46
that makes品牌 them worse更差 in the long run.
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会让事情在长期内变得更糟。
08:48
Moral道德 skill技能 is chipped缺口 away by an over-reliance过度依赖 on rules规则
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道德的技能已经被对规则的国度信赖粉碎了,
08:53
that deprives剥夺 us of the opportunity机会
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这剥夺了我们的机会
08:55
to improvise凑合 and learn学习 from our improvisations即兴.
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去随机应变以及从临场反应中学习。
08:58
And moral道德 will is undermined破坏
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道德意愿也被埋没了
09:01
by an incessant不停 appeal上诉 to incentives奖励
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因为不断的寻求激励制度
09:04
that destroy破坏 our desire欲望 to do the right thing.
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破坏了我们本身对于做正确的事情的欲望。
09:07
And without intending打算 it,
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不用去预想,
09:09
by appealing吸引人的 to rules规则 and incentives奖励,
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寻求规则和激励制度,
09:13
we are engaging in a war战争 on wisdom智慧.
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我们将会经历一场智慧的战争。
09:15
Let me just give you a few少数 examples例子,
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让我来举几个例子,
09:18
first of rules规则 and the war战争 on moral道德 skill技能.
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先是规则和道德技能的冲突。
09:21
The lemonade柠檬汽水 story故事 is one.
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柠檬水的故事就是一个。
09:23
Second第二, no doubt怀疑 more familiar to you,
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第二个,你们会更熟悉,
09:26
is the nature性质 of modern现代 American美国 education教育:
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美国现在教育的现状:
09:29
scripted脚本, lock-step锁步 curricula课程.
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照本宣科,因循守旧的课程。
09:32
Here's这里的 an example from Chicago芝加哥 kindergarten幼儿园.
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这是一个芝加哥幼儿园的例子。
09:35
Reading and enjoying享受 literature文学
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阅读并欣赏文章
09:37
and words that begin开始 with 'B“B.'
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和以B开头的单词。
09:39
"The Bath:" Assemble集合 students学生们 on a rug地毯
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浴室:把学生们聚集在一个小垫子上,
09:42
and give students学生们 a warning警告 about the dangers危险 of hot water.
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警告学生们热水的危险性。
09:44
Say 75 items项目 in this script脚本 to teach a 25-page-页 picture图片 book.
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在教案里说出75件物品来教一本25页的图画书。
09:49
All over Chicago芝加哥 in every一切 kindergarten幼儿园 class in the city,
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整个芝加哥的幼儿园,
09:52
every一切 teacher老师 is saying the same相同 words in the same相同 way on the same相同 day.
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每个老师在同一天以同样的方式说着同样的话。
09:59
We know why these scripts脚本 are there.
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我们清楚为什么会有这样的教案。
10:03
We don't trust相信 the judgment判断 of teachers教师 enough足够
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我们无法充分的信任老师们的判断力
10:06
to let them loose疏松 on their own拥有.
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让他们去自由发挥。
10:09
Scripts脚本 like these are insurance保险 policies政策 against反对 disaster灾害.
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像这样的教案就像是应对灾难的保险单一样。
10:12
And they prevent避免 disaster灾害.
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他们能预防灾难。
10:15
But what they assure保证 in its place地点 is mediocrity庸人.
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但是他们身处教师的位置,能肯定的是,他们造就了平庸。
10:20
(Applause掌声)
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掌声。
10:27
Don't get me wrong错误. We need rules规则!
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不要误解我的意思。我们是需要规则的!
10:29
Jazz爵士乐 musicians音乐家 need some notes笔记 --
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爵士乐手也需要一些谱子,
10:31
most of them need some notes笔记 on the page.
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他们中大部分人还需要看着谱子演奏。
10:33
We need more rules规则 for the bankers银行家, God knows知道.
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我们需要更多的条款来约束银行家,上帝也知道。
10:35
But too many许多 rules规则 prevent避免 accomplished完成 jazz爵士乐 musicians音乐家
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但是太多的规则会让熟练的爵士乐手
10:39
from improvising即兴.
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无法即兴创作。
10:41
And as a result结果, they lose失去 their gifts礼品,
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最终,他们会丢失他们的天赋,
10:44
or worse更差, they stop playing播放 altogether.
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或者更坏,他们完全不再演出。
10:47
Now, how about incentives奖励?
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那激励制度呢?
10:50
They seem似乎 cleverer聪明.
