Dame Stephanie Shirley: Why do ambitious women have flat heads?

譯者: Yamei Huang 審譯者: Lorrine Lee

When I wrote my memoir,

我在寫我的回憶錄時，

the publishers were really confused.

出版商都覺得很困惑。

Was it about me as a child refugee,

他們不確定這本書 是要談我童年的難民故事，

or as a woman who set up a high-tech software company back in the 1960s,

是要談一個女人如何在 60 年代 創辦一家高科技軟體公司，

one that went public

公開上市，

and eventually employed over 8,500 people?

並聘用超過 8500 名員工？

Or was it as a mother of an autistic child?

是要談自閉症小孩母親的心路歷程？

Or as a philanthropist that's now given away serious money?

又或是談一個慈善家為何捐出大把家產?

Well, it turns out, I'm all of these.

結果是以上皆是。

So let me tell you my story.

現在就讓我來談談我的故事。

All that I am stems from when I got onto a train in Vienna,

一切都得從我在維也納 跳上一班火車開始，

part of the Kindertransport that saved nearly 10,000 Jewish children

那班火車是孩童援救計劃之一， 從納粹佔領的歐洲拯救了

from Nazi Europe.

近一萬名猶太兒童。

I was five years old, clutching the hand of my nine-year-old sister

我那時候五歲，緊緊抓著我九歲姊姊的手。

and had very little idea as to what was going on.

我根本不知道發生什麼事。

"What is England and why am I going there?"

「什麼是英國？為什麼要去哪裡？」

I'm only alive because so long ago, I was helped by generous strangers.

我之所以能存活，是因為很久以前 我受到慷慨陌生人的幫助。

I was lucky, and doubly lucky to be later reunited

我很幸運，超級幸運，

with my birth parents.

才能在日後與我的親生父母重聚。

But, sadly, I never bonded with them again.

但難過的是，我們之間 沒辦法再建立緊密的親情聯結。

But I've done more in the seven decades since that miserable day

從那苦難日，我媽媽把我送上火車之後，

when my mother put me on the train

70 年來，我做過很多事情，

than I would ever have dreamed possible.

遠遠超過我的想像。

And I love England, my adopted country,

我喜愛英國，這個接納我的國家。

with a passion that perhaps only someone who has lost their human rights can feel.

這種熱愛， 或許只有喪失過人權的人才能感受。

I decided to make mine a life that was worth saving.

我決定讓我的人生有意義， 才能回報救過我的人，

And then, I just got on with it.

誰知道後來有點欲罷不能。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Let me take you back to the early 1960s.

讓我從 1960 年代早期開始講起。

To get past the gender issues of the time,

因為當時有性別歧視的問題，

I set up my own software house at one of the first such startups in Britain.

我成立了自己的軟體公司。 英國第一批軟體公司之一。

But it was also a company of women, a company for women,

這家公司只有女性員工， 提供女性就業機會，

an early social business.

算是早期的社會企業。

And people laughed at the very idea because software, at that time,

人們覺得這種作法很可笑，因為當時

was given away free with hardware.

軟體是隨硬體贈送的產品。

Nobody would buy software, certainly not from a woman.

沒有人會買軟體， 當然更不會跟婦女買。

Although women were then coming out of the universities with decent degrees,

雖然當時婦女開始取得體面的大學學歷，

there was a glass ceiling to our progress.

玻璃天花板對婦女的職業生涯 仍是一道無形阻隔。

And I'd hit that glass ceiling too often,

我自己也不斷面臨這無形的障礙，

and I wanted opportunities for women.

所以我想提供女性工作機會。

I recruited professionally qualified women who'd left the industry on marriage,

我招募專業且能力優秀， 卻因為結婚而離職的女性，

or when their first child was expected

或是因為懷孕生子而離職的女性，

and structured them into a home-working organization.

讓婦女可以在家完成工作。

We pioneered the concept of women going back into the workforce

我們用前瞻性的想法讓女性在職業中斷後，

after a career break.

可以再回到工作崗位。

We pioneered all sorts of new, flexible work methods:

我們提倡各類新穎、靈活的工作方法：

job shares, profit-sharing, and eventually, co-ownership

工作分擔，利潤分紅， 員工進而成為公司的股東。

when I took a quarter of the company into the hands of the staff

我將公司股權的四分之一

at no cost to anyone but me.

無償交給除了我之外的員工。

For years, I was the first woman this, or the only woman that.

多年來，我是第一位 也是唯一這麼做的女性。

And in those days, I couldn't work on the stock exchange,

當時，我無法在證券交易所工作，

I couldn't drive a bus or fly an airplane.

我不能開巴士或是開飛機。

Indeed, I couldn't open a bank account without my husband's permission.

甚至沒有我老公的同意， 我就不能開立銀行帳號。

My generation of women fought the battles for the right to work

我們這個年代的女性為工作權，

and the right for equal pay.

