你好呀，我是良哥。又一篇好文来啦，请阁下细细品尝。（有网友骂我黄婆卖瓜，自卖自夸，但我打心里觉得每一篇文章都很优质，非常非常非常优质！）世界是一个大舞台，每个人都有上场和退场之时，只有高度专注才能带来精彩的表演。随着你的成长，舞台越来越广阔，承担的角色也越多，所以你会开始无法专注。专注力的缺乏可能是在提醒你:尚未找到合适的角色，需要更大胆地尝试，去探索新的角色。If you've ever watched a great play, you know the feeling of being totally immersed in an experience. The lights, costumes, music, and set are all designed to capture and hold your attention. Every actor knows their role inside-out and is appropriately familiar with the roles of everyone else in the cast. A cast is a collection of individual actors, and the stage is the physical medium that unites them, combining actors with a stage to present the content of the play. In a well-executed play, there is a beautiful harmony within the actors, between the actors, and between the actors and the stage. This harmonious set of interactions is what captures our attention.如果你曾观赏过一部精彩的戏剧，你肯定体会过完全入戏的感觉。灯光、服装、音乐和布景都是设计来引人投入其中的，每位演员不仅对自己的角色有透彻的了解，同时也熟知剧中的其他角色。演员们共同合作，与舞台交相呼应，把戏剧内容呈现在观众眼前。精彩的戏剧不仅需要演员在各自内心达到和谐，还需要在演员之间、演员和舞台之间达到和谐。只有这样，一部戏剧才能引人入胜。William Shakespeare wrote these famous words in his play "As You Like It": "All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts." I hope to show that this metaphor is not only powerful but, perhaps, even true. Therefore, I will use it as a framework to understand our capacity to focus. You are an actor; the world is a stage. Only highly focused attention can bring a wonderful performance. Thus, we should strive not to be attentive but to put on a perfect show. It is paramount, then, that we know our roles, seek the right show, and set the stage appropriately.莎士比亚在《皆大欢喜》中曾有名言：“世界是一个舞台，男男女女都只不过是演员，他们都有上场和退场之时，并同时扮演着许多角色。”这一比喻不仅充满感染力，更具真实性。因此，我将借此比喻来解读人的专注力。你是一名演员，世界是一个舞台，只有高度专注才能带来精彩的表演。因此我们努力的方向应该是呈现一场完美的演出，而不是一味强调付出精力。因此了解自己的角色、选择合适的剧目、合理布置舞台至关重要。An actor without a role will not star in a show; an actor who doesn’t know their role well is doomed to put on a terrible show. Therefore, it’s important that actors know their roles. Before an actor can find the right show to be a part of, they need to understand themselves. Everyone is born with a set of intrinsic desires and talents, which are unique to them. When they act on these desires, they build up a fountain of knowledge which helps them obtain what’s pleasurable and avoid what causes suffering. As a result, everything in the world becomes imbued with meaning.没有角色的演员根本无法参演，但不了解自己角色的演员同样不会带来精湛的表演。因此演员必须对自己的角色了然于胸。要选择合适的剧目，演员需要先了解自己，每个人天生的内在动机和天赋都不尽相同。当人们遵从自己的内在动机时，他们会搜集信息去追求带给他们享受而非折磨的事。如此一来，世间万物都被赋予了意义。But this does not mean that everything has to have a cosmic significance. When you look at a cup, you don’t see it in terms of its material structure; you don’t say that it’s a cylindrical glass object. Rather, you see it in terms of its function, a carrier of liquid pleasure. But, if you’re enjoying a cocktail in a bar and someone threatens to fight you, your role changes from that of a customer to that of a fighter. As your role changes, the meaning you assign to the world changes. The glass goes from a carrier of liquid pleasure to a weapon to avoid suffering.但这并不是说一切都会发生翻天覆地的变化。杯子在你的眼中并没有变成一种结构，你不会把它看作一个圆柱玻璃体，你仍着眼于它的作用，即美味饮料的容器。但当你在酒吧享用一杯鸡尾酒时，有人上前寻衅滋事，你的角色就从顾客转变成了争斗者，你赋予其他事物的意义也随之发生变化。玻璃杯就从一个容器转变成了自卫的武器。