defines a TEDster

其中一個

is you've taken your passion,

定義TED成員的特點

and you've turned it into stewardship.

就是你有熱情，

You actually put action to the issues you care about.

而且將其轉化為責任感。

But what you're going to find eventually is

你確實為了你所關注的問題採取行動，

you may need to actually get elected officials

但是你終究會發現，

to help you out.

你可能需要找被選舉出來的官員

So, how do you do that?

來幫助你。

One of the things I should probably tell you is,

那麼，你該怎麼做？

I worked for the Discovery Channel early in my career,

有件事我可能應該向你們交代一下，

and that sort of warped my framework.

就是早期我曾經在Discovery頻道工作，

So, when you start to think about politicians,

在那兒我的思維方式有點被帶壞了。

you've got to realize these are strange creatures.

因此，當你開始琢磨政客，

Other than the fact that they can't tell directions,

你必須要體認到他們是一種古怪的動物。

and they have very strange breeding habits,

除了沒有方向感，

how do you actually work with these things? (Laughter)

他們的繁殖方式也很奇特，

What we need to understand is:

你怎麼和這類動物共事呢？

What drives the political creature?

我們需要知道的是：

And there are two things that are primary in a politician's heart:

什麽東西可以驅使這些政治動物？

One is reputation and influence.

在一個政客心裡，最重要的有兩件事。

These are the primary tools by which

第一，是名聲和影響力。

a politician can do his job.

這是最基本的工具，

The second one -- unlike most animals,

政客得靠這些才能工作。

which is survival of the species --

第二，和大多數動物不同的是，

this is preservation of self.

別的動物重視的是族群的生存，

Now you may think it's money,

政客重視的則是保護自己。

but that's actually sort of a proxy

你可能以為他們需要的是錢，

to what I can do to preserve myself.

但錢只不過是種媒介，

Now, the challenge with you moving your issue forward

有了錢我就可以保護自己。

is these animals are getting broadcast to all the time.

現在，要使你的提議有進展，你所面對的挑戰是

So, what doesn't work, in terms of getting your issue to be important?

每天都有人在報導這些動物。

You can send them an email.

究竟是什麽讓你的提案顯得不重要呢？

Well, unfortunately, I've got so many

你可以給他們發電子郵件。

Viagra ads coming at me,

呃，不幸地是，我收到了太多

your email is lost.

威而剛廣告，

It doesn't matter, it's spam.

您的郵件被淹沒了。

How about you get on the phone?

那不重要，那是垃圾郵件。

Well, chances are I've got a droid who's picking up the phone,

那您打個電話如何？

"Yes, they called, and they said they didn't like it."

呃，其實我找了個呆瓜接聽電話，

That doesn't move.

“是的，他們來電話了，他們說他們不滿意。”

Face to face would work,

這樣也沒用。

but it's hard to set it up.

面對面談也許有用，

It's hard to get the context and actually get the communication to work.

但是很難安排。

Yes, contributions actually do make a difference

尤其很難找到合適的場合，讓溝通起作用。

and they set a context for having a conversation,

是的，捐款確實有不同效果，

but it takes some time to build up.

而且他們也創造了談話的背景，

So what actually works?

但是需要花時間去落實。

And the answer is rather strange.

那麼什麽才是真正有效的？

It's a letter.

答案很奇怪。

We live in a digital world,

是寫信。

but we're fairly analog creatures.

我們活在一個數位世界，

Letters actually work.

但我們卻是非常重感情的生物。

Even the top dog himself

書信確實有效果。

takes time every day to read 10 letters

即便是領頭狗(總統)自己，

that are picked out by staff.

每天也要看10封信。

I can tell you that every official that I've ever worked with

當然是經過手下挑選的。

will tell you about the letters they get

我可以告訴你，每一個與我工作過的官員

and what they mean.

都會跟你說起他們收到過的信件，

So, how are you going to write your letter?

以及這些信的意義。

First of all, you're going to pick up an analog device: a pen.

那麼，你該如何寫好這封信？

I know these are tough, and you may have a hard time

首先，你要拿起一個可以產生感情的設備，一隻筆。

getting your hand bent around it, (Laughter)

我知道這事不容易，而且你也可能很難

but this is actually critical.

讓你的手打彎握住一隻筆，

And it is critical that

但是這是非常關鍵的。

you actually handwrite your letter.

之所以關鍵是因為

It is so novel to see this,

你是用手在寫信。

that somebody actually picked up an analog device

多新奇啊，

and has written to me.

有人真的拿起一個可以產生感情的設備，

Second of all, I'm going to recommend that

而且還給我寫信。

you get into a proactive stance

其次，我建議，

and write to your elected officials at least once a month.

你要採取主動，

Here's my promise to you:

至少每月一次給你選出的官員寫封信。

If you are consistent and do this,

我向你保證，

within three months the elected official will start calling you

如果你持之以恆，

when that issue comes up and say, "What do you think?"

在三個月內，這個官員就會打電話找你，

Now, I'm going to give you

當他碰到相關的問題時，他就會問你“你怎麼看？”

a four paragraph format to work with.

