When Boris left school, he could not find a job. He tried hard and pestered his relatives, but they had problems of their own. He answered advertisements until he could not afford to buy any more stamps. More than twenty chief clerks told him in different ways that they were sorry but that there were no vacancies. Some commented on his lack of education; others told him to try again later, thinking that they had got rid of him.
Boris grew annoyed, then depressed, then a little hardened. Still he went on trying and still he failed. He began to think that he had no future at all.
“Why don't you start your own business?” one of his uncles told him. “The world is a money-locker. You'd better find a way of opening it.”
“But what can I do?”
“Get out and have a look round,” advised his uncle in a vague sort of way. “See what people want; then give it to them, and they will pay for it.”
Boris began to cycle around the town and found a suitable piece of a waste ground in the end. Then he set up his business as a cycle repairer. He worked hard, made friends with his customers and gradually managed to build up his goodwill and profit. After a few months, he saved enough money to be able to buy various accessories which he displayed at his site. A few months later, he found that he had more work than he could deal with by himself. He found a number of empty shops but they were all no good: in the wrong position, too expensive or with some other snag. But at long last, he managed to find an empty shop on a new estate where there were plenty of customers but no competition.
Boris and his assistant taught themselves how to repair scooters and motor-cycles. Slowly but surely the profits increased and the business developed.
At last, Boris had managed to open the money-locker and found bank notes and gold coins inside.
【助读词汇】
-pester v. 使烦恼，纠缠
-vacancy n. 空缺
-goodwill n.（商业）信誉
-accessories n. 零件
-snag n. 障碍，困难
-estate n. 土地，地皮
-scooter n. 小型摩托车，（儿童用）踏板车
【参考译文】
波利斯毕业后找不到工作。他很努力，还去劳烦自己的亲戚，但是他们也有自己的难处。他给招聘广告写信直到买不起邮票。超过二十多个公司招聘人员以不同方式告诉他，他们很抱歉没有空缺。有的说他学历不够，有的叫他过段时间再来，其实只是想摆脱他。
波利斯开始很烦躁，后来很沮丧，最后有点麻木了。尽管如此他还是不停努力，可还是失败连连。他开始想自己是不是没有未来可言。
“你为什么不自己创业？”他的一个叔叔对他说，“这个世界就是一个钱柜。你最好找到打开它的方法。”
“但我该怎么做呢？”
“走出去看看，”他叔叔提出了一个不是很明确的建议，“看看人们需要什么，然后满足他们，他们就会为此付钱。”
波利斯骑着自行车绕着他居住的这个城镇转，最后找到了一块很合适的空地。他开始做起修单车的生意。他干活很卖力，和顾客交朋友，慢慢有了信誉和收益。几个月后他攒够了钱买了很多配件放在摊位边。又过了几个月，他发现活多得自己一个人应付不过来了。他看了几个店面，但是都不合意：有的地段不对，有的太贵，还有的则有其他一些不令人满意的地方。但是后来他终于在一块新地皮上找到一个空店面，客源很足，又没有竞争对手。
波利斯和他的助手自学怎么修小绵羊和摩托车。慢慢地但很稳定地收入越来越多，生意也越做越大。
最后波利斯打开了这个钱柜，发现了里面的支票和金币。
【人生启迪】
世界就是一个钱柜，有些人却永远找不到打开它的钥匙，因为他们在失败面前屈服了。人生就是一连串的战斗，也就意味着一连串的失败，没有人能常胜不败。虽然有时我们会屡战屡败，但只有屡败屡战的勇士才能找到钱柜的钥匙。