Progress Test 18. Use of English B2

The golden thread of a highly successful and meaningful life …      [was, has, is, had]self-discipline. Discipline allows you to do all those things you know in your heart you should do but never feel like doing.

Without self-discipline, you will not …             [acknowledge, set, acquire, obtain]clear goals, manage your time effectively, treat people well, persist through the tough times, care for your health or think positive thoughts.

I call the habit of self-discipline "Tough Love" because getting tough with yourself is actually a very loving gesture. …              [Having been, To be, By being] stricter with yourself, you will begin to live life more deliberately, on your own terms rather than simply reacting to life the way a leaf …                 [floated, floats, floating, having floated] in a stream drifts according to the flow of the current on a particular day.

The tougher you are on yourself, the easier life will be on you. The quality of your life ultimately …             [shapes, shaped, is shaped, has shaped] by the quality of your choices and decisions,

Mark Twain wrote that, "Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet …             [was shed, shed, being shed, had shed, sheds] on the heel that crushed it." Forgiveness is a great act of spirit and personal courage. It is also one of the best ways to …                   [to have elevated, elevate, being elevated] the quality of your life. I

The very thought of having your every behavior molded and …                    [being maintained, having maintained, maintained, maintaining]by training seems frighteningly impossible on one hand and utterly boring on the other.

Most people ultimately reach this conclusion but, …              [having seen, saw, seeing, has seen] no alternative, redouble their efforts at the impossible or quietly quit. Frustration shows up and resignation eventually sets in.

You don't need to be a disciplined person to be successful. In fact, you can become successful with …       [less, more]discipline than you think, for one simple reason: success is about …                   [being done, having been done, doing]the right thing, not about doing everything right.

The trick to success …          [has had, has, is, were]to choose the right habit and bring just enough discipline to establish it.

I don't want to sound too …              [furious, upset, biased, considerate], but I just want to speak for my little sister who has to deal with heartache alone after she broke …       [down, out, up]with a guy who left her nothing but a scar. I can't tell you what kind of scar.

If you love yourself enough, you will understand the meaning of life. When someone …              [had left, left, leaves, was leaving]you, you will have to make up your own mind. Wait for him or let his pictures …                [removing, to be removed, removed, be removed] from your memory store.

I know, sometimes you cannot remove them …              [easily, easy, much easier], but at least, you can hide them, can't you? You can and you should. Believe me, you can forget …        [that, this, these, those] bad things and move on.

I got a job …       [like, as] a waitress in a restaurant last fall. We worked …       [like, as] slaves.

He found a piece of wood …       [as, like]a telephone and used it …       [as, like] a hammer 🔨.

"You'll never change your life until you …               [will change, change, are changing, changed]something you do daily. The secret of your success …            [found, finds, is found, will find] in your daily routine.

" - John C. Maxwell

…                    [Being developed, To have developed, Developing, To be developed]a daily routine is super important. You must have some routine that you would follow.

Without a proper routine, you won't be consistent with your work. Some days, you would be motivated and work well; the rest of the days, you would …          [obtain, acquire, lack, amass] motivation, and you're going to procrastinate.

A daily routine would help you stay …             [sluggish, consistent, indolent, slothful].

Reflection is one of the most …            [underused, overused, required, requested] yet powerful tools for success. It is a passive way to …              [distract, pinpoint, thrive, distinguish] solutions and strategies with the least amount of effort or wasted energy.

It's the opposite of "trying too hard," of forcing an answer. Reflection is more a matter of …                 [having allowed, allowing, being allowed, allow] an answer to …             [arrange, accomplish, maintain, ambush, unfold] right before your eyes, often with little or no effort on your part.

One of the benefits of reflection is that it enables us to get our egos out of the way. In a quiet state of mind we are able to see things clearly, …               [had included, included, has included, including] our own contributions to problems, new ways of doing things, and the ways we get in our own way. Reflection allows us to sense our self-imposed limitations and some of the blind spots in our thinking.

One of the benefits of reflection is that it …                    [was enabling, had enabled, had been enabling, enables] is to get our egos out of the way. In a quiet state of mind we are able to see things clearly, …              [had included, included, has included, including] our own contributions to problems, new ways of doing things, and the ways we get in our own way. Reflection allows us to sense our self-imposed limitations and some of the blind spots in our thinking.

Reflection is simply a matter of getting out of your own way. It's about …               [enhancing, quieting, strengthing, revitalizing] down your mind so that answers can arise within the quietness. Often, when we're looking for an answer, we "turn up the volume" of our thinking. This might ..               [to be called, call, be called] active problem solving. We think, think, think—and then we think some more. We get personally …                  [having involved, involving, involved] in the process.

"We must all …                [contribute to, commit to, suffer from, devote to] one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret." - Jim Rohn

Self-discipline means doing the things that are good for your future but …           [had been, was, has, is] hard to do in the present. Going to the gym is hard, but sitting on the couch is easy.

"If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just …              [had got, was getting, gets, got] us to the wrong place faster." - Stephen Covey

Working for 12 hours …                [isn’t meaning, did not mean, does not mean]anything if you are working on the wrong things. You should work on things that move you toward your goals. Don't start …                [having climbed, climbing, being climbing, being climbed, to climb] a ladder and then halfway you look around and realise that you're climbing the wrong ladder.