Younger colleagues and students frequently ask me how I planned my path.
比我年轻的同事和学生经常问我是怎样进行职业规划的，
When I tell them that I didn't, they usually react with surprise followed by relief.
当我说自己其实并没有什么规划时，他们通常会表现得很吃惊，然后便松了口气。
They seem encouraged to know that careers do not need to be mapped out from the start.
一个人的事业并不总是需要在一开始就做好计划，
This is especially comforting in a tough market where job seekers often have to accept what is available and hope that it points in a desirable direction.
这在当前就业市场不景气的大环境下尤其具有安慰作用，因为求职者总是不得不先接受能找到的工作，然后再稳步发展。
We all want a job or role that truly excites and engages us.
我们都想找到能让自己兴奋并且感兴趣的工作或职位，
This search requires both focus and flexibility,
但是，这个寻找的过程既需要明确的目标，也需要一定的变通。
so I recommend adopting two concurrent goals: a long-term dream and an eighteen-month plan.
所以，我建议大家应该同时确定两种目标：长远的目标和“18个月”的短期目标。
I could never have connected the dots from where I started to where I am today.
我从未想过自己事业的起点会与现在的工作有关联。
For one thing, Mark Zuckerberg was only seven years old when I graduated from college.
首先，在我大学毕业时，马克·扎克伯格只有7岁。
Also, back then, technology and I did not exactly have a great relationship.
而且在那个时候，我还未曾涉及科技领域，
I used Harvard's computer system only once as an undergraduate, to run regressions for my senior thesis on the economics of spousal abuse.
我只是在读本科时，为了给婚姻暴力经济学的毕业论文做回归分析，用过一次哈佛大学的计算机系统。
The data was stored on large, heavy magnetic tapes that I had to lug in big boxes across campus,
那些数据被存储在一堆笨重的磁带里，我不得不拖着大箱子穿过校园，
cursing the entire way and arriving in a sweaty mess at the sole computer center, which was populated exclusively with male students.
一路抱怨，最后满头大汗地赶到学校唯一的计算机中心——那里坐满了男学生。
I then had to stay up all night spinning the tapes to input the data.
然后为了录入数据，需要来回倒磁带，我不得不一晚上都待在那里。