译者按：当我在LinkedIn上看到前同事David Krofeld离职并加入创业公司的时候，我是有一些惊讶的，毕竟我曾数次与David交流过这个问题，彼时他认为自己作为三个小女孩的爸爸很适合做Intrapreneur（即在一个稳定的大公司里尝试开展全新的战略业务）。David非常聪明，手握MIT的MBA，在大名鼎鼎的麦肯锡历练过两年多，太太生第一个宝宝时，他为了工作生活平衡离开咨询行业、选择了进入大公司，有二十多年的行业经验，做的也都是受高层关注的战略性项目。我在认识David后一度视他为mentor，因此当我看到他职业变动并发布了一篇文章，我立刻点开、想要了解他做出决定的背后。读罢，觉得他的思路一如既往很清晰，恰逢朋友圈几位朋友也在类似时间点做了类似的选择，因此跟他申请翻译、转发这篇文章到微信，希望能获得更多的讨论。David很愉快地答应了。
I Left a Cushy Corporate Job to Join a Startup: Here's Why
我为什么选择离开舒适的大公司、加入创业公司
Author: David Kronfeld，President & COO @ PatientFinder
作者：大卫·克朗费尔德，PatientFinder总裁、首席运营官
翻译：Chelsea
【From the author: After 20+ years in corporate roles, I decided now was the time to join a young, promising startup. Whether you're curious about my decision or considering something similar for yourself, I hope this article will be of use to you. 】
【作者按：在大公司工作了二十多年后，我决定是时候加入一家年轻、富有前景的创业公司了。如果你对我的决定好奇，或者是自己也在纠结类似的问题，希望我的这篇文章能够对你有点用处。】
Leaving a safe job at a publicly traded, industry-leading company wasn't a decision I made quickly. On the contrary, I spent several years introspecting to recognize that I needed a fresh start and, even then, the choice to join a startup wasn't obvious, despite it being something I've always been interested in. If you're anything like me in this regard — holding onto a fantasy that one day you'll join a startup but never quite feeling the time was right — then this is written with you in mind.
离开一家业内领先的上市公司并不是个轻快的决定。其实，我花了几年的时间进行内省，最终意识到我需要一个职场新起点。即使在那时，加入创业公司也并不是个显而易见的选择，虽然我一直都对这个感兴趣。如果你跟我一样一直有加入创业公司的心结而又一直觉得时机不对，这篇文章应该正中你怀。
Why leave?
For the past 6 years, I had a successful career at Medidata, a provider of software-as-a-service solutions in support of improving clinical trials for Life Science organizations. During that time, I had the honor to work with some of the most talented and mission-driven folks in my career, many of which have become lifelong friends. But, in the back of my mind, I started to develop a feeling that something was lacking, and over time that feeling became impossible to ignore.
为什么离职呢？
在过去的六年间，我在Medidata公司做得非常成功。Medidata是一家专注于提供生命科学领域临床试验所需要的软件服务提供商。几年间，我很荣幸结识了很多非常优秀、极具使命感的同事，他们中的很多变成了我一生的朋友。然而，我心中总感觉缺了点什么，并且随着时间的流逝，这种感觉变得越来越强烈、无法忽视。
Here are the three main reasons I finally decided it was time to find something new.
