How I became an entrepreneur at 66 | Paul Tasner

翻译人员: Rocky Zuo 校对人员: Yolanda Zhang

I'd like to take you back about seven years in my life.

我想带你们回到我 大约7年前的生活。

Friday afternoon,

那是2009年

a few days before Christmas 2009,

圣诞节前几天一个周五的下午，

I was the director of operations

当时的我是旧金山

at a consumer products company in San Francisco,

一家消费品公司的运营总监。

and I was called into a meeting that was already in progress.

我被叫进一个正在进行的会议。

That meeting turned out to be my exit interview.

我发现这场会议是我的离职面谈。

I was fired, along with several others.

和其他的几个人一样，我被解雇了。

I was 64 years old at the time.

那时我64岁。

It wasn't completely unexpected.

这并不完全出乎我的意料。

I signed a stack of papers,

我签了一堆的文件，

gathered my personal effects,

收拾了一下自己的东西，

and left to join my wife

就去找我的妻子了，

who was waiting for me at a nearby restaurant,

她在附近的一个小饭店里等我，

completely unaware.

但对此毫不知情。

Fast-forward several hours,

几个小时很快过去了，

we both got really silly drunk.

我们都喝得伶仃大醉。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

So, 40 plus years of continuous employment

就这样，40多年在各个公司间

for a variety of companies, large and small,

颠沛流离的职业生涯

was over.

结束了。

I had a good a network, a good reputation --

我拥有很好的朋友圈，人缘也不错

I thought I'd be just fine.

我以为这没什么大不了的。

I was an engineer in manufacturing and packaging,

我曾经是个工作于制造业 和包装业的工程师。

I had a good background.

我有很好的从业背景，

Retirement was, like for so many people,

跟很多人一样，退休对我来说，

simply not an option for me,

也算不上是一种选择。

so I turned to consulting for the next couple of years

于是在接下来的几年中 我一直做着咨询工作，

without any passion whatsoever.

却没有什么激情。

And then an idea began to take root,

然而后来因为我对环境的关心，

born from my concern for our environment.

我产生了一个新的想法。

I wanted to build my own business,

我想要建立自己的公司，

designing and manufacturing biodegradable packaging from waste --

从废物中设计并生产 能进行生物降解的包装，

paper, agricultural, even textile waste --

用以废纸，作物，甚至是 纺织废料为原料所制造的包装，

replacing the toxic, disposable plastic packaging

取代那些人类越来越依赖的，

to which we've all become addicted.

有毒的一次性塑料包装。

This is called clean technology,

这被称作清洁技术。

and it felt really meaningful to me.

它对我而言意义非凡。

A venture that could help to reduce the billions of pounds

这家公司每年能帮助减少数十亿磅

of single-use plastic packaging dumped each year,

污染我们的土地，河流和海洋的

and polluting our land, our rivers and our oceans,

一次性塑料包装，

and left for future generations to resolve --

它们也会给我们的 子孙后代造成困扰——

our grandchildren,

我们的孙辈，

my grandchildren.

我的孙辈。

And so now at the age of 66,

现在我66岁，

with 40 years of experience,

有着40年的工作经验，

I became an entrepreneur for the very first time.

第一次成为了一名企业家。

(Cheers)

（欢呼）

(Applause)

（掌声）

Thank you.

谢谢。

But there's more.

但不仅如此。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Lots of issues to deal with:

很多事情有待解决：

manufacturing, outsourcing, job creation,

生产，外包，招聘，

patents, partnerships, funding --

专利，合伙人，资金——

these are all typical issues for a start-up,

这些都是创业者面临的典型问题，

but hardly typical for me.

但对我而言并非如此。

And a word about funding.

顺带说下资金。

I live and work in San Francisco,

我在旧金山居住和工作。

and if you're looking for funding,

如果你要寻找资金，

you are typically going to compete with some very young people

那你一般要与一些 从事着高科技工作的

from the high-tech industry,

年轻人竞争，

and it can be very discouraging and intimidating.

这很令人丧气和胆怯。

I have shoes older than most of these people.

我穿的鞋年头都比 这些人年纪还要大。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I do.

确实如此。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

But five years later,

但五年过去了，

I'm thrilled and proud to share with you

我可以兴奋且自豪的告诉大家，

that our revenues have doubled every year,

我们的收入每年倍增，

we have no debt,

没有外债，

we have several marquee clients,

还有一些重要的客户，

our patent was issued,

专利申请也通过了。

I have a wonderful partner

我有一个很棒的合伙人，

who's been with me right from the beginning,

他从最初就和我一起创业，

and we've won more than 20 awards for the work that we've done.

