我的職業(yè)經(jīng)歷非常豐富。我做過最基層的行政助理，而且是打字水平很糟糕的那種，后來進(jìn)入了紐約一家有名的廣告公司，如今在美國(guó)一家最大的公共健康機(jī)構(gòu)擔(dān)任CEO。因此，本著傳承精神，對(duì)于20歲左右剛剛邁入職場(chǎng)的年輕人，我想給他們提供幾條“希望自己能早知道的”建議：

1、放棄“自以為是”

這聽起來有些刺耳，不過我會(huì)用最溫和的方式來闡述：你并沒有自己想象的那么特別。如果你是千禧一代，你很可能是被一對(duì)用心良苦，但不幸誤入歧途的“直升機(jī)式父母”撫養(yǎng)成人的——他們事無巨細(xì)地管理你的方方面面，即便最平庸的成績(jī)，也能得到他們的不吝褒獎(jiǎng)。

雖然積極的自尊和鼓勵(lì)，對(duì)于兒童成長(zhǎng)至關(guān)重要，但現(xiàn)在的研究顯示，像足球比賽第6名獎(jiǎng)杯這類東西，對(duì)孩子的傷害可能遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過它們帶來的好處。在真實(shí)世界里，有競(jìng)爭(zhēng)是好事。競(jìng)爭(zhēng)給我們帶來挑戰(zhàn)。競(jìng)爭(zhēng)會(huì)激勵(lì)我們。競(jìng)爭(zhēng)讓我們變得更擅長(zhǎng)自己的工作。

進(jìn)入工作之后，我很快便知道，在廣告業(yè)從來沒有“銀牌”。最終獲勝的只有一家廣告公司。如果你能迅速地?cái)[脫自以為是的心態(tài)，埋頭苦干，認(rèn)認(rèn)真真做好最終能夠帶來勝利的工作，你就能取得更大的成功。

2、放棄白日夢(mèng)

那些受到流行文化追捧，致力于將夢(mèng)想可視化的偽科學(xué)，都掩蓋了一個(gè)事實(shí)：橫亙?cè)诔晒Φ膲?mèng)想和實(shí)現(xiàn)夢(mèng)想的現(xiàn)實(shí)之間的，是艱難、枯燥、有時(shí)候令人失望，通常都極其痛苦的實(shí)際工作。

我的祖母經(jīng)常說：“要想實(shí)現(xiàn)夢(mèng)想，首先你要醒過來！”你還在等什么？別再夢(mèng)想著你想要取得什么豐功偉績(jī)。雅詩?蘭黛說的很有道理：“我從來不會(huì)夢(mèng)想成功。我會(huì)為了成功而努力。”

3、放棄長(zhǎng)期計(jì)劃

有一份未來計(jì)劃沒什么錯(cuò)，不考慮未來是愚蠢的表現(xiàn)。但是，我們的未來計(jì)劃最好是一個(gè)松散的框架，而不是詳細(xì)的路線圖。專注于當(dāng)下，可以幫助我們接受“計(jì)劃之外的”新機(jī)遇。

實(shí)話實(shí)說，有計(jì)劃當(dāng)然是好事，但一旦計(jì)劃遭遇現(xiàn)實(shí)，你很有可能無法按照自己希望的方向執(zhí)行這些計(jì)劃。

成功往往源自靈活，源于你能夠接受B計(jì)劃、C計(jì)劃甚至D計(jì)劃。詹姆斯?戴森經(jīng)過5000多次嘗試，才完成了如今舉世聞名的雙旋風(fēng)真空吸塵器。他說：“我能取得超乎想象的成功，是因?yàn)槲以敢馊チ私庠鯓幼鲂胁煌??！?/p>

4、放棄急功近利

流行文化給我們傳達(dá)了一種被曲解的信息——除非我們?cè)?5歲便成為億萬富翁，成為《好聲音》的冠軍，或者成為《創(chuàng)智贏家》的下一個(gè)大熱門，否則我們就是失敗者。真人秀告訴我們，成功就是一夜暴富。我們看《減肥達(dá)人》，就認(rèn)為在60分鐘內(nèi)減掉60磅是可能的。

以上這些用最少的努力換取最大的成功的想法，是不切實(shí)際的。那種在30歲之前不成功便是失敗的想法，只會(huì)讓職場(chǎng)上的年輕人對(duì)自己失望。

事實(shí)上，硅谷創(chuàng)業(yè)者們大多都是在40歲以后才取得成功。在年輕時(shí)取得巨大成功的壓力，令許多20歲左右的年輕人過早辭去了工作，低估自己的經(jīng)驗(yàn)，對(duì)自己失去耐心，很難致力于一個(gè)目標(biāo)、一份職業(yè)甚至一項(xiàng)使命。所以，在思考未來的時(shí)候，不要害怕等待，讓自己接受磨練。

5、放棄朝三暮四

在當(dāng)下這種容易令人分心的文化當(dāng)中，要專注于目標(biāo)并不容易。事實(shí)上，一位哈佛大學(xué)研究人員為此創(chuàng)造出一個(gè)專門的術(shù)語：注意力缺乏特質(zhì)，這種特質(zhì)來自我們永遠(yuǎn)在線、始終互連的生活方式。只要我們能堅(jiān)定信念，最終一定可以獲得回報(bào)。

