跟读练习: ZERO TO ONE by Peter Thiel | Core Message - 通过视频学习英语口语
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I recently read the book
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Zero to One by author Peter Thiel.
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Author Peter Thiel was the co -founder and CEO of PayPal, and in 2002, he sold PayPal to eBay for $1 .5 billion.
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After the sale, the original members of Peter Thiel's team at PayPal, people he personally hired and mentored,
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went on to create companies such as Yelp, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
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These billion -dollar companies have fundamentally changed the way we use the internet today.
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Based on the number of successful companies that
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Peter Thiel has influenced, it seems that he knows the secret to building a billion -dollar business and building a better future.
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After reading Peter Thiel's book, Zero to One, I've discovered three counterintuitive ways to think about starting a business and building a better future.
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First, bet on a contrarian truth.
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Try to answer the following question.
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What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
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Steve Jobs knew the truth about how we would use a smartphone in the future.
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Jobs knew that we didn't need or want a physical keyboard, but almost everyone at that time disagreed with him.
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Uber and Airbnb bet on the contrarian truth that you
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and I would be willing to get in a stranger's car or stay in a stranger's house.
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Netflix bet on the contrarian truth that most of us love to binge watch TV.
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The best answers to the contrarian question reveal a truth about how people will act in the future in ways
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that are either unwilling to admit right now or are unaware of.
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Now, why is it so important to bet your business on a contrarian truth?
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Well, if you don't, you'll be on the fast track to bankruptcy.
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Peter Thiel says, all failed companies are the same.
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They fail to escape competition.
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When you bet your business on a contrarian truth, you'll dramatically increase your odds of avoiding competition, mainly because most people will think you're crazy
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and ignore you long enough for you to build a significant lead in a particular market it
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that will make it hard for anyone to catch you.
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But here's a word of caution.
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Make sure you bet on a contrarian truth whose time has come.
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In the late 2000s, there was something called the Greentech Revolution.
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The Greentech Revolution was based on a contrarian truth
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that we would all go from non -renewable resources like oil and natural gas to renewable resources like solar and wind.
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It may have been and it still will be a truth of humanity, but it was a truth whose time hadn't come yet.
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Solar panel technology wasn't where it needed to be to make the green tech revolution feasible at that time.
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So before starting a business, ask yourself, is my success dependent on outworking the competition
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or being courageous enough to bet on a contrarian truth whose time has come?
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Counterintuitive business mindset number two.
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If you want to start a big business start by dominating a small market.
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When Jeff Bezos started Amazon, he had the idea of creating an everything store, but he didn't start by building an everything store.
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Instead, he focused on dominating a small niche market.
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That niche market was online book sales.
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It was a great initial market to dominate because all books are roughly the same size and shape, so they're easy to ship.
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Plus, book readers are a great target market because they're well -educated
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and typically have disposable income that they would be able to spend on future goods
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that Bezos would offer in his everything store.
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Because Jeff Bezos could dominate a small niche market,
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he could generate enough cash flow free of competition to help fund his expansion into adjacent markets like online CD
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and DVD sales, and he had the infrastructure in place to go on to dominate those markets.
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When starting your business, don't try to get 1 % of a billion -dollar market.
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Instead, try to get 80 % of a million -dollar market.
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Author Peter Thiel says, Whoever is first to dominate the most important segment of the
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market with viral potential will be the last mover in the whole market.
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Counterintuitive business mindset number three.
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Strive to be a monopoly.
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Now, you might be thinking, wait, aren't monopolies evil?
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Well, yes, a monopoly that bullies its competitors and takes advantage of its customers is evil.
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But most monopolies today actually don't act like that.
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Most monopolies are actually good for the world.
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Google has a search engine monopoly.
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And because of that monopoly, they can generate so much profit, which allows them to give back to society in a big way.
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If Google didn't have a search engine monopoly,
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do you think they would pursue projects like free internet for everyone or Google Maps and self -driving cars.
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When you establish a monopoly, you prevent the competition from eating away your profits, and that ensures that you stay in business.
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If you aim for anything short of being a monopoly, you're aiming to go out of business.
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There are four ways to become a monopoly and secure a high profit margin without bribing politicians or resorting to organized crime.
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To understand these four ways, just think of the big four.
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Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon.
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Monopoly method number one, brand association.
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What brand comes to mind when you think of an electronic device that makes you look fashionable?
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I'm guessing it's Apple.
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And if Apple is the first brand that most people think of
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when they consider buying a device that makes them look cool, it's tough for any other brand to compete in the market of fashionable consumer electronics.
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Monopoly method number two, proprietary technology.
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Why do the majority of people use Google instead of Bing?
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Well, personally, I use Google instead of Bing because I feel that my search results are 10 times better on Google.
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Since Google's algorithms are 10 times better than its competitor, and those algorithms are proprietary, it's nearly impossible to copy them and catch up to them.
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Monopoly method number three, network effects.
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Why do you use Facebook or Instagram over other new and probably better designed social media platforms?
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I'd guess it's because most of your friends are already on Facebook
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or Instagram and are unlikely to switch to a new platform.
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The more people on the Facebook or Instagram network, the harder it is to compete with them.
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Monopoly method number four, economies of scale.
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Why do you think that Amazon can offer free shipping on a hundred pound sofa
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when most furniture retailers charge you $50 to ship that same sofa?
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The answer is economies of scale.
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Because Amazon has such a large infrastructure in place and ships so many products, their fixed operating costs per item are incredibly low,
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which allows them to make more profit on each item and offset the cost of shipping,
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which makes it nearly impossible for smaller retailers to compete with them.
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So in the end, if you want to create a high growth company and build a better future,
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bet on a contrarian truth whose time has come, and then build a big business around that truth by first trying to dominate a small market.