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他们看起来更聪明些。
10:52
If you have one reason原因 for doing something
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如果你有一个理由做某件事,
10:54
and I give you a second第二 reason原因 for doing the same相同 thing,
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我会给你第二个理由做同样的事情
10:57
it seems似乎 only logical合乎逻辑 that two reasons原因 are better than one
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仅仅从逻辑上来讲,两个理由似乎要比一个理由好
11:00
and you're more likely容易 to do it.
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你就更有可能去做。
11:03
Right?
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对吧?
11:05
Well, not always.
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其实,不一定。
11:07
Sometimes有时 two reasons原因 to do the same相同 thing seem似乎 to compete竞争 with one another另一个
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有的时候,做同一件事的两个理由可能会相矛盾,
11:10
instead代替 of complimenting称赞,
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而不是相辅相成
11:12
and they make people less likely容易 to do it.
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他们就会使人不那么愿意去做。
11:15
I'll just give you one example because time is racing赛跑.
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因为时间有限,我就只举一个例子。
11:18
In Switzerland瑞士, back about 15 years年份 ago,
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大概在15年以前的瑞士,
11:21
they were trying to decide决定 where to site现场 nuclear waste浪费 dumps转储.
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人们试图决定要在哪里处置核废料。
11:24
There was going to be a national国民 referendum公投.
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那时举行了全国性的公民投票。
11:27
Some psychologists心理学家 went around and polled调查 citizens公民 who were very well informed通知.
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一些心理学家就四处游走,向一些知识丰富的公民拉票。
11:30
And they said, "Would you be willing愿意 to have a nuclear waste浪费 dump倾倒 in your community社区?"
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他们就问:“你愿意在你的社区里放置核废料吗?”
11:33
Astonishingly令人惊讶的是, 50 percent百分 of the citizens公民 said yes.
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吃惊的是,50%的公民说愿意。
11:38
They knew知道 it was dangerous危险.
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他们知道危险性。
11:40
They thought it would reduce减少 their property属性 values.
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他们也知道这将降低他们房产的价值。
11:43
But it had to go somewhere某处
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但是这些废料总要放到某个地方
11:46
and they had responsibilities责任 as citizens公民.
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而且作为公民也有义务。
11:49
The psychologists心理学家 asked other people a slightly different不同 question.
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心理学家们稍微改了一下问题,又问了其他的人。
11:53
They said, "If we paid支付 you six weeks' salary薪水 every一切 year
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他们问:“如果我们每年付你六周的薪水,
11:56
would you be willing愿意 to have a nuclear waste浪费 dump倾倒 in your community社区?"
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你愿意在你的社区里安置核废料吗?”
12:00
Two reasons原因. It's my responsibility责任 and I'm getting得到 paid支付.
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两个原因。这是我的义务而且我还拿钱。
12:04
Instead代替 of 50 percent百分 saying yes,
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不像之前的50%说愿意,
12:07
25 percent百分 said yes.
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现在只有25%的人愿意这么做。
12:10
What happens发生 is that
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第二个结果
12:13
the second第二 this introduction介绍 of incentive激励 gets得到 us
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就是引进激励条件所造成的。
12:17
so that instead代替 of asking, "What is my responsibility责任?"
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那么,不去问:“什么是我的职责义务?”
12:20
all we ask is, "What serves供应 my interests利益?"
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我们问的是,“什么适合于我们的兴趣?”
12:23
When incentives奖励 don't work,
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当激励机制不奏效的时候,
12:25
when CEOs老总 ignore忽视 the long-term长期 health健康 of their companies公司
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当首席执行官不顾公司的长期健康发展
12:28
in pursuit追求 of short-term短期 gains收益 that will lead to massive大规模的 bonuses奖金,
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而去追寻可以得到大量红利的短期利益的时候,
12:32
the response响应 is always the same相同.
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回应始终是一样的。
12:36
Get smarter聪明 incentives奖励.
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建立更加巧妙的激励机制。
12:40
The truth真相 is that there are no incentives奖励 that you can devise设计
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真相确是:你是不可能想出
12:43
that are ever going to be smart聪明 enough足够.
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足够巧妙的激励机制的。
12:46
Any incentive激励 system系统 can be subverted颠覆 by bad will.
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任何激励机制都可以被恶意的意愿推翻的。
12:50
We need incentives奖励. People have to make a living活的.
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我们是需要激励机制的。人们总是要生活的。
12:54
But excessive过多 reliance依赖 on incentives奖励
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但是对于激励机制过分的依赖
12:56
demoralizes让人堕落 professional专业的 activity活动
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会让专业的活跃性受挫
12:59
in two senses感官 of that word.
