6-2 New year, new goal! For the past five years, I made the same promise to myself every spring: “I am going to get into shape”. Each year, I promised myself that I was going to lose weight and go down two dress sizes, so that I would look good (or at least normal) on the beach. However, it was the same story every year. Just two weeks after I’d made the resolution, I went back to my old bad habits. This year I decided to do things differently. I realized that my goal of dropping two dress sizes was unrealistic, and probably even unhealthy. When I examined my goal, I decided that it was too short-sighted to be meaningful. Why would I work so hard for just two weeks on the beach? When I thought about it, I realized it was more important to be healthy and strong than to look slim. Examining and changing my goal made a big difference. Instead of trying to lose weight, a friend and I decided we’d run a marathon in July. We planned our exercise schedule together, which was really motivating. We ate healthily, without worrying about our weight. Instead of obsessing about how we looked, we focused on our running performance. So, what happened? Not only did I manage to run the marathon, I also went down a dress size. What did I take away from this experience? What we think we need isn’t always what’s good for us. It pays to examine our goals. 58. How did the writer change her goal?

8-2 The benefits of a paid vacation Taking a paid vacation is good for everyone. Not only are regular vacations good for the work-life balance of the individual employees， they also increase productivity， which is great for business. Vacations don’t need to be long to be effective. Sally Harper， a professional psychologist says: “Some people believe that a vacation is only worthwhile if it’s for two weeks or longer. In fact， taking several short two-day vacations each year can be even more energising. You don’t need to spend lots of money travelling somewhere new. The important thing is to try something you haven’t done before.” Sally continues: “It’s fine to stay at home， but go on a hike， or go swimming， you will feel better. Don’t spend your vacation cleaning out your kitchen closet， as this will not help you to return to work feeling recharged!” When you go on vacation， take a complete break from work. Sally says: “It can be tempting to respond to emails， so you don’t fall too far behind. If you do this， you’re not on vacation-you’re just working somewhere else.” If you’re still not convinced about the importance of taking regular vacations， think of the health benefits. Taking regular time off will improve your mental and physical health. You’ll return to work feeling relaxed and find it easier to get along with your colleagues. Better start planning your time off work now. And if you’re an employer， make sure you encourage all your employees to make the most of their vacations. 77. What is Sally’s opinion about short vacations?

A. 　They can be a good opportunity to get on with some housework.

B. 　They aren’t as good as long vacations， but they can still be refreshing.

C. 　They can make you feel even more refreshed than long vacations.

D. 　They’re fine， as long as you manage to travel somewhere new.

4-2 Have you ever dreamed about turning your hobby into your full-time job? This may sound too good to be true， but for fashion writer and model Anna King， the dream is now a reality. Anna had always found it difficult to find clothes to fit her. She says， “I am a plus-size woman， and so when I went shopping with my friends， I could never find anything big enough to fit me. So， I went online and found lots of great shops which sold fashionable clothes in bigger sizes. I took photos of myself wearing the clothes and shared my shopping experiences online， on a weekly fashion blog.” The blog called “Large Looks” became popular. Anna says， “Soon I had followers from all over the world! It turns out that many bigger women were having similar problems finding nice clothes.” After two years of blogging， a publisher asked me to write a book about my experiences. Just one week later， a model agency asked me to model some plus-size clothes for them. I just couldn’t believe it! Anna says， “I was able to give up my job as a secretary for a law firm and concentrate on my hobby. Now I never feel sad about going back to work on a Monday!” She adds， “Lots of people tell me how lucky I am. I tell them that yes， I was lucky， but I also worked very hard. I wrote hundreds of blog posts before I was noticed!” 36. What problem did Anna have?