In a very real sense, the roles we select structure how we perceive the world. Imagine that I put a box of pencil crayons in front of you and told you to find the one that is red. If you choose to accept this task, the way you perceive your environment literally changes. You start to ignore most sensory data and selectively discard information that does not align with your goal of finding the red pencil crayon. This can be seen as me inviting you to be the protagonist in the show of finding the color red. This newfound role imbued your world with instantaneous meaning, which helped you mentally structure your environment so you knew what could be ignored and what could not.在实际生活中，我们对自我角色的定位也影响着我们看待世界的角度。假设我给你一盒蜡笔，并让你找出红色的那根。一旦你接受了这个任务，你看待周围环境的角度就会改变。你会忽略直觉上和其他与目标不相关的信息，专注于找出红色的蜡笔。这可以看作我邀请你作为主角表演找出红色蜡笔这场戏。这一新角色立马赋予了周遭事物意义，基于此，你便可以判断哪些信息值得保留。Having a purpose, or knowing your role as an actor, helps you mentally structure your environment. This purpose-driven focus is referred to as a top-down function. It is knowledge-driven and occurs when you use your mind to find something in the environment. The self-constructed role I am telling you about is an existentialist idea. Existentialists believed in the idea that our existence preceded our essence. In other words, we aren’t born with any meaning, but rather, we construct it. Your purpose is constructed based on the relationship between your natural desires and the environment around you.明确目标或了解自己的角色能够帮助你更透彻地看待世界。这种由目标驱使的专注是自上而下的，它产生于你的脑海。当你有意识地寻找某物时，应用的就是自上而下的专注力。以上所说的自我定位角色是存在主义的一种观点。存在主义者认为物质先于意识，人生意义并非与生俱来，而是经人赋予的。你的人生目标是基于你的内在欲望与外界环境的关系形成的。But if you don’t want to create your own role as an actor, the world is happy to assign you one. We live in a world that is constantly asking you to take part in their own shows and setting the stage for you. While driving, you'll notice the billboards line along the road. Every business owner wants you to take on the role of their customer. When you go to YouTube, every YouTube channel wants you to take on the role of their viewer. The billboard owner sets the stage by making the billboard as attractive as possible, just as the YouTuber does for the thumbnail. Everyone is giving you a possible meaning to try out, and it’s up to you to decide if it's correct.但如果你不想主动选择自己的角色，外界也常常会赋予你某种角色。我们所处的社会无时无刻不在要求我们融入其中，并为你搭建舞台。在开车时你会看到路边一排排的广告板，每家公司都希望你出演自家顾客的角色。当你浏览Youtube时，每个频道都希望你出演视频观众的角色。投放者将广告板设计得夺人眼球，频道将视频封面制作得鲜艳新颖，因为这就是他们的舞台。每个人都在试图向你灌输某种价值观，而你要懂得分辨对错。Facebook and Instagram scream that meaning is found in the pleasure you get from interacting with others. YouTube screams that meaning is found in education, inspiration, or entertainment. The car dealership screams that meaning is found in status or material goods. Whether it’s video games, social media, or an interesting conversation, these good distractions create structure and easily offer you a role that imbues your world with meaning and lets you feel a sense of accomplishment within that role.Facebook和Instagram大力鼓吹交流互动之乐才是人生意义所在，而Youtube则倡导接受教育、启迪、投入娱乐活动才不算荒废人生。汽车经销商则告诉你人生的意义在于地位和物质。无论是视频游戏、大众媒体还是一次有趣的对话，这些造成分心的事能够轻易赋予你某种角色，让你基于这一角色判定事物的意义，并让你产生一定的满足感。