現在，我要給你們

Now, when you approach these animals,

一個四段落的格式。

you need to understand there's a dangerous end to them,

當你接觸這些動物時，

and you also need to approach them

你要瞭解，他們也有危險的地方，

with some level of respect and a little bit of wariness.

你在靠近他們的時候要保持

So in paragraph number one,

某種程度的尊重和一些警覺。

what I'm going to tell you to do is very simply this:

因此，在第一段，

You appreciate them.

我要告訴你們的非常簡單，就是

You may not appreciate the person, you may not appreciate anything else,

讚賞他們。

but maybe you appreciate the fact that they've got a tough gig.

你可以不讚賞這個人，或者別的什麽，

When animals are going to make a point, they make the point.

但也許你該讚賞一個事實，就是他們重任在身。

They don't spend a lot of time dicking around.

當這些動物特別重視某事時，他們直奔主題。

So, here you go. (Laughter)

他們不會花時間繞圈子。

Paragraph number two:

所以，就是這樣。

You may actually have to just get very blunt

第二段，

and say what's really on your mind.

你可以真正地直言不諱，

When you do this,

說說你真正在意的事。

don't attack people;

當你說的時候，

you attack tactics.

不要對人，

Ad hominem attacks will get you nowhere.

只是對事。

Paragraph number three:

人身攻擊不會有任何效果。

When animals are attacked or cornered,

第三段：

they will fight to the death,

當這些動物受到攻擊或被逼到絕路，

so you have to give them an exit.

他們會抵死反抗，

Most of the time, if they have an exit strategy, they should take it.

所以你必須給他們一個退路。

"Obviously, you're intelligent.

大多數時候，如果給他們一個退路，他們一般都會接受。

If you had the right information,

（假裝寫信的內容：）“顯然，以您的聰明才智，

you would have done the right thing." (Laughter)

如果您得到正確情報，

Lastly, you want to be the nurturing agent.

您肯定會把事辦好。”

You're the safe place to come in to.

最後，你要扮演教養者的角色。

So, in paragraph number four,

你是一個可以投奔的安全所在。

you're going to tell people,

因此，在第四段，

"If no one is providing you with this information, let me help." (Laughter)

你要告訴他們，

Animals do displays. They do two things:

“如果沒人向您提供這個訊息，讓我來幫助您。”

They warn you or they try to attract you

動物會主動表現自己，這表示兩件事，

and say, "We need to mate."

要麼是警告你，要麼是試圖吸引你，

You're going to do that by the way you sign your letter.

告訴你“來約會吧。”

You do a number of things: you're a vice president,

你表現的方式就是在信上署名。

you volunteer, you do something else.

你做過很多事，你是一個副總裁，

Why is is this important?

你做過義工，你還做過別的什麽。

Because this establishes the two

爲什麽署名這麼重要？

primary criteria for the political creature:

因為這樣就符合

that you have influence in a large sphere,

對政治動物而言的兩個重要準則，

and that my preservation depends on you.

即你有廣泛的影響力，

Here is one very quick hack,

以及我的生存仰賴於你。

especially for the feds in the audience.

還有一個小竅門，

Here's how you mail your letter.

尤其針對在座的聯邦政府官員。

First of all, you send the original to the district office.

你應該這樣郵寄你的書信。

So, you send the copy to the main office.

首先，你把正本郵寄到地區辦公室，

If they follow protocol, they'll pick up the phone and say, "Hey, do you have the original?"

然後把副本寄到他的上級單位。

Then some droid in the back puts the name on a tickler

如果他們照章辦事，他們會拿起電話問，“你那兒有正本嗎？”

and says, "Oh, this is an important letter."

然後裡頭某個呆瓜就會在貼紙上寫上名字，

And you actually get into the folder

說，“哦，這是一封很重要的信。”

that the elected official actually has to read.

這樣你的信就真的被放到

So, what your letter means:

官員會看到的公文匣裡了。

I've got to tell you, we are all in a party,

那麼，你的信有啥意義呢？

and political officials are the pinatas.

我必須告訴你，我們都是在一個大派對裡，

(Laughter)

而政治動物就是PINATAS

We are harangued, lectured to,

（PINATAS:陶土或紙做成的彩罐，裝有糖果或禮物，高吊起來，讓蒙著眼睛的人用棒子打碎）（觀眾笑聲）

sold, marketed,

我們老是聽到長篇大論，滔滔不絕，

but a letter is actually one of the few times

老王賣瓜，自賣自誇。

that we have honest communication.

但是一封信是真正少有的機會，

I got this letter when I was first elected,

讓我們可以坦誠的溝通。

and I still carry it to

在我第一次當選時收到了這樣一封信，

every council meeting I go to.

而且我至今仍帶著它，

This is an opportunity at real dialogue,

出席每次議會。

and if you have stewardship

這才是真正對話的機會。

and want to communicate,

而如果你有責任感，

that dialogue is incredibly powerful.

想要溝通，

So when you do that, here's what I can promise:

這種對話的力量之大令人難以相信。

You're going to be the 800 pound gorilla in the forest.

因此，當你這樣做時，我可以保證；

Get writing.

你將成為雨林裡800磅重的大猩猩。

(Applause)

動手寫信吧。