7. Too many cooks spoils the broth!

人多手雜反壞事

When people are working on an issue or problem, it sometimes is the case that more labor is better. If there are more people working on something, they are more likely to come up with a great solution.

當人們在處理一個問題或問題時，有時更多的勞動會更好。如果有更多的人在做某件事，他們更有可能想出一個很好的解決方案。

However, it could also be the case that too many people trying to work together creates many more problems than it solves. Instead of coming to a conclusion quickly, it could result in a lot of deliberation and slow progress.

然而，也有可能是因為太多人試圖一起工作，造成的問題比解決的問題多得多。它不會很快得出結(jié)論，而是可能導致大量的深思熟慮和緩慢的進展。

In addition, some people may think that the other people on the task force will solve the problem, and they will not take responsibility.

此外，有些人可能會認為，專案組的其他人會解決問題，他們不會承擔責任。

Or, it could be that too many people creates problems with communication and coordination, so that people who work together many not be up to date on the problem’s progress.

或者，可能是太多的人在溝通和協(xié)調(diào)方面造成了問題，使得許多人一起工作的人不能及時了解問題的進展。

In this case, we can say that too many cooks spoils the broth. In other words, sometimes too many people trying to do something can ruin it. This is the case even if we have the best cooks in the world.

在這種情況下，我們可以說太多的廚師壞了湯。換言之，有時候太多人試圖做某事會毀掉它。即使我們有世界上最好的廚師，情況也是如此。

The basketball team clearly had the people with the most talent. However, they won fewer games than all the other teams! Looking back, it must have been that too many cooks spoils the broth, and all the superstars could not work well together.

籃球隊顯然擁有最有天賦的人。然而，他們贏的比賽比其他球隊都少！回首往事，一定是廚師太多，湯壞了，所有的巨星都不能很好地合作。

Some big, successful companies such as Google have teams of only a dozen people, maximum. They call this the “two pizza principle”, that teams should be able to be fed with just two pizzas. This is because too many cooks spoils the broth, and larger teams are very difficult to manage.

一些成功的大公司，比如谷歌，最多只有十幾個人的團隊。他們稱之為“雙比薩餅原則”，即團隊只需吃兩個比薩餅。這是因為太多的廚師壞了湯，更大的團隊很難管理。

8. We never miss water until the well runs dry!

失去才懂得后悔！

When you have all the things you want, it is hard to appreciate everything. This is in part because some of the enjoyment you get out of something comes from the anticipation, or the time that you don’t have it but you are thinking about it.

當你擁有所有你想要的東西時，很難欣賞所有的東西。這在一定程度上是因為你從某件事中得到的一些快樂來自于你的期待，或者是你沒有它卻在思考它的時候。

However, it is very easy to take things for granted. Instead of appreciating something that you have while you have it – such as the love of your family members, your significant other, money, or a safe place to live – you think that you are entitled to these things.

然而，很容易把事情想當然。與其欣賞你擁有的東西，比如你家人的愛，你重要的另一半的愛，金錢，或者一個安全的生活場所，不如認為你有權擁有這些東西。

It is only when you no longer have these things that you miss them. The next time that you hear this proverb, you know that someone does not appreciate what they have until they lose it.

只有當你不再擁有這些東西時，你才會想念它們。下次你聽到這句諺語的時候，你就會知道有些人直到失去了它才懂得珍惜他們所擁有的。

Larry wished that he had appreciated his wife more when they had a good relationship. This is because ever since she decided to leave him, he had realized her worth. He never missed water until the well ran dry!

拉里希望他妻子關系好的時候他能更感激她。這是因為自從她決定離開他，他就意識到了她的價值。直到井干了他才放水！

When Bart moved away from home to go to college, he found it very challenging to cook and clean for himself, especially since he had a large course load. It was only that he realized how much work his mother helped him with back home. He never missed water until the well ran dry!

當巴特離開家去上大學時，他發(fā)現(xiàn)為自己做飯和打掃很有挑戰(zhàn)性，特別是因為他有一大堆課程。只是他意識到母親在家里幫了他多少忙。直到井干了他才放水！

9. Do not bite off more than you can chew!

別貪多嚼不爛！

Biting off more than you can chew means taking on more than you can handle. For example, it would be too much for someone to handle more than three or four projects at once.

咬掉你吃不完的東西意味著你承受不了的東西。例如，一個人同時處理三到四個以上的項目就太多了。

Trying to complete any more than that is biting off more than you can chew. In other words, it means trying to do too much at once. If someone feels overwhelmed by all that they have to do, tell them not to bite off more than they can chew!

想要完成更多的事情，就等于咬掉了你無法咀嚼的東西。換言之，這意味著一次做太多。如果有人覺得被他們必須做的事壓得喘不過氣來，告訴他們不要吃得太多！

Before the semester started, I told my best friend Ruth not to bite off more than she could chew. However, she insisted, and decided to take six classes, accept a part time job, and was president of the dance club. Halfway through the semester, she was completely exhausted but she only had herself to blame.

