寫給畢業季：七招修煉，以創業理念取勝職場

Though technically this is a blog about startups, I want to take a bit of a divergence this week and talk to an audience that is soon to join the professional world after this month: the graduating senior.
儘管這個博客實質上是關於創業的，但這個星期，我準備偏離下軌道。我想要和畢業季即將踏上職業崗位的讀者談談畢業生的話題。

Careers launched in 2014 will hardly follow the straight-arrow path of ones from the previous generation. The expected job tenure of the average college graduate today is less than three years, which translates to about 15-20 different jobs over a lifetime compared to about seven for my generation. This means that the skills, knowledge and degree that one attains in college will hardly be enough to prepare graduates for a lifetime of career hopping.
2014年開始，職業生涯已經不再會按照上一代那樣直線發展了。現在預期的大學畢業生工作後平均任期不到三年，也就是說，和我那個年代一生只做過7份工作相比，現在大家一生會做大概15到20份工作。這意味着大學獲得的技能、知識和學位對於一生的職業跳槽，已經不夠用啦。

To this, I have one proposed solution: to thrive in your future career, best to adopt the mindset of a startup, where change and constant evolution are the norm. Or, to paraphrase Reid Hoffman, founder of LinkedIn, live life as if you are in permanent Beta.
對此，我來建議一個對策：想要未來職業發展的輝煌，最好採用創業的理念，懂得改變和不斷提升是發展的常態。或者，改用“領英”網站創始者雷德·霍夫曼的話，把生活的每一天，都當做軟件的Beta測試。

1. Be Pro-Action
1. 主動出擊

You can wait around to be offered the "perfect job" or you can go out there and create it for yourself. This may mean starting your own thing or just making the most from the first job you earn out of college. Mentors, knowledge and career changing experiences can be found everywhere -- even where you least expect them.
你可以等待“完美工作”自己送上門來，或者主動出擊爲自己創造這樣的機會。這也許意味着自己創業，或者利用走出校門的第一份工作充分學習成長。職場指導、知識和跳槽經驗到處都有——即使在你想都想不到的地方。

2. Adopt a Mindset of Constant Learning
2. 建立持續學習的理念

College education is great but hardly the only knowledge you'll need to thrive for the next 40 years. Make constant learning and "upgrading" of your "software" a lifelong habit. There is so much knowledge and information accessible today -- make the most of it.
大學教育固然有用，但絕不是你接下來40年想要成功所需的全部知識。讓持續學習和你的“軟件”升級成爲終身的習慣。現在，很多知識和信息都是觸手可及的——要充分利用。

3. Constantly Upgrade your Network
3. 不斷擴張你的關係網

Each year I take inventory of the people I know and do business with and I ask myself how many of those I met in the last year. If your network is stagnant, your opportunities will be too. Make a constant effort to evolve your network.
每年，我會拿出自己認識的以及一起做過生意的所有聯繫人目錄，問問自己這些人中有多少我在過去一年中見到過。如果你的關係網停滯不前，你的機會也會如此。不斷努力去發展自己的關係網。

4. Business is Personal
4. 面對面洽談

You won't make friends and open doors by sitting behind your tablet. Life altering experiences happen when you go outside your comfort zone and get to know people in a real, human way. It's both career enriching and soul-filling to really get to connect with people. LinkedIn is great but knowing the actual person is even better.
坐在平板電腦後面，是無法打開房門交到朋友的。當你走出自己的小圈子，在真實生活中認識別人時，生活就會發生改變。和其他人聯絡起來，對於職業發展和內在成長都是很有益的。“領英”網站固然不錯，但能和真人面對面會更好。

5. Make Your Passion Your Career
5. 讓激情所在，成爲你的職業

Yes, you can make money doing something that you kind of like but are not in love with, but to quote a proverb, if you love what you do you'll never work a day in your life. In the long term, if you are passionate about what you do, you will also make the necessary investments and effort you need to evolve and excel at it. And then the real monetary return will follow.
是的，做做你有點喜歡，但不那麼熱愛的事情，是可以賺到錢。但是，正如諺語所說的，做你所愛，你將不再爲工作而工作。長遠來講，如果你對所做的事充滿激情，你也會付出所需的投資和努力，追求卓越。然後，真正的財富回報，就來了。

6. Be Open Source
6. 開放地尋找資源

Good ideas come from everywhere. Constantly seek to get to know people from different backgrounds and experiences than you. Not only will this enhance your worldview and perspective but it will also give you access to worlds far beyond the one you currently inhabit -- and open doors that you don't even know are there.
好點子隨處可來。不斷去結識有和你不同的背景經歷的人。這不但會充實你的世界觀，也讓你瞭解到自己生活環境之外世界——爲你打開想都想不到的機會。

7. Create an Advisory Board
7. 擁有自己的顧問團隊

I've never met anyone who is not happy to share with me their experience and input. If startups have advisory boards, why not you and your career? Having an informal group of people that you talk with and get their input will enhance your decision making and also broaden your available network of opportunities. Parents are great advisors, but peers and supervisors are awesome too.
我還沒見過不樂意分享自己的經歷和建議的人。如果創業團隊有顧問團，爲什麼你和你的職業不能有呢？組一個不那麼正式的團體，你可以和他們交談並得到建議，這會對你做決定有所幫助，同時幫你擴展機會網絡。父母是很好的建議者，而同輩和導師也是很棒的選擇。

Here's to the new graduating class. Here's to them changing our world.
以上獻給新一屆的畢業生。改變世界，交給你們啦！