The question
I am one of three directors at a small consultancy. I work long hours and travel extensively. I love my job - it is interesting and well paid - but miss spending time with my two young sons. I have decided to take six weeks' non-paid leave in the summer but don't know how to convince my fellow directors that my enthusiasm and determination have not diminished. Both of them are very career-minded and are focused on becoming millionaires as soon as possible.
問題我是一家小型諮詢公司的三個董事之一。我要工作很長時間、到處出差。我喜歡我的工作(既有趣、掙的又多)，但是不能花時間跟兩個年幼的兒子在一起。我已經決定給自己放一個為期六週的無薪暑假，卻不知道該如何讓另外兩位董事相信我的熱情和決心沒有絲毫衰減。他們兩位都是非常顧工作的人，一心只想儘快成為富豪。
LUCY'S ANSWER
There's no point in trying to convince them your dedication has not changed. It has changed： you are no longer dedicated enough to work during summer as you'd rather see your children.
不要試圖讓他們相信你的奉獻精神沒有改變，這沒有什麼意義。它已經改變了：在夏天，你不再會向工作投入足夠的精力，因為你更想看著自己的孩子。
It sounds as if you're guilty of the worst sort of parental thinking - the sort that supposes you can both have a workaholic job and be an involved father， and that your work mates should somehow be supportive of whatever you decide to do. To you， your sons are precious. To your directors， they are a nuisance.
聽起來，你似乎有那種為人父母者最糟糕的想法——自以為既能擁有一份廢寢忘食的工作，又能當一個稱職的父親，而且你的工作夥伴還應該在一定程度上支援你的任何決定。對你來說，你的兒子非常寶貴;對你的董事們來說，他們就是一個麻煩。
I suggest that you present it to them in a different， truer light. Tell them that your job still matters to you very much although there are other things that matter to you as well.
我建議你用另外一種更真實的方式向他們陳述這件事。告訴他們，你的工作對你來說仍然意義重大，但是還有一些對你來說也同樣重要的事。
Maybe you should suggest that， when the time comes to sell the business and become millionaires， you take a slightly smaller share - pro rata with the reduced effort that you've put in.
我建議你用另外一種更真實的方式向他們陳述這件事。告訴他們，你的工作對你來說仍然意義重大，但是還有一些對你來說也同樣重要的事。
The real test will not be how the first discussion goes but how the six weeks works in practice. I have my doubts on this. First， unless yours is a company that goes all sluggish in the summer， you will miss a lot in six weeks. Second， having a huge helping of domesticity once a year may prove indigestible for you and your sons.
實際上，真正的考驗不是最初的討論會有什麼結果，而是這六週能起什麼作用。我對此深表懷疑。首先，除非你的'公司在暑期的進展非常緩慢，不然，你就會在六週裡錯過很多東西。其次，一年一次幫忙做大量家務，你和你的兒子們最後可能都不適應。
If I were you， I'd try something more flexible. Say that you want to go home early one day a week. Then you can see your sons for a bit and do some more work after they have gone to bed. Your best hope for a harmonious solution is if both of the other directors swiftly have children of their own and start to feel just as torn as you do now.
如果我是你，我就會嘗試一些更靈活的做法。比如說，每週有一天早點回家。這樣的話，你就可以看會兒你的兒子，還能在他們上床睡覺以後做更多的工作。你能指望的最和諧的解決辦法莫過於：其他的董事迅速有了自己的孩子，並開始像你現在一樣感受煎熬。