在學期開始前，我告訴我最好的朋友露絲不要貪多嚼不爛。然而，她堅持，決定上六節(jié)課，接受一份兼職工作，并擔任舞蹈俱樂部的主席。學期進行到一半時，她筋疲力盡，但她只能怪自己。

It is good for companies to try many different projects at once, especially if they have the resources to do it. On the other hand, it is not wise to give any single employee to many things to do at once. Do not let individuals bite off more than they can chew!

對公司來說，一次嘗試許多不同的項目是有好處的，特別是如果他們有足夠的資源去做的話。另一方面，讓一個員工同時做很多事情是不明智的。不要讓個人咬得太多而嚼不動！

10. Half a loaf is better than none!

少勝于無

If you are looking around your house for something good to eat, it is better to have half a loaf of bread than none at all.

如果你在家里四處尋找好吃的東西，吃半條面包總比一條也不吃好。

Even if it does not fill you up completely, you can feel less hungry if you have something to eat rather than nothing. Likewise, in many situations, it is better to have something than nothing, even if that means you did not finish.

即使它不能完全填滿你的肚子，如果你有東西吃而不是什么都沒有，你也會覺得不那么餓。同樣地，在很多情況下，有總比沒有好，即使那意味著你沒有完成。

Our boss will get mad at you if you have not finished your project by the deadline, but at least you can show him the progress you have made. Half a loaf is better than none!

如果你沒有在截止日期前完成你的項目，我們的老板會生你的氣，但至少你可以向他展示你所取得的進展。半個面包總比沒有好！

If you have some things left to do at the end of the day, it could be better to just start on it rather than leave it all for tomorrow. After all, half a loaf is better than none!

如果你在一天結(jié)束的時候還有一些事情要做，最好還是從現(xiàn)在開始，而不是把一切都留給明天。畢竟，半個面包總比沒有好！

11. A watched pot never boils!

心急水不開！

This is a very common proverb. It can be used for parents or bosses who want to know everything about something, rather than checking in every once in a while.

這是一句很常見的諺語。它可以用于家長或老板誰想知道的東西的一切，而不是每隔一段時間檢查。

It means that if you keep paying attention to something and hoping that it will happen, it will never happen!

這意味著，如果你一直關注某件事，并希望它會發(fā)生，它永遠不會發(fā)生！

Instead, if you set it aside and come check back on it later, it will happen. This is likely because watching something too closely means that you miss big developments.

相反，如果你把它放在一邊，稍后再來查看，它就會發(fā)生。這可能是因為看得太近意味著你錯過了大的發(fā)展。

As a teacher, I tell my overeager parents that a watched pot never boils. After all, constantly having their parents hovering over them will make any child nervous!

作為一名老師，我告訴我那些過于熱情的父母，眼睜睜的鍋永遠不會沸騰。畢竟，不斷讓父母在他們身邊徘徊會讓任何孩子感到緊張！

Nancy was surprised to find that the police officers made almost all their progress on solving the case when she was not bothering them about it. She finally learned that it takes up the officers’ time if she kept asking questions, and that a watched pot never boils!南希驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)，警察在破案方面幾乎取得了所有的進展，而她卻不去打擾他們。她終于明白，如果她不停地問問題，會占用軍官們的時間，而且被監(jiān)視的鍋永遠不會沸騰！

12. Jump from the frying pan into the fire!

跳出油鍋又入火坑

If you are already in the frying pan, that means there is heat on you – or pressure to perform. If you go from a stressful situation to an environmental that is even more stressful – the fire – you go from a bad situation to a worse one.

如果你已經(jīng)在煎鍋里了，那就意味著你身上有熱氣，或者說有壓力。如果你從一個有壓力的環(huán)境變成一個更為有壓力的環(huán)境——火災——你就會從一個糟糕的環(huán)境變成一個更糟糕的環(huán)境。

Our working group avoided jumping from the frying pan into the fire when we decided to abandon the project that was not going well instead of spending more valuable time and resources to save it.

當我們決定放棄進展不順利的項目，而不是花費更多寶貴的時間和資源來挽救它時，我們的工作組避免了從煎鍋跳到火里。

His parents thought that sending Justin to live with his grandparents during the week would help reduce his stress in school. However, his grandparents put even more pressure on him to get great grades and become captain of the basketball and debate teams – asking him to jump from the frying pan into the fire!他的父母認為讓賈斯汀在一周內(nèi)和爺爺奶奶住在一起有助于減輕他在學校的壓力。然而，他的祖父母給了他更大的壓力，要他取得好成績，成為籃球隊和辯論隊的隊長——讓他從煎鍋里跳進火里！

（來源：網(wǎng)絡）