商务英语：何时不该拒绝升职通知

　　Over lunch with her boss, Kathy Uhl was given everything that she'd been working toward career-wise at her Orlando-based cable company. She got a bigger staff, more responsibility and a generous increase in salary and bonuses. But she wasn't sure she wanted to become vice president of human resources for the entire state of Florida.

　　西·尤尔(Kathy Uhl)在一家总部位于奥兰多(Orlando)的有线电视公司工作，在一次与老板共进午餐时，尤尔被授予了之前她为之努力打拼的一切──她将拥有更多的员工，担负起更大的责任，并能收获丰厚的加薪和奖金。但她却并不确定，自己是否真的想成为主管整个佛罗里达州业务的人力资源副总裁。

　　'It was a great job and I liked the company and people. The thing is that my life felt out of balance at the time. I'd been focused on my career for a while and missed my family back in Denver, 'says Ms. Uhl, who then consulted with a career coach who helped her decide what was most important to her.

　　尤尔说：“这是份很棒的工作，我也很喜欢这家公司和周围的同事。但问题是，那个时候，我的生活感觉失衡了。好一阵子，我一直都在专注于自己的工作，却忽略了我在丹佛的家。”尤尔后来又向一位职业教练进行咨询，后者帮她弄清了一个问题：对她而言，什么才是最重要的事。

　　She ended up turning down the promotion and moving back to Colorado, where she is now vice president at a public service credit union that is five miles from her home. Although she makes less money now, she has evenings and weekends free to spend with her sons.

　　尤尔最终拒绝了升职的机会，并搬回到科罗拉多州。她目前是一家公共服务信用合作社的副总裁，这家公司离她家只有五英里远。虽然尤尔现在挣得不如之前多，但她却拥有空闲的夜晚和周末，可以陪在儿子们身边。

　　For many career-minded executives, a promotion is well-deserved recognition of their hard work and accomplishments. But there are as many reasons to turn down a promotion as there are to take it, say job experts who recommend that employees look beyond just money and status.

　　对于许多事业心强的高管而言，升职是对他们努力工作和卓越成就的应有的认可。但职场专家表示，人们有很多理由接受升职，同样也有很多的理由拒绝晋升机会。专家建议，不该仅仅关注金钱和地位，还应考虑到其他的一些因素。

　　Poor work-life balance, for example, can lead to early burnout and unhappiness, says John McKee, an executive coach in Los Angeles. 'Will you be working 60-hour weeks and traveling during the holidays? Is the job beyond your talent level, which could end up being a march toward failure? Or maybe it's a good move at this stage of your life. These are all things to consider.'

　　洛杉矶的高管培训师约翰·麦基(John McKee)称，工作和家庭平衡不好可能会造成年纪轻轻便劳累过度、产生不幸福感。他说：“你会在一周工作60个小时的情况下在节假日出去旅行吗？这份工作是否超出了你的能力所限、并最终把你引向失败？或者说，它是你人生这个阶段的一步好棋。这些问题都需要好好考虑。”

　　To be sure, turning down a promotion can be risky. It all depends on the employee and the company, says Miriam Salpeter, founder of Keppie Careers, a Atlanta-based coaching and consulting firm.

　　亚特兰大培训和咨询公司Keppie Careers的创始人米丽娅姆·萨尔皮特(Miriam Salpeter)说，拒绝升职机会肯定是有风险的，但这要取决于员工本身和他（她）所任职的公司的情况。

　　'If the company has been grooming you for that next job with resources and training and you say no, that could be a career killer [at that company]. If you're working for a company that's not work-life balance oriented and you want to achieve more work-life balance, that's probably not going to work either, 'says Ms. Salpeter.

　　萨尔皮特说：“如果公司一直都在动用各种资源、安排各种培训课程来倾力培养你，希望你能担起新岗位的大任，而你却说不，这种情况可能就会断送（你在这家公司的）职业发展。如果你任职的公司不注重工作和家庭的平衡，而你又想让二者的关系更为平衡，那你拒绝升职恐怕也是行不通的。”

　　Companies may also expand your job and call it a promotion, which means that your time will be short unless you step up to accept the new responsibilities or reconsider whether you're working at the right place.

　　公司可能还是会扩展你的工作内容，宣布给你升职。这意味着留给你权衡的时间很短，你要么准备好去承担新的责任要么重新考虑此地是否可留。

　　You need to present a good case on what you can offer the company by staying put while also recognizing and addressing why your boss is making the offer. Perhaps your boss is rewarding your hard work by offering a job that will detour you from where you really want to go in the company.

　　如果你继续留在原有的工作岗位上，那就需要做出一单漂亮的成绩以实例证明自己能为公司做出哪些贡献，但同时也要认识到并搞清楚为什么老板会让你升职。也许你的老板为了嘉奖你的兢兢业业而提供了这个工作机会，但却会让你绕个弯路，使你与自己所中意的那个职位渐行渐远。

　　Be clear about what you want to do at the company and how those future goals match up with company needs. You could suggest changes to your old job or offer to help with the transition of finding somebody else to fill the new job.

　　要弄清你想在公司做什么以及你未来的这些目标如何能与公司的需求相匹配。你可以针对原有职位提出一些调整的建议，或者在公司为新职位物色其他人选的过渡期内主动出一点力。

　　It also helps to have a long-term plan that takes into account your personal life, professional life and your finances.

　　制定一份将个人生活、职业生涯和自己的财务状况这些问题统统都囊括进去的长期计划也会有所帮助。

　　Create a three-column list that outlines what's most important to you and use that guide when you have to have that discussion about why the timing isn't right, says Mr. McKee. 'It's hard to argue with wanting to spend more time with the family because your wife is about to leave you or needing to take care of an ailing parent.'

　　麦基说：“列出一个分为三栏的清单，标出对你而言最重要的东西，然后在你不得不讨论‘为什么升职时机不对’这一话题时用上这个指南。由于妻子即将离开你或者你需要照顾生病的父亲或母亲，因此你想把更多的时间用来陪伴家人，这些放弃升职的理由都是难以辩驳的。”

　　Turning down a promotion doesn't necessarily mean that you've killed your chances of moving up at that company. Your boss may not be happy at that moment, but you may be able to advance down the line, says Mr. McKee.

　　麦基说，拒掉一次升职的机会并不意味着你就堵死了自己在这家公司的晋升大道。你的老板可能会在那一刻心里不高兴，但你应该还是能够一路向前走的。

　　He recommends that employees make an effort to demonstrate that they are still committed to their old job and working toward growing into a bigger role at a later time.

　　他建议员工拒掉升职后要努力表明自己仍在全力以赴做好原有的工作，为了日后能承担更为重要的职责而一直在奋斗。

　　Address any shortcomings that need work with a mentorship, college coursework or certifications and make sure that your boss and human-resources department know that you're pursuing professional development as a way to grow into a bigger role at a later time.

　　努力去弥补自己的欠缺之处，做到能够独立完成那些需要导师指教的工作，去接受相关的大学培训课程或考下工作所需的资格证书，并确保你的老板和人力资源部两方都了解到，你正在努力发展自己的专业技能，以在日后能够承担更为重要的职责。