An actor who knows their role may see these activities as simple distractions. They’ll discard pieces of information if it doesn’t align with the show they are looking to be a part of. An actor who does not know their role and plays it well will always be stuck playing the roles that others assign to them. Facebook is designed to be distracting, and it is, but only insofar as you lack a greater purpose for avoiding it. Once you know your role as an actor, it’s easier to choose which shows you want to play a role in. If it’s a one-man show, such as studying by yourself for a test, things are really easy. Just set the stage and get going. But if the show requires multiple people, it’s important to choose a cast that you harmonize well with.而了解自身角色的演员能够分辨出这些琐事，忽略无用的信息，专注于自己想要参演的戏剧上。如果演员不了解自身角色，即使演技出色，也只能局限于外界分配给他们的角色。Facebook的开发初衷就是分散用户注意力，当你缺乏明确的目标时，它的确会造成分心。当你对自己的角色有清晰的认知时，挑选合适的剧本就容易多了。如果是一部独角戏，比如准备考试，这出表演就很简单，布置好舞台就开始吧。但如果戏剧中有多个角色，挑选一班能与你达成和谐的演员就很重要了。For example, if you’re an engineer who wants to positively impact the world, you may join a start-up of other engineers who are all working together to build environmentally-friendly cars. Each individual engineer may have joined the company for slightly different reasons, but their reasons harmonize well with each other and with the grand reason of producing environmentally-friendly cars. Once you know your role and choose a show, it’s time to set the stage. When a stage is being designed, every detail must be thought of and revised to ensure that it captures the attention of all audience members.举例来说，如果你是一名志在造福大众的工程师，一家由数名工程师创立的环保汽车初创企业就很适合你。每位工程师加入该企业的原因可能不同，但他们的原因都不相互矛盾，并且与生产环保汽车的企业目标同归一处。在了解了自身角色并选好剧本后，就该布置舞台了。舞台上每个细节的设计都应该以抓住全部观众的注意力为出发点。When actors are performing live, they want to make sure that the entire audience forgets about whatever is going on in their lives and just enjoys the moment. They want to make it hard for you to think about anything other than the show. The lights, the music, the choreography, and the outfits are all designed in support of this goal. In other words, the actors want to drive attention from the bottom-up. Bottom-up attention is stimulus-driven. Imagine an ambulance speeding past you with its sirens blaring, the loud noise and the bright lights would immediately catch your attention. Bottom-up systems are largely unconscious, involuntary, and more powerful than top-down systems. All performances try to capture attention from the bottom-up.演员表演时会力求让观众暂时忘掉自己的生活，全情投入于剧情之中。灯光、音乐、舞蹈、服装都是为了让观众更加投入。换句话说，演员所做的是以自下而上的方式吸引观众的注意。自下而上引起的注意力产生于外界刺激。想象一辆救护车从你身旁呼啸而过，刺耳的鸣笛声和闪烁的车灯会立马吸引你的注意。自下而上产生的注意力一般是下意识的，并且比自上而下的方式更吸引人。所有表演吸引注意力的方式都是自下而上的。Lecture halls are set up with all the seats facing one direction, towards the professor. The professor often has visuals that he wants to show you, so a giant screen is placed behind him on the wall. The screen is behind him so that everyone can see it, but also because he is the intermediary between you and that knowledge. The lecture hall is a stage, and it's set up in such a way so that every actor can easily and correctly assume their role.讲座也是如此，甚至讲座厅的设置也是如此。在讲堂中，所有的座椅都是朝向讲师的，讲师需要向学生展示图像，因此他背后的墙上通常悬挂着一块大屏幕。这一设计不仅是为了让所有学生都能看到，同时也因为讲师正是学生与屏幕上知识之间的媒介。讲堂就如同一个舞台，如此设计，让学生和讲师就能毫不费力地进入自己的角色。If you have a room in your house with a TV in it and all of the couches pointed towards it, the room is a stage that screams its purpose: I exist to comfort and entertain. YouTubers also try to drive bottom-up attention. They design our thumbnails and titles to capture your attention unexpectedly and get you to click.如果家中有一个房间，所有沙发都面向电视，那么这个房间作为一个舞台，其布置意图就显而易见，即为全家提供一个舒适的娱乐场所。视频博主同样在以自下而上的方式吸引人们的注意，他们通过精心设计的视频封面、新颖的标题来获取点击量。