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可以从两个方面来看。
13:02
It causes原因 people who engage从事 in that activity活动 to lose失去 morale情绪
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他会让已经在这个活动里面的人丢失士气
13:06
and it causes原因 the activity活动 itself本身 to lose失去 morality道德.
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也会让活动本身丧失民心。
13:10
Barack巴拉克 Obama奥巴马 said, before he was inaugurated揭牌,
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在就职之前,巴拉克 奥巴马说,
13:15
"We must必须 ask not just 'Is“是 it profitable有利可图?' but 'Is“是 it right?'"
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“我们一定不要仅仅问‘这个有利润吗?’还要问‘这是对的吗?’”
13:19
And when professions职业 are demoralized士气低落,
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当职业士气受挫时,
13:22
everyone大家 in them becomes dependent依赖的 on -- addicted上瘾 to -- incentives奖励
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从事这个职业的人都会变得依赖甚至沉溺于激励机制
13:27
and they stop asking "Is it right?"
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而且他们也不会问“这是正确的吗?”
13:30
We see this in medicine医学.
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我们能在制药行业看到这些。
13:33
("Although虽然 it's nothing serious严重, let's keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't turn into a major重大的 lawsuit诉讼.")
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“尽管不是那么严重,我们最好注意一下确保这不会变成严重的诉讼。”
13:37
And we certainly当然 see it in the world世界 of business商业.
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我当然也能在商业世界里看到这些。
13:39
("In order订购 to remain competitive竞争的 in today's今天的 marketplace市井, I'm afraid害怕 we're going to have to replace更换 you with a sleezeballsleezeball.")
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“为了在当今的市场保持竞争力,我们恐怕要用不靠谱的人来取代你的位置了。”
13:45
("I sold出售 my soul灵魂 for about a tenth第十 of what the damn该死的 things are going for now.")
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“为了这些破事将来要达到的目标的十分之一,我现在就出卖了我的灵魂。”
13:50
It is obvious明显 that this is not the way people want to do their work.
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很显然这并不是人们所期望的工作方式。
13:53
So what can we do?
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那我们可以做什么呢?
13:56
A few少数 sources来源 of hope希望:
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下面是一些希望的来源:
13:59
we ought应该 to try to re-moralize重新说教 work.
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我们应该尝试重新赋予工作道德的含义。
14:02
One way not to do it: teach more ethics伦理 courses培训班.
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一个方法就是:不要教授过多的道德规范课程。
14:08
(Applause掌声)
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掌声。
14:11
There is no better way to show显示 people that you're not serious严重
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要向人们展示你并不那么严肃,最好的方法就是
14:14
than to tie领带 up everything you have to say about ethics伦理
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把你要说的那些关于道德规范的事包装
14:17
into a little package with a bow and consign交付 it to the margins利润率 as an ethics伦理 course课程.
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到一个带有蝴蝶结的小包裹里,然后把他当成一节道德课交出来。
14:22
What to do instead代替?
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除此之外还可以做什么呢?
14:24
One: Celebrate庆祝 moral道德 exemplars典范.
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方法一:表扬道德榜样。
14:28
Acknowledge确认, when you go to law school学校,
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当你走进法学院的时候,会有
14:31
that a little voice语音 is whispering耳语 in your ear
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一个很小的声音就会在你耳边耳语讲
14:34
about Atticus阿提库斯 Finch芬奇.
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阿提卡斯 芬奇这个正义律师的故事。
14:37
No 10-year-old-岁 goes to law school学校 to do mergers兼并 and acquisitions收购.
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不会有10岁的小孩去法学院做并购的。
14:40
People are inspired启发 by moral道德 heroes英雄.
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人们会被道德英雄们激励。
14:43
But we learn学习 that with sophistication诡辩
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但是我们知道,当诡辩强词夺理的时候,
14:46
comes the understanding理解 that you can't acknowledge确认 that you have moral道德 heroes英雄.
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你就会为不承认你有敬仰的道德英雄而找到借口。
14:50
Well, acknowledge确认 them.
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还是承认他们吧。
14:52
Be proud骄傲 that you have them.
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因为你有他们而自豪吧。
14:54
Celebrate庆祝 them.
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赞美他们。
14:56
And demand需求 that the people who teach you acknowledge确认 them and celebrate庆祝 them too.
