READ:

Very often my best didn’t turn out that well. I was neither

an athlete nor a standout student. I played baseball, football,

stickball, and all the other Bronx sports, and I did my best,

but I wasn’t good at any. In school I was hardworking and

dedicated, but never produced superior grades or matched the

academic successes of my many high-achieving cousins. Yet

my parents didn’t pester me or put too much pressure on me.

Their attitude was “Do your best—we’ll accept your best, but

nothing less.”

These experiences established a pattern for all the years

and careers that came afterward. Always do your best, no

matter how difficult the job, or how much you dislike it, your

bosses, the work environment, or your fellow workers. As the

old expression goes, if you take the king’s coin, you give the

king his due.

I remember an old story told by the comedian Brother

Dave Gardner about two ditch diggers. One guy just loves

digging. He digs all day long and says nothing much. The

other guy digs a little, leans on his shovel a lot, and mouths off

constantly, “One of these days, I’m gonna own this company.”

Time passes and guy number one gets a front-end trench

machine and just digs away, hundreds of feet a day, always

loving it. The other guy does the minimum, but never stops

mouthing off, “One of these days, I’m gonna own this

company.” No, guy number one doesn’t end up owning the

company, but he does become a foreman working out of an

air-conditioned van. He often waves to his old friend leaning

on his shovel still insisting, “One of these days, I’m gonna own

this company.” Ain’t gonna happen.

In my military career I often got jobs I wasn’t crazy about,

or I was put in situations that stretched me beyond my rank

and experience. Whether the going was rough or smooth, I

always tried to do my best and to be loyal to my superior and

the mission given to me.

What was Powell's approach to jobs and his military career?

He worked hard digging ditches in order to own the company one day.

He always worked hard, even when he didn't like what he was doing.

He only worked hard when he liked the job and his bosses.

He wasn't good at sports or school, so he knew he had to work hard to make the team and get good grades.

What’s the difference between extract and abstract as nouns and verbs?

Which sentence contains an allusion? a. pamela and her twin are as alike as two peas in a pod, and they do everything together. b. pamela has a weakness for chocolates, which she says she's had since early childhood. c. pamela's face was as white as a ghost when she learned the shocking news about her brother. d. pamela's backyard looks like the garden of eden, with dozens of green and lush plants. e. pamela found herself trapped between a rock and a hard place, and she didn't know what to do.

Part 2: thoreau’s ideas had a profound effect on a man named gandhi. gandhi, was a leader in india who worked to end british rule. he led india to independence and inspired many to non-violent forms of protest and resistance. he fought to end poverty, worked to expand women's right to vote, and built bridges between ethnic and religious groups. like thoreau, he lived simply, owned very little, and ate a vegetarian diet. in india, gandhi's form of protest was called the "non-cooperation movement." he urged indians to boycott british education systems and leave government jobs. the movement was very popular, and in part to stop its spread, the british controlled government arrested him. after a few years, he was released and became active in politics again. he inspired many to follow him on marches to protest various taxes. on one such march, thousands followed him 240 miles over 24 days to the sea to protest a salt tax. this march set the example of non-violent resistance to the government that others in the country followed. eventually india won independence from britain, in large part because of gandhi work. gandhi's model of resistance and reform was creative, appealing, and successful. as a result, dr. martin luther king looked to gandhi when the time came to find a way to resist segregation in the south. the lunch counter protests, famous for the passive response to anger, and even violence, aimed to end the separation enforced by laws in some regions of the south. king also organized walks, marches, and bus rides that were meant to bring attention to the issues facing african americans. these forms of protest were directly modeled on gandhi's, but king took them straight to the source of oppression. where gandhi's protests created awareness and built momentum, king's protests were in the face of great hatred and fear. the passive, non-violent protests were ultimately effective, mainly because the passive response to violence cast the opposition as brutes. however, change came slowly and at the cost of many lives. king remained committed to peaceful protest, however, until his death. king learned from gandhi, expanding on what worked, applying old techniques to a new problem. gandhi owed his philosophy, in part, to a new england poet who loved the woods. read this sentence from part 2: like thoreau, he lived simply, owned very little, and ate a vegetarian diet. what is the point of this sentence? gandhi and thoreau had similar childhoods. gandhi had many admirable qualities. thoreau and gandhi were very similar. thoreau had a simple life compared to others.