為薪資平等權而奮戰。

Nobody really expected much from people at work or in society

當時沒有人在工作職場或社會上 對女性有很高的期望

because all the expectations then

因為當時對女性的期待是

were about home and family responsibilities.

家務和家庭責任。

And I couldn't really face that,

我實在無法接受這樣的現況，

so I started to challenge the conventions of the time,

因此我開始挑戰當時的傳統，

even to the extent of changing my name from "Stephanie" to "Steve"

甚至在商務書信上，

in my business development letters,

將我的名字由「斯蒂芬妮」改為「史蒂夫」，

so as to get through the door before anyone realized

在有人發現我是女非男之前，

that he was a she.

就先打開商業交易的大門。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

My company, called Freelance Programmers, and that's precisely what it was,

我的公司名稱是「自由程式設計者」， 這實在是名符其實。

couldn't have started smaller: on the dining room table,

我創業的地點小到不能再小， 從我的餐桌開始

and financed by the equivalent of 100 dollars in today's terms,

創業資金相當於今天的 100 美元。

and financed by my labor and by borrowing against the house.

這資金是我工作膁來的錢， 再加上房子的抵押貸款

My interests were scientific, the market was commercial --

我的興趣是科學技術， 但要有市場就要懂商 --

things such as payroll, which I found rather boring.

像薪資之類的事情，我覺得相當無聊。

So I had to compromise with operational research work,

但我必須在研發工作上讓步，

which had the intellectual challenge that interested me

在我有興趣，充滿智力挑戰的工作上讓步，

and the commercial value that was valued by the clients:

轉而了解客戶所重視的商業價值：

things like scheduling freight trains,

如安排貨運火車、

time-tabling buses, stock control, lots and lots of stock control.

了解巴士時刻表、控制庫存量， 許多的庫存管理工作。

And eventually, the work came in.

最後我們終於接到訂單。

We disguised the domestic and part-time nature of the staff

我們以產品固定價格來掩飾 我們是在家創業的小公司，

by offering fixed prices, one of the very first to do so.

而且員工都是兼職， 我們首創固定價格的先例。

And who would have guessed that the programming

有誰會想到

of the black box flight recorder of Supersonic Concord

協和號超音速客機的 飛行記錄黑盒子的程式

would have been done by a bunch of women working in their own homes.

是由一群在家工作的女性所設計。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

All we used was a simple "trust the staff" approach

我們的作法很簡單，就是「相信員工」

and a simple telephone.

加上一台普通的電話。

We even used to ask job applicants, "Do you have access to a telephone?"

我們甚至問求職者， 「你有電話可以用嗎？」

An early project was to develop software standards

早期的專案是發展管理控制協議的

on management control protocols.

軟體標準。

And software was and still is a maddeningly hard-to-control activity,

軟體一直是難以控制到令人發狂的東西，

so that was enormously valuable.

因此極有價值。

We used the standards ourselves,

我們的程式碼使用自己的軟體標準，

we were even paid to update them over the years,

多年來我們收取軟體更新服務費，

and eventually, they were adopted by NATO.

後來，北大西洋公約組織採用這套軟體標準

Our programmers -- remember, only women,

我們的程式設計師 -- 別忘了，她們全是女性，

including gay and transgender --

包括同性戀和變性人--

worked with pencil and paper to develop flowcharts

以紙筆設計程式流程圖

defining each task to be done.

來定義每項必項完成的任務。

And they then wrote code, usually machine code,

接著寫程式碼，通常是寫機械碼，

sometimes binary code,

有時寫二進制編碼，

which was then sent by mail to a data center

以郵件寄到資料中心，

to be punched onto paper tape or card

把程式碼打在紙帶或卡片上 以便讓計算機讀取該程式碼

and then re-punched, in order to verify it.

然後再打一次程式碼在卡片上， 以確保所輸入的程式碼是正確的。

All this, before it ever got near a computer.

這些都是電腦出現以前的做法。

That was programming in the early 1960s.

這是 1960 年代編寫程式碼的方式。

In 1975, 13 years from startup,

1975 年，公司創立後第 13 年，

equal opportunity legislation came in in Britain

英國通過就業機會平等法規，

and that made it illegal to have our pro-female policies.

我們再也不能只僱用女性。

And as an example of unintended consequences,

所以發生一個料想不到的結果，

my female company had to let the men in.

我們這家女性公司，不得不聘用男性。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

When I started my company of women,

當我開始創立我的女性公司時，

the men said, "How interesting, because it only works because it's small."

男人的回應是，真有趣， 這公司能持續運作，是因為規模小。

And later, as it became sizable, they accepted, "Yes, it is sizable now,

後來，當公司愈來愈有規模， 他們又說，是啊！是有點規模，

but of no strategic interest."

但是毫無戰略利益

And later, when it was a company valued at over three billion dollars,

後來，當公司市值超過 30 億美金

and I'd made 70 of the staff into millionaires,

而且我的 70 位員工都成為百萬富翁，

they sort of said, "Well done, Steve!"