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也需要那些教你承认并赞美道德英雄的人。
14:59
That's one thing we can do.
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这是我们可以做的一件事。
15:02
I don't know how many许多 of you remember记得 this:
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我不知道你们有多少人记得这件事:
15:05
another另一个 moral道德 hero英雄, 15 years年份 ago, Aaron亚伦 Feuerstein福伊尔施泰因,
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十五年前,另一个道德英雄,艾伦 福尔斯丁,
15:09
who was the head of Malden马尔登 Mills米尔斯 in Massachusetts马萨诸塞 --
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他是马萨诸塞州梅尔登 米尔斯的老板
15:12
they made制作 PolartecPOLARTEC --
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这公司是生产Plolartec(北极棉之类的材料)的。
15:14
The factory burned down.
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工厂烧毁了,
15:16
3,000 employees雇员. He kept不停 every一切 one of them on the payroll工资表.
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有3000个工人,他还是让每一个人都领到了工钱。
15:19
Why? Because it would have been a disaster灾害 for them
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为什么?因为如果让他们离开,对于他们来说,或者对于
15:22
and for the community社区 if he had let them go.
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社区来说,这将是很不幸的灾难。
15:25
"Maybe on paper our company公司 is worth价值 less to Wall Street,
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“可能名义上,我们并没有华尔街的公司值钱。”
15:29
but I can tell you it's worth价值 more. We're doing fine."
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但是我可以告诉你们,它比想象的更有价值,我们做的很好!“
15:33
Just at this TEDTED we heard听说 talks会谈 from several一些 moral道德 heroes英雄.
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就在TED,我们就听到了好几个道德英雄的演讲。
15:37
Two were particularly尤其 inspiring鼓舞人心 to me.
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有两个特别激励我。
15:40
One was Ray射线 Anderson安德森, who turned转身 --
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一个是雷 安德森,他-
15:43
(Applause掌声)
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掌声。
15:46
-- turned转身, you know, a part部分 of the evil邪恶 empire帝国
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你们也知道,他把邪恶帝国的一部分变成了
15:49
into a zero-footprint零空间占用, or almost几乎 zero-footprint零空间占用 business商业.
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一个零排放,或者说零排放的生意。
15:52
Why? Because it was the right thing to do.
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为什么呢?因为这是正确的事。
15:56
And a bonus奖金 he's discovering发现 is
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他发现的一个额外的奖励是:
15:59
he's actually其实 going to make even more money.
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他实际上将会赚更多的钱。
16:02
His employees雇员 are inspired启发 by the effort功夫.
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他的员工被他的作为所激励。
16:05
Why? Because there happy快乐 to be doing something that's the right thing to do.
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为什么?因为他们很乐意去做那些正确的事。
16:09
Yesterday昨天 we heard听说 Willie威利 Smits史密茨 talk about re-foresting重新造林 in Indonesia印度尼西亚.
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昨天,我们听了威力 斯密特 关于重建印尼森林的演讲。
16:14
(Applause掌声)
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掌声。
16:17
In many许多 ways方法 this is the perfect完善 example.
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从很多方面来讲,这是一个完美的例子。
16:20
Because it took the will to do the right thing.
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因为,它利用了意愿来做正确的事。
16:23
God knows知道 it took a huge巨大 amount of technical技术 skill技能.
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上帝也知道这会用到很多很多的专业技术。
16:26
I'm boggled猛然一惊 at how much he and his associates联营 needed需要 to know
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我非常吃惊,他和他的组织到底需要知道多少事情
16:29
in order订购 to plot情节 this out.
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才能把事情规划出来。
16:32
But most important重要 to make it work --
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但是,最重要的是让它运作起来,
16:35
and he emphasized强调 this --
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而且他强调这
16:37
is that it took knowing会心 the people in the communities社区.
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是用来让很多团体的人们了解的那一部分。
16:40
Unless除非 the people you're working加工 with are behind背后 you,
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除非和你一起工作的人们在身后支持你,
16:45
this will fail失败.
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这将会失败。
16:47
And there isn't a formula to tell you how to get the people behind背后 you,
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没有一个公式,告诉你如何让人们支持你。
16:50
because different不同 people in different不同 communities社区
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因为在不同的团体不同的人
16:53
organize组织 their lives生活 in different不同 ways方法.
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会用各种不同的方式来进行生活
16:56
So there's a lot here at TEDTED, and at other places地方, to celebrate庆祝.