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Once you've proven that you can dominate a small market, expand to adjacent markets,
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and set your sights on becoming a monopoly of a much broader market by either achieving brand association like Apple, using proprietary technology like Google,
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building a superior network like Facebook, or reducing your costs through economies of scale like Amazon.
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That was the core message that I gather from zero to one by Peter Thiel.
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This book is essential reading for any aspiring entrepreneur.
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I highly recommend it.
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If you would like a one -page PDF summary of insights that I gathered from this book, including the seven questions that every entrepreneur must ask,
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just click the link below and I'd be happy to email it to you.
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If you've already subscribed to the free
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Productivity Game email newsletter, this PDF is sitting in your inbox.
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If you like this video, please share it.
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And as always, thanks for watching and have yourself a productive week.
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本课的词汇与口语要点
这节口语课以视频“ZERO TO ONE by Peter Thiel”为素材。 视频中反复出现的词有:truth, monopoly, contrarian, bet, Google。 这段视频共有 101 个句子、1364 个单词可供跟读。 讲话部分时长为 8:04。 说话人语速自然,每分钟约 169 个词,接近日常对话。 82% 的单词属于英语最常用的 3,000 词,其余的词建议在练习前先学一下。
视频中的重点词汇
视频中 15 个值得学习的单词,附发音和释义:
| 单词 | 发音 | 释义 |
|---|---|---|
| monopoly 名词 | /məˈnɑpəli/ | 專賣 /专卖 |
| dominate 动词 | /ˈdɑ.məˌneɪt/ | 主宰, 宰制 |
| compete 动词 | /kəmˈpiːt/ | 競爭 /竞争, 高下 |
| proprietary 形容词 | /pɹəˈpɹaɪ.ə.tə.ɹi/ | 業主的 /业主的, 專賣的 /专卖的 |
| infrastructure 名词 | /ˈɪnfɹəˌstɹʌkt͡ʃə/ | 基礎設施 /基础设施 |
| resource 名词 | /ɹɪˈzɔːs/ | 資源 /资源 |
| adjacent 形容词 | /əˈd͡ʒeɪ.sənt/ | 鄰近的 /邻近的, 毗鄰的 /毗邻的 |
| algorithm 名词 | /ˈælɡəɹɪðm̩/ | 算法, 演算法 |
| entrepreneur 名词 | /ˌɑn.tɹə.pɹəˈnɝ/ | 企業家 /企业家 |
| renewable 形容词 | /ɹɪˈnu.ə.bl̩/ | 可再生 |
| mindset 名词 | /ˈmaɪn(d)ˌsɛt/ | 心態 /心态, 思維模式 /思维模式 |
| competitor 名词 | /kəmˈpɛt.ɪ.tɚ/ | 競爭者 /竞争者, 比賽者 /比赛者 |
| sofa 名词 | /ˈsoʊ̯fə/ | 沙發 /沙发, 沙發椅 /沙发椅 |
| retailer 名词 | /ˈɹiteɪlɚ/ | 零售商 |
| fashionable 形容词 | /ˈfæʃənəbl̩/ | 時髦 /时髦, 風靡 /风靡 |
需要注意的发音
说话人用了 21 次缩略和弱读形式,例如 didn't, don't, I'd。请按听到的简短形式来说。
- “th” 音: gather /ˈɡæðɚ/, algorithm /ˈælɡəɹɪðm̩/
- “sh” 和 “zh” 音: fashionable /ˈfæʃənəbl̩/, establish /ɪˈstæb.lɪʃ/, politician /ˌpɑ.ləˈtɪʃ.ən/, caution /ˈkɔːʃ(ə)n/
- 长单词——注意重音位置: monopoly /məˈnɑpəli/, proprietary /pɹəˈpɹaɪ.ə.tə.ɹi/, infrastructure /ˈɪnfɹəˌstɹʌkt͡ʃə/, entrepreneur /ˌɑn.tɹə.pɹəˈnɝ/, competitor /kəmˈpɛt.ɪ.tɚ/
中文母语者容易读错的音:
- /v/ — 不要读成 /w/,上齿轻触下唇: reveal /ɹɪˈviːl/, discover /dɪˈskʌvə/, productive /pɹəˈdʌk.tɪv/, productivity /ˌpɹɒdʌkˈtɪvəti/, viral /ˈvaɪɹəl/
- 词尾辅音 — 要读清楚,后面不要加元音: dominate /ˈdɑ.məˌneɪt/, compete /kəmˈpiːt/, niche /nɪt͡ʃ/, resource /ɹɪˈzɔːs/, generate /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.ɹeɪt/
- /r/ 和 /l/ 的区别: algorithm /ˈælɡəɹɪðm̩/, renewable /ɹɪˈnu.ə.bl̩/, retailer /ˈɹiteɪlɚ/, reveal /ɹɪˈviːl/, incredibly /ɪŋˈkɹɛdɪbli/
如何用这段视频练习
- 先完整听一遍视频,不要开口,记下不认识的单词。
- 先用 0.75 倍速逐句跟读,熟练之后再回到正常速度。
- 录下自己的声音并与原声对比,特别注意 monopoly, dominate, compete 这类单词。
什么是跟读法?
跟读法 (Shadowing) 是一种有科学依据的语言学习技巧,最初开发用于专业口译员的培训,并由多语言者Alexander Arguelles博士普及。这个方法简单而强大:您在听英语母语原声的同时立即大声重复——就像是一个延迟1-2秒紧跟说话者的影子。与被动听力或语法练习不同,跟读法强迫您的大脑和口腔肌肉同时处理并模仿真实的讲话模式。研究表明它能显着提高发音准确性,语调,节奏,连读,听力理解和口语流利度——使其成为雅思口语备考和真实英语交流最有效的方法之一。