A. 　 Clothes in shops were too expensive for her.

B. 　 Clothes in shops were too big for her.

C. 　 Clothes in shops were too small for her.

D. 　 None of the shops in the town where she lived sold nice clothes.

2-1 Advice from a Hiring Manager As a hiring manager I’ve conducted hundreds of interviews over the years. I believe this puts me in a good position to offer advice about how to make the best possible impression at interview. First of all, it is a good idea to arrive early for the interview, but not too early. 10-15 minutes before your interview starts is ideal. Candidates often believe that they should arrive as early as possible for an interview. However, arriving too early can be inconvenient for the hiring manager, who may well be interviewing other candidates. Once you have arrived, make sure you’re polite to everyone you meet, especially the receptionist. As a hiring manager, I often check with the receptionist after interviews to find out which candidates were most polite. It is important to me that team members will get on well with everyone they work with. Another important tip is this: if the interviewer tries to make small talks with you (by talking about the weather for example), make sure you are friendly. I often ask candidates about how their journey was, as their response will tell me what they are like as a person. Finally, bring a copy of your résumé. So many candidates forget to mention important dates or qualifications. If you have your résumé in front of you, it can really help you to answer challenging questions. Follow this advice, research the job and the position and you’ll be in with a good chance of passing the interview. 11. Why does the writer think the advice about interviews will be useful?

A. 　 The writer teaches a course on interview skills.

B. 　 The writer has written a book about making a good impression at job interviews.

C. 　 The writer always performs well in interviews.

D. 　 The writer’s job involves interviewing people.

37. I find it much easier to concentrate when there is _______.

A. 　 silence

B. 　 silent

C. 　 silencer

D. 　 silences

24. ---I’ve passed the exam.---__________________.

A. 　 Congratulations!

B. 　 Bad luck!

C. 　 Thank you for telling me.

D. 　 It’s nothing.

25. There are a lot of great job opportunities _______ offer at this company.

A. 　 in

B. 　 on

C. 　 over

D. 　 of

1-2 My life as a bed tester Last year， I graduated from art school without any definite ideas about what I wanted to do. I knew I didn’t want to work nine to five， and I also didn’t really want to work in an office. Then one day， I saw an advertisement on the graduate career website. It said: “Do you appreciate the importance of a good night’s sleep? Are you interested in flexible working hours? Why not consider a career in bed testing!” I’ve always enjoyed sleeping， so I decided to send my résumé and a cover letter. The interview was very unusual. I was asked to lie down on two different beds and make notes on what I thought about them. It was the strangest interview I’ve ever had， and I couldn’t believe my luck when I found I had got the job. After that， I worked for a year testing beds. I think I slept in about 50 or 60 beds every month! My biggest job was when I visited a big， luxury hotel. I was offered $10，000 to sleep in each one of their hundreds of beds and write about how comfortable they were. It wasn’t a bad salary for such relaxing work. One of the best things about the job is when people at parties ask me what I do. Telling them I am a professional sleeper always gets the conversation started! I don’t know if I’ll do this job forever， but for now it suits me just fine. 8. What does the writer say about the biggest job?

A. 　 It was well-paid and relaxing.

B. 　 It was relaxing， but badly paid.

C. 　 It was very tiring.

D. 　 The writer had to sleep in 10，000 different beds.

4-1 Do you often feel stressed out on a Sunday night? Do you dream of how much better your life would be if you had a different job? And are you jealous of your friends’ careers， which always sound much better than yours? If you recognise any of the above， you probably need a career change. The question is， how are you going to go about getting one? First of all， think about what you’d rather do. Deciding what you like and dislike in your current job is a good starting point. Once you have a good idea of what you want to do， it＇s time to upgrade your skill set. Think about what you are able to do and how this matches the career you are interested in. For example， you may be interested in a career as a tour guide. Which skills does a tour guide need? Which of these do you have， and which do you need to work on developing? Finally， set yourself some goals， both long and short term. Write a list in which you include your goals for the year， the next six months and then the next six weeks. It can be a good idea to share the goals you have made with a friend， as this can help you to stay motivated. Changing your career is not always easy， but life is too short to stay in a job which does not make us happy and which does not fully utilise our skills. 35. Why should you share any goals you make with a friend?

A. 　 Your friend can tell her boss， and it might help you find a job.

B. 　 Your friend might have the same goals as you.

C. 　 This will help you to stay motivated.

D. 　 Your friend may be able to help you find better goals.

21. Can you talk to him? I don’t think he’s making the _______ of his time at college.

A. 　 must

B. 　 move

C. 　 more

D. 　 most

1. You ________ （have to / should）wear a seat belt. It’s the law.