Habit number two: Begin with the end in mind. That 1)literally means to begin today with an image or picture of the end of your life as your frame of reference, as the 2)criteria by which you examine everything else in your life.
I want you to think on this for a moment and get yourself into the frame of mind of attending a funeral of a dear one. In your minds eye see yourself driving to that funeral, arriving, it`s being held at a church, getting yourself situated in the back seat. And you come to a growing awareness that it is your funeral, that it is you in that 3)casket, three years from now. There are four speakers. The place is packed. And there's a great feeling of love, appreciation, and 4)resonating value of this person, your life. The four speakers are these: one from your family -- not just your 5)nuclear family, but aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents have come from all around the country to attend; one from your friends that give a sense of what you were as a person, as a friend; one from your work, your profession, or outside activity; and one from your church or some community organization where you've been involved in giving service. Now think, what would you like to have said, three years from now, about you as a member of an 6)in-tergenerational 7)extended family, as a friend, as a working 8)associate, or a public servant? What would you like to have said about your character, about your contributions, and about your achievements? Think carefully on those roles, and write the 9)eulogies.
This habit, to begin with the end in mind, means to start with a clear understanding of your destination and it's based on the principle that all things are created twice.
There are always two creations. Thephysical creation follows the mental creation. Take the building or the house that you're in now. It was created in every detail before the earth was touched. Right or wrong. If wrong, you've got some pretty expensive change orders in that structure that might have significantly increased the cost of it, even doubled the cost of it. The carpenter's rule holds true: measure twice, cut once.
So what's habit two? Simply begin with the end in mind. Decide what your own value system is. Write your own philosophy, your own mission statement, your own 10)creed, your belief system and get it written into your mind and into your heart, through the use of imagination and your emotion. Don't tie yourself to your history. Tie yourself to your potential. And if you learn to imagine vividly enough and to also 11)draw heavily upon the inner sense or conscious of what is right or wrong, you will come to detect the most fundamental principles that pertain to your life. And you can 12)distill them in the form of a mission statement or a value system or a purpose statement; whatever you wish to call it. This is the essence of habit two.
1) literally adv. 照字面意义地 2) criteria n. 标准 3) casket n. 棺材 4) resonate v. 共鸣，共振 5) nuclear family 核心家庭，指只包括父母和子女的家庭 6) intergenerational a. 两代间的 7) extended family 大家庭 8) associate n. 同事，合作人 9) eulogy n. 颂词，赞美词 10) creed n. 信条 11) draw upon 利用，取，并驾齐驱 12) distill v. 蒸馏，提取