56．随机应变

随机应变。随机应变源于头脑的敏捷与果断。有了这种活力与警觉，便不怕危险或灾难。有些人虽思虑良多，可做什么事最后都出差错；而有些人事先并无打算，却能达到自己的目的。确实有这样一种怪才，越是在紧急的情况下，越能发挥自己的能力。怪就怪在，他们随手所做之事都能成功，经过深思熟虑的事情反而都遭到失败。他们要么在当时就做好了事情，要么就永远做不好，对他们来说，不存在第二次机会。敏捷能够赢来赞赏，因为这证明了你有一种非凡的能力：判断精准，行为审慎。

56．Have presence of mind

Have presence of mind. This is the child of a happy promptitude of spirit. Owing to this vivacity and wide awakeness there is no fear of danger or mischance. Many reflect much only to go wrong in the end; others attain their aim without thinking of it beforehand. There are paradoxical characters who work best in an emergency. They are like monsters who succeed in all they do offhand, but fail in everything they think over. A thing occurs to them at once or never: for them there is no court of appeal. Celerity wins applause because it proves remarkable capacity: subtlety of judgment, prudence in action.