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閱讀理解
One of the best decisions you can make in your twenties is to explore．Exploring postcollege choices looks a lot like being lost; in fact, being lost is normal and productive at this stage in life．
In the past, people were penalized(處罰)for getting lost．For example, dropping out of high school for a year to explore made colleges think you were hospitalized for mental instability．But it's a different story today．Right after college, you don't get dinged(教訓)for taking time off．Most graduate and professional schools today would prefer the students who take time to go away, have different experiences, and then come back refocused．
Why is there so much respect for exploration? Part of the reason is that there is no better way of figuring out what will make you happy．“We are not very good at using our imaginations when it comes to how we'll feel in a given circumstance,” says Daniel Gilbert, a professor of psychology at Harvard University．Therefore, he recommends that we test out a lot of different careers．He admits that this method takes time, but he says it's worth it because otherwise you're likely to make a decision based on money, which does not always lead to happiness．
What about the people who pull their life together in a tight little package by age twenty－fou? They're the exception to the rule, according to Wayne Osgood, a professor of sociology at Pennsylvania State University．He labels these people “fast starters” and explains that they are only about 12 percent of the population．Some fast starters are just plain lucky：they love the first job they get after college．The other 88 percent of us have to march through our twenties formulating(規(guī)劃)a new career plan．
The good news is that this is what most people are doing in their twenties：wandering, taking trips, changing jobs every year, volunteering for unpaid work while living at their parents' house, and starting businesses that fail．All these choices are, surprisingly, right on track for making a good decision about what to do with yourself in adult life．
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