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在TED和其他很多地方都有很多事值得称赞。
16:59
And you don't have to be a mega-hero超级英雄.
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你也不必非要去当个超级英雄。
17:02
There are ordinary普通 heroes英雄.
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有很多平凡的英雄。
17:04
Ordinary普通 heroes英雄 like the janitors校工 who are worth价值 celebrating庆祝 too.
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像之前提到的清洁工人就是值得赞扬的平凡英雄。
17:07
As practitioners从业者 each and every一切 one of us should strive努力
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作为从业者,我们每一个人都应该努力
17:10
to be ordinary普通, if not extraordinary非凡 heroes英雄.
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如果成不了非凡的英雄也要成为一个平凡的英雄。
17:13
As heads of organizations组织,
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作为公司的老板,
17:15
we should strive努力 to create创建 environments环境
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我们应该努力的创造环境
17:17
that encourage鼓励 and nurture培育 both moral道德 skill技能 and moral道德 will.
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来鼓励和培养道德技能和道德意愿。
17:22
Even the wisest最明智的 and most well-meaning善意 people
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即使最聪明善意的人
17:25
will give up if they have to swim游泳 against反对 the current当前
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也会放弃,如果要他们去逆流而行
17:28
in the organizations组织 in which哪一个 they work.
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和他们工作的的单位抗争的话。
17:31
If you run an organization组织, you should be sure
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如果你要开公司,你要确保
17:34
that none没有 of the jobs工作 -- none没有 of the jobs工作 --
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没有一个工作--没有一个工作
17:37
have job工作 descriptions说明 like the job工作 descriptions说明 of the janitors校工.
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的工作说明会像之前的清洁工工作说明一样。
17:40
Because the truth真相 is that
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因为,真相是
17:43
any work that you do that involves涉及 interaction相互作用 with other people
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你做的任何一个与人打交道的工作
17:46
is moral道德 work.
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都是道德的工作。
17:49
And any moral道德 work depends依靠 upon practical实际的 wisdom智慧.
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任何一个道德的工作都会依赖于实践的智慧。
17:53
And, perhaps也许 most important重要,
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然后,可能最重要的是,
17:56
as teachers教师, we should strive努力 to be the ordinary普通 heroes英雄,
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作为老师,我们应该努力成为平凡的英雄,
17:59
the moral道德 exemplars典范, to the people we mentor导师.
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成我们做教导的人的道德模范。
18:03
And there are a few少数 things that we have to remember记得 as teachers教师.
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作为老师有一些东西我们应该记住。
18:06
One is that we are always teaching教学.
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一是我们一直都在教导。
18:10
Someone有人 is always watching观看.
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而有人会一直在观察。
18:13
The camera相机 is always on.
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镜头永远是开着的。
18:15
Bill法案 Gates盖茨 talked about the importance重要性 of education教育
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比尔盖茨谈过教育的重要性,
18:18
and, in particular特定, the model模型 that KIPPKIPP was providing提供:
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还特别提供了KIPP规范。
18:21
"Knowledge知识 is power功率."
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“知识就是力量。”
18:24
And he talked about a lot of the wonderful精彩 things
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他也谈到了很多美好的事情
18:27
that KIPPKIPP is doing
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KIPP正在
18:29
to take inner-city内城 kids孩子 and turn them in the direction方向 of college学院.
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让市中心的孩子走向大学的道路。
18:33
I want to focus焦点 on one particular特定 thing KIPPKIPP is doing
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我想把重点放在KIPP正在做的一件事情上
18:36
that Bill法案 didn't mention提到.
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比尔盖茨没有提过。
18:39
That is that they have come to the realization实现
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他们发现这样一个事实
18:42
that the single most important重要 thing kids孩子 need to learn学习
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就是孩子需要学的的最重要的一件事
18:44
is character字符.
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就是人格。
18:45
They need to learn学习 to respect尊重 themselves他们自己.
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他们需要学习尊重自己。
18:48
They need to learn学习 to respect尊重 their schoolmates同学.
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他们需要学习尊重他们的同学。
18:51
They need to learn学习 to respect尊重 their teachers教师.
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他们需要学习尊重他们的老师。
18:54
And, most important重要, they need to learn学习 to respect尊重 learning学习.
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最重要的是,他们需要学习尊重学习。
18:57
That's the principle原理 objective目的.
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这是一个理论性的目标。
18:59
If you do that, the rest休息 is just pretty漂亮 much a coast downhill下坡.
