迈克尔是那种你真想恨一恨的家伙，他总是乐呵呵的，总是说些积极上进的话。如果有人问他近况如何，他会这样回答：“如果我还能再好，我就成双胞胎了!”他生来就会让人积极进取。

　　if an employee was having a bad day, michael was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation. seeing this style really made me curious, so one day i went up to michael and asked him, "i don' t get it. you can' t be positive all the time. how do you do it?"

　　如果哪位雇员有天过得很糟糕，迈克尔会告诉他如何看待问题的积极一面。他的这种方式着实让我好奇，所以有一天我找到迈克尔问：“我真弄不明白。你怎么能总是那样积极乐观?你是如何做到这一点的?”

　　michael replied, each morning i wake up and say to myself 'mike, you have two choices today. you can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.' i choose to be in a good mood. each time something bad happens, i can choose to be a victim or choose to learn from it. i choose to learn from it. every time someone comes to me complaining i can choose to accept their complaining or i can point out the positive side of life. i choose the positive side of life."

　　迈克尔回答说，“每天早晨醒来时我对自己说，‘迈克，今天你有两种选择。你可以选择心情愉快，你也可以选择心情恶劣。’我选择心情愉快。每次什么不愉快的事情发生时，我可以选择成为一个牺牲品，也可以选择从中吸取教训。我选择从中吸取教训。每次有什么人找我来抱怨，我可以选择接受他们的抱怨，也可以选择向他指出生活的积极面。我选择指出生活的积极面。”

　　"yeah, right. it isn't that easy." i protested.

　　“是的，不错。可并不那么容易呀。”我表示异议。

　　"yes it is, " michael said. "life is all about choices. when you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. you choose how you react to situations. you choose how people will affect your mood. you choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. the bottom line is: it's your choice how you live life. " i reflected on what michael said.

　　“其实很容易，”迈克尔说。“生活就是选择。从每一事物剔除一切枝节后剩下的都是一种选择。你选择如何应付生活中的种种情形。你选择他人会怎样影响你的情绪。你选择是心情愉快还是心情恶劣。说到底：如何生活是你自己的选择。”我琢磨着迈克尔的这席话。

　　soon thereafter, i left the big enterprise that i had worked in for years to start my own business. we lost touch, but i often though about him when i made a choice about life instead of reacting to it. several years later, i heard michael was involved in a serious accident, falling off 60 feet from a communications tower.

　　那以后不久，我离开了工作数年的大企业去创建自己的公司。我们失去了联系，但当我对生活做出一种选择而非对它做出反应时，我时常想起迈克尔。几年之后，我听说迈克尔遭遇一场恶性事故，从一座通讯大楼的60英尺高处掉了下来。

　　after l8 hours of surgery, and weeks of intensive care, michael was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back. i saw michael about six months after the accident. when i asked him how he was, he replied, "if i were any better, i’d be twins. wanna see my scars?" i declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.