傷不起的“跳槽族”

Timothy： Hey， Serena！

Serena： Hi， Timothy.

Timothy： So？ How did it go？

Serena： You mean the job interview？ It was fine， I guess. They offered me the job.

Timothy： That’s great！ Congratulations！ Did you take it？

Serena： ①I told them I’d sleep on it.

Timothy： What？ Why？ I thought this was your ideal job.

Serena： ②It seems like it is， but it also comes with strings attached. Specifically， a five-year 1）commitment.

Timothy： A five-year contract？ What’s wrong with that？③Five years of guaranteed employment is nothing to sneeze at！ Besides， they’re willing to commit to you for five years. That says something about your qualifications.

Serena： Thanks， Tim. You’re always very 2）supportive.④The problem is， I’m not sure if I want to commit to them for five years.

Timothy： Ah， I see. ⑤You’re afraid of betting on the wrong horse.

Serena： I guess you could put it like that. ⑥I think of it more like hedging my bets. The first five years of your career are supposed to be the most important， you know.

Timothy： Right. So， if you find out later that this company is not the right fit for you， you don’t want to have signed your life away to it already.

Serena： Exactly. I’d prefer to sign a two-year contract so that I can try it out first， get my feet wet， and have the option of jumping ship if it’s not going well.

Timothy： That’s smart. I guess I can see both sides， though.

Serena： See both sides？ What do you mean？

Timothy： ⑦Put yourself in the company’s shoes. They want people who can follow projects in the long-term.

Serena： Of course. If I sign on with them， they want to know that they can count on me. They don’t want to train me and bring me up to speed， only to have to do it all over again with some new hire two years later.

Timothy： And you should also think about your own resume， too. Serena： How so？

Timothy： If you keep switching jobs， then your resume will be full of short-term， entry-level positions. That’ll make it harder to be qualified for your dream

job later on.

Serena： I hadn’t thought of that.

Timothy： And even if the conditions are not ideal， the labor market is tough these days. ⑧You know what they say： a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush！

Serena： Seems like there are tons of pros and cons here. Good thing I told them I’d sleep on it.

Timothy： Don’t worry about it too much. ⑨No matter what choice you make， the most important thing is how you follow up on it.

Serena： True. Whether at this company or another one， my success will come out of my own hard work.

Timothy： That’s the spirit！ Let me know when you make the choice tomorrow.

