转载SAT范文：Are people more likely to be productive and successful when they ignore the opinions of others?

Are people more likely to be productive and successful when they ignore the opinions of others?
In the highly competitive environment we live in today, only those individuals with a strong personal point of view and persistence in following the path they have chosen for themselves manage to rise to the top. However, I believe that even these strong-minded individuals would not hesitate to attribute some of their success to the advice and opinions of others, for without learning from others’ experiences and insights, we risk becoming narrow-minded and isolated.
A perfect example of a man who ignored the opinions of others and thus contributed to his own downfall can be found in Shakespeare’s play, “Julius Caesar”. After having successfully carried out their plan to assassinate Caesar and end “tyranny”, Cassius urges Brutus to kill off Antony, Caesar’s loyal friend, as well. He advises Brutus against allowing Antony to speak at Caesar’s funeral, and in the battle against Antony, counsels Brutus to keep his armies at Camp Sardis rather than advance to Philippi. Brutus ignores Cassius’ advice on all three occasions, and his obduracy, though based on his lofty principles and self-proclaimed moral integrity, is to his detriment: Antony survives, riles up the Romans against Brutus and Cassius using emotionally manipulative rhetoric, and eventually defeats Brutus’ army at Philippi.
Jo, heroine of Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women” manages to avoid making Brutus’ mistake. Her prowess as a writer evident from an early age, she decides to turn her literary skills towards churning out short stories, each more sensational than the previous; she smothers any guilt she may feel about writing on such lurid subject matters by reminding herself that each paycheck for each story goes towards paying her family’s debts. However, her father and Professor Bhaer, the two men she esteems the most, both tell her that she “can do better”, and heeding their advice, Jo finally pens a story which, though it brings her no pecuniary income, satisfies her family, her friends and her own soul to the brim.
Learning to swallow one’s pride and listen to the opinions of others is one of the most important factors of success in any field, whether in Brutus’ case of political and military strategy, or in Jo’s case of moral instruction. Of course, one must learn not to be beaten down by the hurtful criticisms everyone will encounter in life, but when someone has deep, meaningful advice to give and has your best interests at heart, to listen is to show humility by gratefully accepting the assistance, and to show that despite having strong personal views, you are open-minded enough to understand that there are always others out there who are more experienced and knowledgeable than you are. As Isaac Newton so aptly put it, “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”[anti-both]