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如果你这么做了,剩下的就像是向下的滑坡一下好走。
19:03
And the teachers教师: the way you teach these things to the kids孩子
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老师们:你们教导孩子的方法
19:06
is by having the teachers教师 and all the other staff员工 embody体现 it every一切 minute分钟 of every一切 day.
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应该把每天每一分钟所有的东西都融合在一起。
19:13
Obama奥巴马 appealed上诉 to virtue美德.
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奥巴马呼吁美德。
19:15
And I think he was right.
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我认为他是对的。
19:17
And the virtue美德 I think we need above以上 all others其他 is practical实际的 wisdom智慧,
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而且我认为我们最需要的美德就是实践的智慧。
19:21
because it's what allows允许 other virtues美德 -- honesty诚实, kindness善良, courage勇气 and so on --
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因为他让其他的美德-诚实,善良,勇气等等--
19:28
to be displayed显示 at the right time and in the right way.
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在正确的时间以正确的方式展现出来。
19:31
He also appealed上诉 to hope希望.
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他还呼吁期望。
19:34
Right again.
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也是对的。
19:36
I think there is reason原因 for hope希望.
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我认为呼吁期望是有原因的。
19:39
I think people want to be allowed允许 to be virtuous.
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我想人都希望能够善良/有道德。
19:42
In many许多 ways方法, it's what TEDTED is all about.
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从很大程度上来说,这就是TED的意义所在。
19:46
Wanting婉婷 to do the right thing
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期望能做正确的事情,
19:49
in the right way
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以正确的方式,
19:51
for the right reasons原因.
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因为正当的理由。
19:53
This kind of wisdom智慧 is within the grasp把握 of each and every一切 one of us
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这种智慧是我们每一个都都力所能及的,
19:56
if only we start开始 paying付款 attention注意.
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只要我们开始注意。
19:59
Paying付款 attention注意 to what we do,
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注意我们所做的事情,
20:02
to how we do it,
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我们如何去做,
20:04
and, perhaps也许 most importantly重要的,
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以及,可能是最重要的,
20:06
to the structure结构体 of the organizations组织 within which哪一个 we work,
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去构建我们所工作的组织,
20:09
so as to make sure that it enables使 us and other people to develop发展 wisdom智慧
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以此来保证它可以让我们和其他人开发智慧
20:14
rather than having it suppressed抑制.
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而不是压制我们的智慧。
20:17
Thank you very much.
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谢谢大家。
20:20
Thank you.
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谢谢
20:22
(Applause掌声)
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掌声。
20:25
Chris克里斯 Anderson安德森: You have to go and stand out here a sec.
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克里斯 安德森:你可能要到那边站着等一下。
20:31
Barry巴里 Schwartz施瓦茨: Thank you very much.
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巴瑞 斯瓦兹:非常感谢大家!
20:33
(Applause掌声)
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掌声。
Translated by Jun Li
Reviewed by zhangb bin

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Barry Schwartz - Psychologist
Barry Schwartz studies the link between economics and psychology, offering startling insights into modern life. Lately, working with Ken Sharpe, he's studying wisdom.

Why you should listen

In his 2004 book The Paradox of Choice, Barry Schwartz tackles one of the great mysteries of modern life: Why is it that societies of great abundance — where individuals are offered more freedom and choice (personal, professional, material) than ever before — are now witnessing a near-epidemic of depression? Conventional wisdom tells us that greater choice is for the greater good, but Schwartz argues the opposite: He makes a compelling case that the abundance of choice in today's western world is actually making us miserable.

Infinite choice is paralyzing, Schwartz argues, and exhausting to the human psyche. It leads us to set unreasonably high expectations, question our choices before we even make them and blame our failures entirely on ourselves. His relatable examples, from consumer products (jeans, TVs, salad dressings) to lifestyle choices (where to live, what job to take, who and when to marry), underscore this central point: Too much choice undermines happiness.

Schwartz's previous research has addressed morality, decision-making and the varied inter-relationships between science and society. Before Paradox he published The Costs of Living, which traces the impact of free-market thinking on the explosion of consumerism -- and the effect of the new capitalism on social and cultural institutions that once operated above the market, such as medicine, sports, and the law.

Both books level serious criticism of modern western society, illuminating the under-reported psychological plagues of our time. But they also offer concrete ideas on addressing the problems, from a personal and societal level.

Schwartz is the author of the TED Book, Why We Work

More profile about the speaker
Barry Schwartz | Speaker | TED.com