Serena： Of course！

蒂莫西：嘿，塞麗娜！

塞麗娜：嗨，蒂莫西。

蒂莫西：那么，怎么樣啦？

塞麗娜：你是指面試嗎？我想還順利。他們給了我一份工作。

蒂莫西：那太好了！恭喜！你接受了嗎？

塞麗娜：我告訴他們我先考慮下再決定。

蒂莫西：什么？為什么？我以為這是你理想的工作。

塞麗娜：看起來是這樣的，但是（這份工作）也有附加條件。具體來說，一份五年合同的約束。

蒂莫西：一份五年的合同？這有什么問題呢？五年有保障的雇傭不容輕視！此外，他們給你五年的承諾，證明你有一定的資格。

塞麗娜：謝謝，蒂莫西，你總是很支持我。但問題是，我不確定自己是否會給他們五年的承諾。

蒂莫西：啊，我懂了。你害怕作錯選擇。

塞麗娜：我想你可以這樣認為。我更認為這是在回避風險。你知道，一個人職業生涯的頭五年是最重要的。

蒂莫西：對。所以，如果你以后發現這家公司并不適合你，你不想自己已經綁在這里了。

塞麗娜：沒錯。我更愿意簽一份兩年的合同，這樣我可以先嘗試下，開始接觸這份工作，如果不太順利我還能有跳槽的機會。

蒂莫西：這很明智。但是我能看到兩個方面。

塞麗娜：看到兩個方面？你什么意思？

蒂莫西：設身處地地為那家公司想想，他們想要能夠長期跟進項目的人。

塞麗娜：當然。如果我和他們簽約，他們就希望能夠信賴我。他們不想迅速地把我培養起來，兩年后卻又要對新人重做一遍。

蒂莫西：你也應該想想自己的簡歷。

塞麗娜：為什么？

蒂莫西：如果你不斷換工作，那么你的簡歷上就會只有一些短期、入門級的職位，這樣你以后會更難應聘你的理想工作。

塞麗娜：我沒有想過這個問題。

蒂莫西：即使工作條件不太理想，但是現在的就業市場很嚴峻。你知道人們怎么說嗎：一鳥在手勝于雙鳥在林。

塞麗娜：看起來這里有很多利弊。幸虧我告訴他們考慮后再決定。

蒂莫西：別太擔心了。無論你作了什么選擇，最重要的是你怎么對待它。

塞麗娜：對。不管是在這家公司還是另一家，我的成功都會出自于自己的努力奮斗。

蒂莫西：這就對了！明天讓我知道你的決定。

塞麗娜：當然！

Smart Sentences

① I told them I’d sleep on it. 我告訴他們我先考慮下再決定。

sleep on sth.： postpone a decision to think about it（考慮后再作決定）。例如：

It sounds like a good idea， but I’d like to sleep on it before giving you my response.

聽起來像是個好主意，不過我還是想考慮一下，再回復。

② It seems like it is， but it also comes with strings attached. 看起來是這樣的，但是（這份工作）也有附加條件。

with strings attached： limiting or hidden conditions（附帶條件）。例如：

I can’t believe that we will get two new graduates with no strings attached.

我不敢相信我們會分到兩名畢業生，而且沒有任何附帶條件。

③ Five years of guaranteed employment is nothing to sneeze at！ 五年有保障的雇傭不容輕視！

sneeze at： treat as unimportant（輕視，蔑視）。例如：

You really can’t sneeze at a warning from the Personnel Department.

你確實不能小看人事部的警告。

④ The problem is， I’m not sure if I want to commit to them for five years. 但問題是，我不確定自己是否會給他們五年的承諾。

commit to： pledge to sth./sb.（承諾某事/某人，作出保證）。例如：

Harry has committed to taking part in the training.

哈里承諾會參加培訓。

⑤ You’re afraid of betting on the wrong horse.你害怕作錯選擇。

bet on the wrong horse： support a losing candidate， team， idea， or notion； misread the future（下錯賭注，作錯選擇，作出錯誤判斷）。例如：

Daniel bet on the wrong horse by putting all of his money into technology stocks.

丹尼爾把所有的錢都投到技術股上，作錯了選擇。

⑥ I think of it more like hedging my bets. 我更認為這是在回避風險。

hedge one’s bets： protect oneself against making the wrong choice（回避風險）。例如：

Marty decided to hedge his bets by applying to five graduate schools.

馬蒂為了回避風險，決定申請五所學校的研究生。

⑦ Put yourself in the company’s shoes. 設身處地地為那家公司想想。

in sb.’s shoes： in another’s situation（處于某人的位置）。例如：

If I were in Betty’s shoes， I wouldn’t resign but I’d file a complaint instead.

如果我處于貝蒂的位置，我不會辭職，而是遞交一份抗議。

⑧ You know what they say： a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush！ 你知道人們怎么說嗎：一鳥在手勝于雙鳥在林！

a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush： having sth. for certain is better than the possibility of getting sth. better， a proverb（雙鳥在林不如一鳥在手，奢求不如實得，諺語）。例如：

I might get a better deal from other dealers， but this one offers me $3，000 cash back. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. I think I’ll take this one.

其他車行可能會給我更優惠的條件，但這家提供三千美元的現金返還。雙鳥在林不如一鳥在手，我想我還是買這家的吧。

⑨ No matter what choice you make， the most important thing is how you follow up on it. 無論你作了什么選擇，最重要的是你怎么對待它。

follow up on sth.： act on sth.（采取行動）。例如：

The customer service department always follows up on any complaints.

客服部總會就投訴采取措施。