以下是我最终决定离开的三个主要原因：
Differing Strategic Vision — Being a domain expert in areas that are adjacent to your company's core business can be awkward, at best, or put you at odds with their strategic direction, at worst. Although right or wrong can only be assessed in hindsight, my time is precious and realized that I only wanted to work on projects into which I'm compelled to pour 100% of myself. 异化的战略视野 ——当你的专业领域偏离公司核心业务时，你的定位会比较奇怪，甚至于可能因你不在公司战略方向而置自己于危地。虽然最终结果无从预判，我的个人时间是宝贵的，我只想做那些自己心甘情愿倾注百分百的项目。
Limited Career Velocity — A mentor of mine once said, "Careers are like sharks — keep moving forward or die." A bit dramatic, perhaps, but there's an element of truth too. In my case, focusing on innovation, which by definition isn't within the core business, meant there wasn't a structure for career development. In the end, you can only swim against the currents for so long before it's time to find another stream. 有限的职场提升速度——我的一位导师曾经说：“一个人的职业生涯就跟鲨鱼一样，要么前进要么死。”这个比喻可能略戏剧化，但其中有真实的成分。以我为例，我负责公司创新，这并不在核心业务范畴，因此公司里并没有相应的晋升结构。最终我只能像在逆流中游泳，直到撑不住了、换去另一条溪流。
Personal Stability — I suppose there's never an ideal time to take a risk in your career, especially if you have three young children like I do. Fortunately, we have a dual-income family so when my wife, Denise, told me that I'd have her support for whatever decision I make, it allowed me to immediately consider a wider range of possibilities. 个人稳定性——仔细想想，其实从来都不存在这样一个完美时机，尤其如果你跟我一样家中有三个小朋友。幸运的是，我家是双收入家庭。因此，当我太太丹妮斯告诉我，她支持我的任何决定，我便立刻开始考虑自己职业上更广泛的可能性。
Why a startup? Why that startup?
I knew startup life wouldn't be glamorous and the odds of making a life-changing exit would be slim, but what was more important to me was investing my time in a company that was fully invested in me. Although I considered other corporate opportunities, I believe that working at a startup would offer the most control of my future. *pause for laughter* Yes, startups offer little predictability, but when curveballs come I need to be the one deciding which ones to swing at.
为什么是创业公司呢？
我一直都知道，创业从来都不会是光鲜亮丽的，一夜暴富的几率小而又小。但对我来说，最重要的是我能够把自己的时间投入到一家肯投资于我的公司上。虽然我也考虑过其他的在大企业的机会，我最终坚信在创业公司能够让我对自己的未来有最大的把控。读到这里你可能笑了。没错，创业公司的确有太多不确定性，然而当很多球飞来的时候，我能够选择击哪个球。
But which startup? In the end, it comes down to 'fit'.
所以要选什么样的创业公司呢？最终的决定因素是“合适”。
Company — Identify a company that has differentiation within its market and relative to its competition. All else being equal, this is the biggest driver of success. If you can't check this box, stop here. In my case, my interest was piqued by PatientFinder's outlier commercial performance, specifically the rapid acquisition of and growth within customers resulting in profitability with only seed funding; quite an accomplishment for a young SaaS company. 首先，公司——找到一家在自己领域区别于其他竞争对手的公司。同等条件下，这会是公司取得成功的最大驱动力。如果这一条不能满足，排除这家公司。以我为例，我对于新公司PatientFinder的兴趣来自于它出色的商业表现，尤其是它的快速兼并以及客户增长让公司在种子轮便实现盈利，这对于一家年轻的SaaS公司是非常了不起的。
Team — This can be very difficult to assess during a traditional interview process but since the people you work shape your environment, and consequently your satisfaction, this is crucial. As an Advisor and Board Member to PatientFinder, I had privileged exposure to its founder & CEO, Dave Thornton, over two years, which made it easy to check this box. 其次，团队——在传统的面试环节里，这非常难以考察。但是，你一起工作的人会塑造你的工作环境，并影响你对工作的满意度。这非常关键。我在过去两年一直担任PatientFinder的顾问及董事会成员，因此得以近距离观察公司的创始人兼CEO戴夫·桑顿。这让我很容易就做出了积极判断。
Role — Although the most granular of the categories, this is the most important to me. Finding the right role, one where you can make the greatest impact with the most responsibility, is a key ingredient in career progression. After all, regardless of how big or small your exit is, your professional experiences are what you bring to your next opportunity. 第三，职位——虽然这是最细分的一条，但这对我来讲是最重要的。找到最合适的职位，找到那个能让你发挥最大影响力、具备最大责任权限的角色，这是职场发展的关键要素。毕竟，不管最终你能否收割胜利，只有职业经验才是你唯一能带到职场下一步的。
Everyone's situation is different. So please comment and contribute your experiences -- I want to hear from you!
每个人都情况都不一样。所以请留言并分享你的经验。我希望也能听到你分享。
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