他們有點不情不願地說： 「幹得好，史蒂夫！」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

(Applause)

（掌聲）

You can always tell ambitious women by the shape of our heads:

你可以依頭型分辨出有野心的女人：

They're flat on top for being patted patronizingly.

她們頭是平的， 因為不時要屈尊俯就讓人拍打。

(Laughter) (Applause)

（笑聲）（掌聲）

And we have larger feet to stand away from the kitchen sink.

我們有較大的腳丫子 讓我們可以走出廚房。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Let me share with you two secrets of success:

我跟各位分享成功的二個秘密：

Surround yourself with first-class people and people that you like;

跟優秀且你喜歡的人一起合作；

and choose your partner very, very carefully.

及小心謹慎地選擇合作夥伴。

Because the other day when I said, "My husband's an angel,"

幾天前，我說「我的老公是天使，」

a woman complained -- "You're lucky," she said,

有個女人抱怨道，「你真幸運，」

"mine's still alive."

「我的老公還活著。」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

If success were easy, we'd all be millionaires.

如果成功垂手可得， 那我們都會是百萬富翁。

But in my case, it came in the midst of family trauma and indeed, crisis.

就我而言，我的成功 夾雜著家庭創傷和危機。

Our late son, Giles, was an only child, a beautiful, contented baby.

我已過世的獨子賈爾斯 是一個美麗，隨遇而安的小孩。

And then, at two and a half,

在他二歲半的時候，

like a changeling in a fairy story,

像是童話故事裡被仙女偷換的小孩，

he lost the little speech that he had

他不再說話

and turned into a wild, unmanageable toddler.

變成一個任性、不聽話的小孩。

Not the terrible twos;

他不是一般可怕的兩歲小孩；

he was profoundly autistic and he never spoke again.

他有嚴重的自閉症， 而且從此不再開口說話。

Giles was the first resident in the first house of the first charity that I set up

我為自閉症患者設立了第一所慈善機構

to pioneer services for autism.

賈爾斯是第一位入住者。

And then there's been a groundbreaking Prior's Court school

後來我們還開創先例為自閉症孩童

for pupils with autism

設立特殊學校，

and a medical research charity, again, all for autism.

同時也為自閉症患者成立醫療研究慈善機構。

Because whenever I found a gap in services, I tried to help.

只要我發現有服務不足的地方 我就會盡力幫忙。

I like doing new things and making new things happen.

我喜歡創新並實現創新的想法。

And I've just started a three-year think tank for autism.

我最近剛為自閉患者成立了一個為期三年的智囊團。

And so that some of my wealth does go back to the industry from which it stems,

我把一些財富回饋給社會，

I've also founded the Oxford Internet Institute

我也成立牛津網路研究所

and other IT ventures.

投資其他資訊科技創投產業。

The Oxford Internet Institute focuses not on the technology,

牛津網路研究所不只關注科技議題，

but on the social, economic, legal and ethical issues of the Internet.

也關注網路上社會、經濟、法律以及道德議題。

Giles died unexpectedly 17 years ago now.

17 年前，賈爾斯意外過世。

And I have learned to live without him,

我已學會習慣沒有他在身邊的日子，

and I have learned to live without his need of me.

我學會習慣他不再需要我的的日子。

Philanthropy is all that I do now.

現在我把重心放在慈善事業上。

I need never worry about getting lost

我從不會擔心迷路

because several charities would quickly come and find me.

因為有許多慈善機構很快就會找到我。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

It's one thing to have an idea for an enterprise,

有創業的想法是一回事，

but as many people in this room will know,

但在座的各位也知道，

making it happen is a very difficult thing

要實現想法是件很困難的事

and it demands extraordinary energy, self-belief and determination,

我們需要超乎常人的精力， 要有自信和決心，

the courage to risk family and home,

承擔家庭問題風險的勇氣，

and a 24/7 commitment that borders on the obsessive.

全年無休地獻身在自己的事業上。

So it's just as well that I'm a workaholic.

所以幸好我是個工作狂。

I believe in the beauty of work when we do it properly and in humility.

我相信工作的美好 只要我們能以正確和謙卑的心將工作做好。

Work is not just something I do when I'd rather be doing something else.

工作並不是你不能不忍受的某件事

We live our lives forward.

生活要往前看。

So what has all that taught me?

所以，我的這些經歷經教了我什麼？

I learned that tomorrow's never going to be like today,

我學到明天將不同於今日，

and certainly nothing like yesterday.

當然也不會跟昨天一樣。

And that made me able to cope with change,

這樣的觀念幫助我應付所有的變化，

indeed, eventually to welcome change,

最後甚至擁抱改變，

though I'm told I'm still very difficult.

雖然有人說，我還是很固執

Thank you very much.

謝謝各位。

(Applause)

（掌聲）