諾貝爾生醫獎得主 James Watson 在去年底出了這本書 "Avoid Boring People", MIT 的 "Technology Review" 以標題為 "Letter to a Young Scientist" 摘錄了該書內容的一部分.我第一次看到該文章, 就頻頻點頭...
Watson 的忠告:
> Choose an objective apparently ahead of its time,
選擇一個明顯地超越目前所知的目標(最好超越同儕, 追求大部分人認為非關目前的目標),
> Only work on problems when you feel tangible success may come in several years,
只挑幾年內有可能會成功的問題來處理(如果你有理由相信自己, 約有一半的機會可在兩三年內得到答案),
> Never be the brightest person in a room,
不要當團體中最聰明的(周遭者越聰明, 你就越聰明; 找一個比你聰明的團體也比較不會招忌),
> Stay in close contact with your intellectual competitors,
與競爭者保持密切的聯絡(雖然知道自己身在競賽中讓人緊張, 但是競爭也讓人確信未來的獎杯值得追求),
> Work with a teammate who is your intellectual equal,
與智力相當者合作(超過兩個的團體是太擁擠了),
> Always have someone to save you,
永遠找的到救星(特別是下面這段話...)
"In trying to be ahead of your time, you are bound to Annoy some people inclined to see you as too big for your britches. They will take delight if you stumble, believing your reversals of fortune are deserved. They may reveal themselves only in the moment of your discomfiture: often you find them controlling your immediate life by, say, determining whether you will get your fellowship or grant renewed. So it always pays to know someone of consequence--other than your parents--who is on your side." .....
當你想要超前時, 總有人會認為你好高騖遠, 不切實際. 他們會等著看你的好戲, 幸災樂禍. 這些人中也許有人會決定或控制你的生命, 例如, 他們會決定你是否獲得補助或升遷. 所以, 搞清楚誰是重要的, 誰能救你, 誰和你站在同一線.
有興趣可至該網站 Technology Review, 觀看全文(有點長).
相關資訊: 科技報導 323 期.
Avoid Boring People: Lessons from a Life in Science
by James D. Watson
Publisher: Knopf; 1 edition (September 25, 2007)
沒有留言:
張貼留言