我们的工作已经 获得了超过20个奖项。

But best of all,

不过最好的是，

we've made a small dent --

我们缓解了——

a very small dent --

微不足道地缓解了——

in the worldwide plastic pollution crisis.

世界塑料污染危机。

(Applause)

（掌声）

And I am doing the most rewarding and meaningful work of my life right now.

而我现在做着一生中 回报最为丰厚、最有意义的工作。

I can tell you there's lots of resources available to entrepreneurs of all ages,

我可以告诉大家，对各个年龄阶段的 企业家，都有很多可利用的资源。

but what I really yearned for five years ago

但过去五年我最渴望的事情是

was to find other first-time entrepreneurs

找到其他与我同龄的，第一次创业的

who were my age.

企业家，

I wanted to connect with them.

我想和他们取得联系。

I had no role models, absolutely none.

那时我没有可以参考的 榜样，完全没有。

That 20-something app developer from Silicon Valley

硅谷那位20多岁的应用程序开发者

was not my role model.

可不是我的榜样。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I'm sure he was very clever --

我确信他很聪明。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I want to do something about that,

所以，我想改变一下现状，

我希望所有人都可以有所行动。

and I want all of us to do something about that.

我希望我们可以更多的谈论

I want us to start talking more

about people who don't become entrepreneurs until they are seniors.

那些直到老年才成为企业家的人。

Talking about these bold men and women who are checking in

多谈论这些勇敢的人， 当他们的同龄人退休时，

when their peers, in essence, are checking out.

他们才开始正式入行。

And then connecting all these people across industries, across regions,

然后，将所有这些跨行业、跨地区、

across countries --

跨国家的人联合起来，

building a community.

组成一个社区。

You know, the Small Business Administration tells us

小企业管理局数据显示

在美国，64%的私企提供的新岗位

that 64 percent of new jobs created in the private sector in the USA

are thanks to small businesses like mine.

是像我这样的小企业创造的。

And who's to say that we'll stay forever small?

并且谁敢说，我们会 一直维持这个规模？

We have an interesting culture

我们有个有趣的文化，

当你到了一定的年龄，就得去

that really expects when you reach a certain age,

you're going to be golfing, or playing checkers,

打高尔夫、下棋、

照顾孙子，在这些方面倾注所有。

or babysitting the grandkids all of the time.

And I adore my grandchildren --

我很爱我的孙辈。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

and I'm also passionate

可我也充满了热忱，

about doing something meaningful in the global marketplace.

希望为全球市场 贡献自己的一份力量。

And I'm going to have lots of company.

我还会开很多公司。

美国人口普查局表示，到2050年，

The Census Bureau says that by 2050,

there will be 84 million seniors in this country.

美国会有8400万老年人。

That's an amazing number.

这个数字非常惊人，

That's almost twice as many as we have today.

几乎是现在的两倍。

Can you imagine how many first-time entrepreneurs there will be

可以想象，到时候在 这8400万人中会有多少

among 84 million people?

首次创业者吗？

And they'll all have four decades of experience.

他们都有40年的工作经验。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

So when I say, "Let's start talking more about these wonderful entrepreneurs,"

所以，当我说“让我们更多的 谈论这些优秀的企业家，”

I mean, let's talk about their ventures,

我的意思是，让我们 谈论他们的冒险精神，

just as we do the ventures of their much younger counterparts.

就像我们谈论那些 年轻创业者的冒险精神一样。

The older entrepreneurs in this country have a 70 percent success rate

在美国，年长的创业者 有70%的成功机会去

starting new ventures.

建立新的事业。

70 percent success rate.

70%的成功机会。

We're like the Golden State Warriors of entrepreneurs --

我们就像创业者中的金州勇士 （美国西部职业篮球队）一样。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

(Applause)

（掌声）

And that number plummets to 28 percent for younger entrepreneurs.

而在年轻人中，这个数字只有28%。

This is according to a UK-based group called CMI.

这是一家英国组织CMI公布的数据。

Aren't the accomplishments of a 70-year-old entrepreneur

难道一个70岁创业者的成就

every bit as meaningful,

不同样有意义，

every bit as newsworthy,

同样有新闻价值吗？

as the accomplishments of a 30-year-old entrepreneur?

和一个30岁的创业者没什么不同。

Of course they are.

当然应该是这样。

That's why I'd like to make the phrase "70 over 70" just as --

这也是我为何要用 这个词“70大杰出老人”——

(Laughter)

（笑声）

just as commonplace as the phrase "30 under 30."

就像大家通用的“30大杰出青年”一样。

(Applause)

（掌声）

Thank you.

谢谢大家。

(Cheers)

（欢呼）

(Applause)

（掌声）