只有不断挑战自己，我们才不会虚度青春。

原文英文

The root cause lies in our excessive leniency towards ourselves, allowing us to live too comfortably. We should appropriately “add some fire” to our lives. Here, “fire” refers to creating pressure and a sense of urgency, enabling our lives to burn brightly and driving us to rotate fully, like a high-speed windmill. As the saying goes, “Life is in motion.” The brain also needs exercise; only by using it frequently can we keep it sharp, whereas disuse leads to rust and growing laziness. If this continues, how can we expect to improve year by year? Life is essentially a race without a track; only by maintaining peak condition can we avoid being eliminated by society.

While “adding fire” to ourselves, we must also “add fire” to our lives. Become our own opponents by setting clear goals or creating a list of essential tasks for the year. Compare this year’s self with last year’s to identify where we have improved and what new skills we have acquired. This comparison provides motivation, making us stronger and more excellent each year. As an ancient poem states: “Year after year, the flowers look alike; year after year, people are different.” We should not merely age but strive to surpass last year in ability, knowledge, and insight. This is the true essence of being human, much like a tree that grows taller and larger each year.

We should aim to be a valuable apple tree: if we bore fifty fruits last year, let us strive for one hundred this year; if we gave fifty percent effort to our company last year, let us give one hundred percent this year. Only by constantly challenging ourselves and climbing higher peaks can we not waste our fleeting youth.