a) 工作狂
b) 精疲力竭
c) 工作與生活平衡

Are you an incurable a) workaholic, enjoying telling others how “busy” you are and how much you “have to do?” Well, you might have been burning the candle at both ends. Now it’s time to put an end to this unhealthy work habit. There is a magic time-management system that allows you to work only 16.7 hours per week, and accomplish more.
你是無可救藥的工作狂嗎？總是忙到不行，事情堆積如山？那麼你可能正在蠟燭兩頭燒。現在亡羊補牢，為時未晚。有一套神奇的時間管理方法，可讓你每周只工作16.7個小時，卻能完成更多工作。

The Pomodoro Technique comes with the following four basic principles.
1. Work with time, not against it: Many of us live as if time is our enemy, 1) racing against the clock to finish assignments.
2. Eliminate b) burnout: Taking short, scheduled breaks eliminates the “running on fumes” feeling you get when you push yourself too hard.
3. Manage distractions: In life, distractions constantly bombard us, like phone calls or Facebook messages. We need to tackle them wisely. 
4. Create a better c) work-life balance: As a Pomodoro master, you create an effective timetable and achieve your high-priority tasks, so you truly enjoy your time off.
「番茄工作法」包含四大原則：
一、 時間是友非敵：人們往往將時間看成敵人，試圖與時間賽跑來完成工作。
二、 消除精疲力竭：安排小歇片刻的時間，可避免精疲力竭還在苦撐。
三、 管理雜事：生活中常遇到各種雜務，例如接聽電話或處理臉書訊息。我們應該明智地管理雜事。
四、 增進工作生活平衡：熟悉「番茄工作法」後，便可制定有效時間表來完成工作，進而享受閒暇時間。

Right now. you're probably thinking: “This all sounds great, but what on earth do I actually do?” It's actually quite simple:
1. Choose a task (just ONE task at a time);
2. Set a kitchen timer (or an app) for 25 minutes;
3. Work on your task until the timer rings, then put a checkmark on a tracking sheet;
4. Take a five-minute break (you just completed your first Pomodoro!); then
5. Repeat steps 1-4 three more times, followed by a 15-minute break.
此時你大概在想：「聽起來很誘人，但到底該如何進行？」其實很簡單：
一、 挑選一項工作（一次只能一項）；
二、 在廚房計時器（或手機應用程式）設定25分鐘；
三、 工作到計時器響起，然後在紙上打一個勾；
四、 小歇5分鐘（你剛完成第一階段的「番茄工作法」！）；然後
五、 重覆步驟1-4另三次，之後休息15分鐘。

Twenty-five minutes of work sounds like 2) a breeze. However, that's 25 minutes of steady, focused work on one task. Multitasking is not allowed. So, you'd better switch to airplane mode on your smartphone.
一次工作25分鐘，聽起來易如反掌。然而這可是25分鐘穩定而專注的工作，禁止一心多用。最好連手機都設定為飛航模式。

You can start with five Pomodoros per day and gradually work your way up to an ideal eight Pomodoros (40 Pomodoros per week). In addition, remember to move from a stressful five-day workweek, where you have to stop work by 5 p.m., to a more flexible, relaxed seven-day workweek, where you could work when it suits you.
一開始，每天做5個「番茄」就好，然後逐漸增至8個「番茄」（等於一周40個「番茄」）。此外，記得從一周5個工作天的制度，改成一周7個工作天，因為前者迫使你在下午5點停止工作，導致時間緊迫，壓力太大，而後者更有彈性，任何合適的時間皆可工作。

譯註：義大利文pomodoro乃「番茄」之意，「番茄工作法」之命名，源自於廚房計時器常做成番茄形狀。

口語詞彙:
1 Race against time/the clock  與時間賽跑
race 是「競賽」的意思，尤指速度方面的比賽 。
They're racing against the clock to get the new plant finished before the rainy season sets in. 他們正在與時間賽跑，盼能在雨季前完成新工廠的興建。

2 A breeze  易如反掌
「一陣微風」與a piece of cake的含義相似，形容事情極為容易。
Installing the program on your computer is actually quite a breeze. 將該程式安裝在電腦上，其實一點也不難。

1. I hope that I were you. 我希望自己就是你。
2. Helen often hears music at home. 海倫在家經常聽音樂。
3. Bill’s death gave his parents infinite ache. 比爾的死讓他的雙親悲痛萬分。
4. The police accused that guy with man slaughter. 警察以過失殺人的罪名起訴那個人。
5. Is Mary old? She is in fact only twenty-eight years old. 瑪麗老嗎？她其實只有28歲。

1. I wish that I were you. hope和wish雖然都用來表達「希望」，但用法大相同：前者的「希望」有可能實現，後者則幾乎不可能
2. Helen often listens to music at home. hear和listen都是「聽」的意思，但前者是指自然就會聽到，後者則是在某段時間專注地聆聽，如聽音樂。
3. Bill’s death gave his parents infinite pain. ache和pain皆是「痛、疼痛」之意，pain有時亦可指身體特定部位的疼痛，然而ache卻很少指精神上的痛苦。
4. The police charged that guy with man slaughter. accuse和charge雖都可解釋為「指控、控告」，但前者多半用於平常人對另一人的控訴，不一定有犯罪的成分；而charge則是用於警察、法官持有一定證據時，對犯罪者提出的控訴。
5. Is Mary old? She is actually only twenty-eight years old. in fact和actually都譯為「其實、事實上」，但兩者用法不同，前者用來補充說明前面的句子，後者則用於更正，因此本句用actually較精準。