Our school’s science festival just ended a few days ago. What interested me most was the time we spent making a car. It was made out of corrugated cardboard （瓦楞纸板）, but could still hold a ______ , and it could also move.

We were excited about this idea, but we found it hard to make the car. It seemed ______ for a cardboard car to carry someone. Our physics teacher showed us a video. There was some corrugated board shaped like “V” or “W” in the video. It could hold more weight. This gave us the idea to make the car after getting the proper materials.

Because there was not much time left for us, we ______ finish it as quickly as possible. We talked about how the car should be made and how to test it. We seldom had a chance to work together like this. I was glad that we were able to work ______ with each other. We were serious about our work but not worried. Everyone saw the work as an interesting way to ______ . When the car was finally finished, we all wore ______ on our faces and found that all our work had been worth （值得）it, even after spending whole afternoons working on it.

We ______ the competition after we finished the car. Though we didn’t win any prizes, we found something more meaningful than ______ . We learned new things about physics and learned how to get along with each other. I believe we will create more things in the future.

Self-disciplined (自律的) people are not all outstanding (杰出的) people. But nearly all outstanding people are self-disciplined people. Some of them read every day. Some of them never run late. The real difference between an elite person and an ordinary (普通的) person is that an elite person can manage his or her time well. That’s where their success comes from. What people call self-discipline is in fact self-management.

One example is staying fit. Never underestimate (低估) someone who is in good shape. Anyone who has ever tried to lose weight knows that it’s not easy. It’s even harder to avoid putting weight back on. If someone is in good shape, it shows that he knows the principles (原则) of staying fit and is able to stick to a plan that uses these principles.

If someone is in good shape, it means that this person is good at managing themselves and their time. Whether it is natural or acquired, it is a great skill. It also shows that this person is able to keep persevering (坚定不移的) and can balance long-term goals with short-term goals.

So if someone is in good shape, he or she is more than just healthy.

How do you learn self-management? First of all, set a goal and write down your reasons for wanting to achieve it. Create a list of all the things you need to do to achieve this goal and start to work on them one at a time. With self-discipline, small things in life will no longer trouble you. Only through self-discipline can you truly own your future.