Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or V to indicate the correct answer to each of the question.
How busy is too busy? For some it means having to miss the occasional long lunch; for others, it means missing lunch altogether. For a few, it is not being able to take a "sickie" once a month. Then there is a group of people for whom working every evening and weekend is normal, and frantic is the tempo of their lives. For most senior executives, workloads swing between extremely busy and frenzied. The vice-president of the management consultancy AT Kearney and its head of telecommunications for the Asia-Pacific region, Neil Plumridge, says his work weeks vary from a “manageable” 45 hours to 80 hours, but average 60 hours.
Three warning signs alert Plumridge about his workload: sleep, scheduling and family. He knows he has too much on when he gets less than six hours of sleep for three consecutive nights; when he is constantly having to reschedule appointments; "and the third one is on the family side", says Plumridge, the father of a three-year-old daughter, and expecting a second child in October. "If I happen to miss a birthday or anniversary, I know things are out of control." Being "too busy" is highly subjective. But for any individual, the perception of being too busy over a prolonged period can start showing up as stress: disturbed sleep, and declining mental and physical health. National workers' compensation figures show stress causes the most lost time of any workplace injury. Employees suffering stress are off work an average of 16.6 weeks. The effects of stress are also expensive. Comcare, the Federal Government insurer, reports that in 2003-04, claims for psychological injury accounted for 7% of claims but almost 27% of claim costs. Experts say the key to dealing with stress is not to focus on relief - a game of golf or a massage - but to reassess workloads. Neil Plumridge says he makes it a priority to work out what has to change; that might mean allocating extra resources to a job, allowing more time or changing expectations. The decision may take several days. He also relies on the advice of colleagues, saying his peers coach each other with business problems. "Just a fresh pair of eyes over an issue can help," he says.
Executive stress is not confined to big organizations. Vanessa Stoykov has been running her own advertising and public relations business for seven years, specializing in work for financial and professional services firms, Evolution Media has grown so fast that it debuted on the BRW Fast 100 list of fastest-growing small enterprises last year - just after Stoykov had her first child. Stoykov thrives on the mental stimulation of running her own business. "Like everyone, I have the occasional day when I think my head's going to blow off," she says. Because of the growth phase the business is in, Stoykov has to concentrate on short-term stress relief - weekends in the mountains, the occasional "mental health" day -rather than delegating more work, She says: “We're hiring more people, but you need to train them, teach them about the culture and the clients, so it's actually more work rather than less.”
According to the last paragraph, what measure does Vanessa Stoykov take to reduce work stress?
A. delegating more work
B. taking brief vacations on weekends
C. hiring more people
D. allowing more time or changing expectations
Giải bởi qa.haylamdo.com
Đáp án B
Theo đoạn văn cuối, giải pháp nào mà Vanessa Stoykov đã thực hiện để làm giảm căng thẳng công việc?
A. giao phó nhiều việc hơn
B. đi nghỉ vào các cuối tuần
C. thuê thêm nhiều lao động
D. cho phép thêm thời gian hay thay đổi kì vọng
Từ khóa: measure j Vanessa Stoykov/ reduce work stress
Căn cứ thông tin đoạn 3:
"Because of the growth phase the business is in, Stoykov has to concentrate on short - term stress relief - weekends in the mountains, the occasional "mental health" day - rather than delegating more work. She says: “We’re hiring more people, but you need to train them, teach them about the culture and the clients, so it’s actually more work rather than less."
(Bởi vì đang là giai đoạn tăng trưởng của công việc kinh doanh, Stoykov phải tập trung vào việc giảm các áp lực ngắn hạn - những ngày cuối tuần ở vùng núi, thỉnh thoảng có một ngày chăm sóc sức khỏe tinh thần - hơn là giao phó thêm nhiều việc. Cô ấy cho biết: “chúng tôi đang thuê thêm rất nhiều người lao động, nhưng bạn cần phải đào tạo họ, dạy cho họ về văn hóa và khách hàng, vì vậy, đó thực sự là có nhiều việc hơn chứ không phải ít hơn”).
Cities in poorer countries often lack basic ______. Without it, they are unable to function properly as cities.
Hoang found it difficult to be in charge of the household _______.
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word (s) in each of the following questions.
Mary is planning to tie the knot with her German boyfriend next June.
I've been a night owl ______ up late for years, hitting the sheets anytime between 12 and 3 a.m.
My grandpa is the most conservative person in my family. He never______about way of life.
English teaching is considered a good example of a volunteer job which often turns ______ a career.
If you are an independent traveler, we can arrange a ______ tour.
Joe and I took ______ lunch together once ______ week, every Friday; unless he was out of ______ town.
Lan: “How can ordinary people help protect the environment?”
Nam: “__________________.”
We can also see the stone dragons of Kinh Thien Palace and relics associated with many Vietnamese royal families, ______ during archaeological excav ations.
As William Chopik, associate professor of psychology and author of the study says: “Friends are a conscious choice. Family relationships can be serious, negative and monotonous." The research included two studies - one a broad survey of nearly 300,000 people, aged between 15 and 99, from more than 90 countries. This study found that those (25) ______valued friendships highly were healthier and happier (according to their own reports), especially as they got older. The second study used data from a US survey of 7,481 people over 50. Subjects were questioned about the quality of their friendships - how much friends understood them and how much they let them down.
When friendships were reported as being stressful, people reported (26) ______ rates of disease. When friends were supportive, people were healthier. Most of the friendships were reported as being supportive. Family, (27) ______, were found to have little influence on an individual's health and wellbeing. Spouses and children had some effect, but not as much as friends.
Chopik says he isn't suggesting we ignore our families, but that friends make us feel better. With friends you are more likely (28) ______do activities - they provide an outlet. You can say things to friends and they are less judgmental. There is a distance there that provides a level of honesty." He says that cultivating good-quality friendships across our lives is beneficial - raising self-esteem and (29) ______against stress.
Điền vào số (27)
Mark the letter A, B, C, or 1J to indicate the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.
Economically disadvantaged students often drop out of school, choosing a low- paying job to earn money.
Hoang: “__________.”
Duc: “That's a good idea! Then we'll still have a couple of hours left.”
