成功并不只垂青女汉子

Back in the Eighties, women who wanted to succeed in business were expected to power dress and act like a devil dog. Thirty years on it seems the reverse might be true.

在上世纪八十年代，想在商业上取得成功的女性给人们留下的印象就是身着职业装，作风彪悍。三十多年过去了，似乎情况发生了巨大转变。

According to a top woman boss, girls should keep their femininity and refuse to become a ‘she-man’ as they rise up the greasy pole.

一位女性高层建议，在商业上打拼的女性应保持自己独特的女性魅力，而不是变成女汉子。

Sacha Romanovitch, the incoming chief executive of accountants Grant Thornton UK, said embracing so-called feminine characteristics is the best way to succeed in business.

英国致同会计师事务所即将上任的首席执行官萨莎·罗曼诺维奇称，保持女性特色是取得成功的最佳途径。

Many women make the mistake of trying to dress and behave like men, which is a waste of energy and resources, she said.

她说，很多女性错误地认为要穿衣举止都像个男人才可以取得成功，这简直是浪费精力和资源。

Instead, they should use traditionally ‘female’ traits like listening and interpersonal skills as a way to get the best out of their staff.

相反，她认为女性应当好好利用倾听和人际交往等女性擅长的技巧，充分挖掘员工的潜力。

The businesswoman, a mother-of-two, is thought to be the first woman to lead a major accountancy firm in the UK.

这位养育了两个孩子的女强人是英国会计界首位女性领军人物。

Speaking at the Girls’ Day School Trust conference lately, she urged other women to have the confidence to ‘celebrate their difference’.

近日，她受邀在女子日间公学联合组织大会上发言时，鼓励其他女性更加自信地“享受与男性的不同。

She said: ‘One of the things that happened when I was promoted to partner was people saying “that’s really great because I thought you would have to be a she-man to be promoted.

她说：“我晋升为合伙人时，有人对我说：‘看到你这样真是太好了，我还以为只有女汉子才能升职。’

‘The model of leadership that we currently have [favours] typically male characteristics...'

“人们总是喜欢把领导人的形象与男性特征联系起来。

‘Earlier in my career, someone said to me that my challenge was that I was not male, middle-aged and balding.'

“之前甚至有人对我说，我事业面临的重大挑战是，我不是男人，未到中年，而且没有秃顶。

‘You have to get the confidence to celebrate your difference rather than try to conform to something that you may never be.’

“但我还是认为，我们要自信地享受自己的不同，而不是强迫自己变成不像自己的样子。

Vocabulary

power dress: 穿职业装

femininity: 女性气质

greasy pole: 滑竿

she-man: 女汉子