在海外工作是你职业生涯的终极选择吗?

Is Working Overseas The Ultimate Move For Your Career Anymore?

今年早些时候，我做了一个演讲，主题是如何在海外追求一份国际事业和如何在美国找到好工作，现场大概有50位职场人。在我的演讲中，我分享了一个观点，我认为是大部分人并没有期待听到的一个观点。为什么？这很值得思考。

Earlier this year, I delivered a talk to about 50 professionals on, How To Pursue An International Career And Capture Good Job Opportunities In The United States. During my talk, I shared a different perspective than what I believe most were expecting to hear. It’s one that’s worth thinking about.

我告诉他们，在我看来，作为一个长期从事招聘和人才行业的专业人士，我认为在美国找工作对大多数人来说，不再是最好的选择。事实上，我可以想得到，在中国有很多更好的就业机会，比在美国找工作更容易、更有利，成本更低廉。而且还能让你在未来更有竞争力，作为一名拥有国际素质的职场人。

I told them that from my point of view as a long-time, recruitment and talent industry professional, I don’t think that pursuing a job overseas, like in the U.S. is the best move for most people anymore. In fact, I can think of many better employment situations here in China that are much more attainable, beneficial, and less costly than working in overseas. And that will also allow you to compete more successfully as a global-caliber professional in the future.

情况就是这么个情况。与中国能提供的机会相比，在海外工作已不再是一个明显的优势。我会这么说，主要有以下三个原因：

Yes, that’s right! Working overseas is no longer provides a clear advantage compared to what many opportunities here in China can offer you. Here are my three main reasons for saying this:

比以前更小的差距和优势——是的，在不久之前，美国在商业、技术和管理的各个领域远远领先于中国。美国是一个发达的经济体。而中国不是。所以以前，中国需要学习的大部分东西都来自国外。

Much smaller gaps and advantages than before – For instance, not long ago, the U.S. was far, far ahead of China in every area of business, technology, and management. The U.S. was a developed economy. China was not. So in the past, most of the things that China needed to learn came from abroad.

但今时不同往日。美国和中国之间的市场和商业环境之间的差距已经大大缩小。现在，越来越多的本土公司的专业水平越来越有国际水准。甚至有一些领域是中国在引领全世界。这个国家的一些技术基础设施和商业渠道令人惊叹！而且在许多方面远远领先于美国和其他国家。比如说微信、支付宝和摩拜单车，这只是一小部分例子。许多人会说，这只是冰山一角，中国正在引领世界。

But the same cannot be said today. The gap between the U.S. and China market and business environments has closed considerably. Today, the professional level of more and more companies here is increasingly international-caliber. There are even areas where China’s innovation is leading the world. Some of this country’s technology infrastructure and business channels are amazing! And far ahead of what exists in the U.S. and other countries in many instances. You can look at WeChat, Alipay, and Mobike as great examples, to name just a few. Many would say that it’s just the tip of the iceberg with regards to areas that China is on its way to leading the world.

中国有更吸引人的机会——我一直告诉大家一个关于事业成功的一基本事实:“如果你的平台有局限性，那么这些也将是你实现你所追求的成功的限制。”美国经济已经成熟。它比中国的经济增长要慢得多，也更保守。我想说的是，你能说美国哪些行业是“欣欣向荣“的么，更不用说稳步成长的行业，你马上能想到哪些?

More attractive opportunities here now - A fundamental truth I always tell people about career success is, “If your platform has limitations, then these will be your limitations too for achieving the success you seek.”  Again, as an example, U.S. economy is mature. It’s much slower growth and more conservative than China’s economy. I mean, what industries in the U.S. can you say are “booming,” let alone growing steadily? Can you readily think of any?

那中国呢？互联网、保健、运动休闲、旅游、娱乐、餐饮服务、教育和人才发展、财富管理和商业服务，这些都是我马上想到的一些行业。它们不只是在发展，而是在蓬勃发展。中国从制造业向消费和服务驱动型经济的积极转变，正为许多大型行业创造一个不可思议的成长和机遇期。

Now, how about in China? Well, the internet, health & fitness, sports & leisure, travel, entertainment, dining & food services, education & talent development, wealth management, and business services are just a few major industries that immediately come to my mind. And they’re not just growing. They are booming. China’s aggressive shift from a manufacturing to a consumer and services-driven economy is creating a fantastic time of growth and opportunity in many huge sectors.