Without the proper stage, it's hard to capture focus. Imagine going to a concert where all the seats were facing each other and not the stage, the music was too quiet, and all the lights were on; it would be a difficult show to enjoy. Setting the stage means that everything in the environment contributes to the show’s purpose. For example, you can set up a computer desk in your room or a small office in your home. You can limit the apps on that computer and the room may only have the necessities you require for working. You want to remove as many bottom-up distractions as possible. The best way to do this is by removing as many external cues and triggers as you can. Triggers may include your cell phone, the internet, an app, or even people.当场景布置不当时，吸引他人的注意力是很困难的。如果在音乐会上听众都相对而坐，音乐微弱，灯光全开，这场演出就很难带给听众享受。布置舞台意味着让环境服务于演出，比如你可以在房间里放一张电脑桌，或将一间房间布置成小型办公室，电脑上不要安装多余的软件，小办公室里也只放一些工作的必需品，尽量减少身边的诱惑，防止它们以自下而上的方式分散你的注意力。手机、网络、某款软件，甚至人都有可能令你分心。Your role might be that of a good student or an accountant. The show is that of studying for a test or completing a client’s taxes. As a result, the stage has been properly designed to facilitate the best possible performance by the actor. The best performance requires intense focus, or being in a state of flow. Flow occurs when an individual is playing the right role in the right show and on the right stage. Their actions are aligned with their beliefs in an environment that supports them. Being in a state of flow is often described as being “in the zone” and it's a very pleasurable state for most people to be in. Sadly, most people rarely have long stretches of flow in their lives because life is complex.你的角色可能是一名好学生或会计，你相应的剧目就是准备考试或为客户报税。一张干净的办公桌，一间专业的小办公室，都能帮你表现得更好。出色的表演需要演员高度集中，或者说产生心流。只有当演员出演合适的角色、合适的剧目、在合适的布景中时才会产生心流。演员会在环境的烘托下，依照信念做出行动，产生心流。这也被称作进入状态，是一种非常愉悦的体验。但大多数人心流的持续时间都不长，因为生活中的琐事太多了。In order to keep this essay simple and digestible, I talked about everything in singular and sequential terms. But in real life, you don’t transition from an actor to selecting a show to setting the stage. In fact, you do all three simultaneously and iteratively. Your identity as an actor affects the show you pick, but the show you pick also affects your identity as an actor. You’re evolving, and as you evolve, so should the show and the stage. Furthermore, you don’t play just one role in life, but multiple roles in multiple shows and on multiple stages.为了简单易懂，我单独并按顺序地讲解了各个环节，但在现实生活中，确定角色、挑选剧目、布置舞台并不是依次，而是同时并交替发生的。你对自身角色的定位影响你对剧目的选择，但你所出演的剧目同样影响你对自身角色的认知。随着你的成长，你的剧情会越来越精彩，舞台会越来越广阔。另外，你在生活中会承担多种角色，出演多部戏剧，拥有多个舞台。It’s okay to not be focused because focusing is hard because it requires a delicate and beautiful harmony between all of these parts. A lack of focus may be a sign that you haven’t found the right role, the right cast, right stage, or the right show. It might be time for a change in your life in one of these areas. Perhaps, it’s an opportunity to boldly engage with the world and discover yourself through interacting with it. Focus is an invitation from the world to stay put for a while and perform, but a lack of focus is an invitation to seek a new show, a new stage, or a new role.无法专注是人之常情，因为它需要生活中的一切都达到微妙的平衡。缺乏专注力可能在提醒你尚未找到合适的角色、合适的演出团队、合适的舞台与剧目。你可能需要在某一方面做出改变，借此机会大胆尝试和经历，并在这场探索中发现自我。如果你能够专注，你大可以在现有环境里尽情发挥，但如果你无法专注，就去发现新的剧目、探索新的舞台、尝试新的角色吧。By The School of Life译：Liuzhe 这篇文章很长，但译者翻译的非常非常好，点赞鼓励。