选择能够获得殊荣的行业。大部分事情都要靠他人是否满意来决定其好坏。如美丽的花朵需要春风助力才有生机一样,你的卓越需要别人的尊重:有些职业为众人尊敬;也有些职业尽管更为重要,却没有名誉。前者有目共睹,人人向往;后者罕见而更为珍贵,更有价值,可惜始终默默无闻,虽可敬,却无人喝彩。君主之中,有战功之人最受赞颂,阿拉恭(1)诸王正是凭此为人称颂为“勇士”、“征服者”、“伟人”。能人应该选择有名且有用的显赫职业——众心所向,才能永垂不朽。
Choose an occupation that wins distinction. Most things depend on the satisfaction of others. Esteem is to excellence what the zephyr is to flowers: the breath of life. There are some callings which gain universal esteem, while others more important are without credit. The former, pursued before the eyes of all, obtain the universal favour; the others, though they are rarer and more valuable, remain obscure and unperceived, honoured but not applauded. Among princes conquerors are the most celebrated, and therefore the kings of Aragon earned such applause as warriors, conquerors, and great men. An able man will prefer occupations of distinction which all men know of and utilize, and he thus becomes immortalized by universal suffrage.
(1) 指位于西班牙东北部的一个古国。