人们常说，在互联网行业工作一年相当于在传统行业工作2-3年。互联网行业的增长速度快得多，而且比其他行业更具活力。所以你会经历更多，并且成长得更快。

It’s often said that one year working in the internet industry is the equivalent of 2-3 years working in traditional industries. The internet industry is much faster growth and just so much more dynamic than other industries. So you experience much more and grow much faster too.

你可以对中国和美国说同样的话。在中国工作一年相当于在更成熟的，经济增长也更缓慢的经济体（如美国）工作2-3年.所以，为了你的职业发展，在这里，因为相同的时间内，你会经历更多，成长更快。

You can say the exact same thing about China and the U.S. One year working in China is the equivalent of 2-3 years working in much more mature, slower growth economies, like the U.S. So for your career development, you experience much more and grow much faster over the same amount of time here.

在中国，你的一切都更有价值!——在一个更好的成长和机会市场上，还有哪个市场能更充分发挥你的能力，开发你的潜力?在美国，你不如在那里长大的人了解市场和用户的习惯。你的英语能力也会给你带来限制。大多数情况下，老板只会让你做一个技术、分析和业务操作类的工作。如果这就是你想做的，那很好。但是，如果你想做管理和领导、业务发展或战略方面的角色，很难。

Everything about you is more fully valued here! – On top of a much better market of growth and opportunities, which market can more fully leverage your capabilities and develop your potential? If you were to work in the U.S., you don’t know the market and user habits like people who grew up there. And your English skills create limitations for you. For the most part, employers there will only consider you for technical, analytical, and operations roles. That’s fine if that’s all you want to do. But it’s very difficult if you want to be considered for management and leadership, business development, or strategic roles.

但在这里，有越来越多的机会能让你充分发挥你的价值，以及你所能做的。不仅很多跨国公司会认可你，充分利用你的中国背景和国际经历，给你机会，而且越来越多的中国公司也会这样。在阿里巴巴和腾讯的带领下，这些公司渴望成为全球玩家。而且他们会成为!

But here, there are a growing number of situations that will fully value what you are, and what you can do. It’s not only the many multinationals that will recognize and give you chances to utilize both your Chinese background and international training, but more and more Chinese companies as well. Led by Alibaba and Tencent, these companies aspire to become global players. And they will!

时代变了

Times have changed

我理解许多人想在国外工作和生活是有个人原因的。我不打算讲这些，我只是从职业发展和事业成功的角度来说。我只是想说明，尽管过去大家很渴望追求国外的工作经验和机会，但在今天，这样做的好处已经大不如从前。

Yes, I understand the many personal reasons that many people here want to work and live abroad. I’m not going to get into these. I’m just speaking from a career development and career success perspective. I’m just trying to make the point that while pursuing work experience and opportunities abroad used to be highly desired, the benefits and advantages of doing this today are not nearly as clear.

我不是说拥有海外的工作经验就不值得。如果你能得到一个在国外工作的好机会，那你就去。这对你的职业生涯肯定是有好处的。我只是说，跟过去不同的是，这不再是一个终极的职业发展趋势。这不再是成功的关键因素，也不再是成为一个国际水准的职场人的关键因素。

I’m not saying that gaining overseas work experience is not worthwhile. If you can get a good opportunity to work abroad, then then do it. Of course, this will benefit your career. I’m only saying that working overseas is not the ultimate career development move that it used to be. And it’s no longer a key success factor for achieving outstanding success or for becoming a global-caliber professional.  

作为一个人才行业的专业人士，我在这个市场上看到了许多人，他们比很多美国人积极、主动、大胆、有能力，这是因为他们在一个更具创新性和快速变化，同时也越来越专业化和国际化的市场中工作。他们每天面对的更具挑战性的情况迫使他们成长和学习竞争。相信我，我在这里遇到了很多虽然从未在国外工作过，但却令人钦佩的人。而且，他们不仅仅在本土是人才，甚至可以与来自世界其他各地的优秀人才相提并论。

As a talent industry professional, I see many people in this market that are more proactive, self-driven, bold, and capable than many people from other developed countries and mature economies. It’s because they work in a market that’s more innovative and fast-changing, as well as increasingly professional and international-caliber. The more challenging situations they face every day forces them to grow and learn to compete. Believe me, I’ve met enough impressive people here who have never worked abroad. And they’re not just impressive as a local talent. But also compared to other impressive global talents from around the world. So don’t overlook this historical, amazing time of growth and opportunities in your own backyard. More and more so, it’s a fantastic place to be for your career development and future success.

你认为还值得投资时间精力和金钱去海外工作吗？

Do you think the investment in time, effort, and money to work overseas is still worth it?

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