Question

【题目】Master Your Deadlines

The struggle begins in high school, sometimes earlier. Deadlines, and lots of them, start to pile up. At college, the pressure sometimes leads to last-minute rush and unsatisfactory work. At work, failing to meet deadlines can easily get you fired. 【1】 Here are a few best practices.

Assign deadlines to what matters.

If the task isn’t of high importance, don’t set a specific deadline. In this way, you are able to keep it on your radar for a while without feeling pressured. 【2】 This will provide just enough pressure to ensure you get it done.

【3】

Set a personal deadline for yourself a day or two before the actual deadline. 【4】 If you’re working with a group of people, add in even more time to account for potential follow-ups and the need for approvals.

Keep communicating.

【5】 This means letting others know when something is taking longer than expected, when a delivery didn’t come in, when a client is not providing the necessary information, etc. Although it may feel embarrassing to admit that something is not on schedule, being honest is much better for relieving your stress.

A. Plan for flexible hours.

B. Finish your project as early as possible.

C. But if an activity is urgent, set a deadline immediately.

D. In this way, you’ll never have to stay up late and feel stressed.

E. But handled properly, deadlines can actually improve productivity.

F. Whenever you feel challenged to finish work on time, communicate.

G. So if anything takes longer than expected, you can still wrap it up and submit it on time.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】E

【2】C

【3】A

【4】G

【5】F

【解析】人的一生充满着奋斗、挣扎与各种压力。比如工作之后的各项工作都要按时完成。否则你会失去工作。文章给出了一些好的实践方法解决这些问题和压力。

【1】E考查对上下文顺承关系的理解能力。句意：奋斗始于中学，有时更早。随之各种期限接踵而来。在大学里，压力有时会导致考试临时抱佛脚和不满意的作业。在工作中，不能按时完成工作，可以使你很容易被解雇。___1__。以下是一些最佳实践。从设空的前后语境可看出是转折的，故选E项。

【2】C考查对上下文顺承关系的理解能力。句意：如果任务不是很重要的话，不要设定一个特定的截止日期，这样你就可以有一段时间没有压力，___2__，这将提供足够的压力来确保你完成它。故设空前后是一种转折关系，即如果任务“很重要，很紧急（urgent ）”，故C项符合语境。

【3】A考查考生对上下文顺承关系的理解能力。根据本段的内容“给自己制定一个比实际截止日期提前一到两天的限制。……如果你和一群人一起工作，就要花更多的时间来考虑潜在的后续行动和批准的必要性。”可推断出，本段是讲要留出一些弹性时间，故A项适合作本段小标题。

【4】G考查对上下文顺承关系的理解能力。此空前句意：为自己制定一个比最后期限提前1－2天的期限。所以（这样的话）即使有事要花更多时间的话，也可圆满完成任务了。wrap …up圆满完成；故选G项。

【5】F考查对上下文顺承关系的理解能力。本段中心句“Keep communicating”（要保持交流）。空后句意：就是让别人知道所做之事所需要时间比预期的长。推知所做的事是不能按期完成才要交流。故选F。

比如第２小题。本空的上文“If the task isn't of high importance, don't set a specific deadline. In this way, you are able to keep it on your radar for a while without feeling pressured.” 如果任务不是很重要的话，不要设定一个特定的截止日期，这样你就可以有一段时间没有压力。而此空的下句“___2___This will provide just enough pressure to ensure you get it done. ，___2__，这将提供足够的压力来确保你完成它。有压力的自然就是重要的，故此句对应着urgent（紧急）。故可推断出C符合。

如第５小题，在本段中出现了与challenging相关的词语。如“This means letting others know when something is taking longer than expected” 可知，花的时间比预期的长，有挑战性。再下一句提到“…admit that something is not on schedule”不能按期交。从这几点可推测也感觉完成工作有困难，这些提示正符合F中的内容。故第5小题选F。