就以我們公司組織的真相?青少年戒煙活動(dòng)為例。這項(xiàng)活動(dòng)于2000年啟動(dòng)時(shí)，青少年吸煙率為23%。如今，青少年吸煙率已經(jīng)下降到7%。為此，我們花了15年時(shí)間，現(xiàn)在我們已經(jīng)看到了成功的曙光。雖然我們一直在針對(duì)新一代的年輕人調(diào)整我們的策略、信息和技巧，但我們一直沒有偏離最初的核心信念——告訴年輕人與香煙有關(guān)的事實(shí)，可以讓他們作出正確的選擇。

我現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)工作很多年了?；厥淄拢腋哟_信，自己之所以能有今時(shí)今日的成就，與其說是因?yàn)槲曳浅Ｂ斆髂芨?，倒不如說是因?yàn)槲以敢饴耦^苦干，保持開放心態(tài)，敗而不餒，并且從未失去激情。我愿意將所有這些稱為一種“堅(jiān)韌不拔”的品質(zhì)。這種品質(zhì)永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)過時(shí)。（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

本文作者Robin Koval 是Truth Initiative總裁兼CEO。

譯者：劉進(jìn)龍/汪皓

審校：任文科

There have been a lot of steps in my career journey, from bottom-rung administrative assistant with poor typing skills, to leading anadvertising agency in New York, and now CEO of the one of the largest public health organizations in the U.S. So, in the spirit of paying it forward, here are a few “wish I had known that then” tips for 20-somethings setting out on their own climb:

Get over yourself

This may sound harsh, but I mean it in the kindest way possible: you’re not as special as you think youare. If you’re a millennial reading this, chances are you were raised by well-meaning, but unfortunately as we now know, misguided “helicopter parents” who micromanaged your every move and lavished praise for even the most mundane accomplishments. While positive self-esteem and encouragement are vitally important to child development, research now shows that all those sixth place soccer trophies may have hurt you more than they helped. In the real world, competition is a good thing. It challenges us. It motivates us. It inspires us to be better at what we do. I learned quickly that there are no silver medals in advertising. At the end of the day, only one agency wins the pitch. The sooner you get over yourselves, dig in, and get down to the hard work of winning, the better off you’ll be.

Ditch the dream

All the pop-culture pseudo-science about visualizing our dreams has obscured the fact that between thedream of success and the reality of achieving it lies in the gritty, boring, sometimes disappointing and usually painful process of doing the actual work. My grandmother was fond of saying: “If you want to make your dreams come true, wake up already!” So, what are you waiting for? Stop dreaming about what you want to accomplish. Estee Lauder had it right when she said, “I never dreamed about success. I worked for it.”

Forego the long-term plan

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with having a plan for the future. It would be foolish NOT to consider what’s to come. But it’s best to think of a plan as a loose framework rather than a detailed roadmap. Focusing on the present helps keep each of us open to new or emerging opportunities that may not have been “part of the plan”. And let’s be honest, while having a plan is great, once your plan meets the real world, it’s pretty likely you’ll never get to execute it quite the way you’d hoped. Success more often results from being flexible and open to plan B, C, or even D. James Dyson had to try more than 5000 times before he perfected his now-famous, Dual Cyclone Vacuum Cleaner. He said, “I go to a place I never would have imagined because I was willing to learn what didn’t work.”

Wait for it

Popular culture sends us the much-distorted message that unless we’re billionaires by the age of 25, winners of The Voice, or the next sensation onShark Tank, we’re losers. We learn from reality TV that success is an overnight game. We watch The Biggest Loser and think it’s possible to lose 60 pounds in 60 minutes. This idea that minimal effort equals maximum success is a myth. The notion that if you haven’t “made it” by the time you’re 30 has set young professionals up for disappointment. It turns out that the majority of those Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who are actually successful are older than 40. The intense pressure to be extremely successful at a young age causes many 20-somethings to leave jobs too early, undervalue their experiences, lose patience with themselves, and have trouble committing to a goal, career, or even mission. So, as you ponder your future, don’t be afraid to put in a little “wait” training.

Maintain focus

Keeping your eyes on the prize can be hard in our very distracting culture. In fact, a Harvard researcher has coined a term for it, “attention deficit trait” and we give it to ourselves with our always-on, always-connected lifestyles. If we hold our convictions steady; we’ll eventually reap the rewards. Case in point: my organization’s truth?youth tobacco prevention campaign. When thetruth campaign launched in 2000, the teen smoking rate was 23%. Today, the teen smoking rate has dropped to just 7%. It has taken us 15 years, but we are now in sight of being able to “Finish It” for good. Although we’ve had to reinvent our strategy, message, and techniques for an entirely new generation of young people, we’ve never lost focus on our original core belief that giving teens the facts about tobacco will lead them to do the right thing.

It’s been a while since I was a newly minted college graduate competing to win an entry-level job at an advertising agency. As I look back, I am convinced now more than ever, that what got me from there to here is more than smarts or talent; it is my willingness to dig in, be open, bounce back and never lose my passion. I like to call that “grit”– and that never goes out of style.