THE PROBLEM 问题
I have recently acquired a new boss who is 32. I am 20 years older and consider myself more experienced, better educated and more intelligent than him. He has hare-brained ideas and to my disgust all my colleagues are kowtowing to him. I fear I may already have alienated him by pointing out that some of his schemes won't fly. How can I manage this whippersnapper?
Manager, male, 51
我最近有了一个年仅32岁的新上司。我比他大20岁，而且自认为比他更有经验、教育背景更好，也更有才智。他的想法轻率浮躁，而且令我厌恶的是，我所有的同事都拍他马屁。我担心，由于我曾直言指出他的某些计划不会奏效，我可能已经和他疏远了。我如何对付这个自以为是的年轻人呢？
经理，男，51岁
THE ANSWER 回答
Before I tell you what I think of your problem, I should warn you that most readers under 40 (a few over 40) hold you in contempt. According to their e-mails, you are a ghastly old git in denial that someone better than you is now your boss.
回答你的问题之前，我应该提醒你，本报大多数40岁以下的读者（和少数超过40岁的读者）都很鄙视你。他们的电子邮件称，你是个可怕的老蠢货，不愿承认你现在的上司比你优秀。
Like most of older readers, I don't think you are a ghastly git at all. In fact, I can easily imagine feeling the same way myself.
和大多数年纪较大的读者一样，我一点儿也不认为你是个可怕的蠢货。事实上，我很容易想象自己产生同感。
Having someone 20 years younger as a boss is hard - it is the final confirmation that you are way over the hill, and it is quite reasonable that one should mind about that. In a politically correct office we are expected to be age-blind, but age remains a big part of where we feel we fit into a hierarchy and it is silly to pretend otherwise. What is happening to you will come to us all, and we will all have to learn to put up with it - but that doesn't make it pleasant.
有一个比自己年轻20岁的上司，这件事很是麻烦--这最终证明，你已经上年纪了，对此耿耿于怀也是合理的。在政治正确的办公室中，人们期望我们忽略年龄问题，但事实上，年龄问题仍是办公室里的一个重要因素，我们会根据它来论资排辈，确定自己的等级层次，而且，假装忽略这个问题是很蠢的。你目前遇到的问题，将会发生在我们所有人身上，而我们所有人都必须学会如何处理它--但这并不会让问题变得令人愉快。
As for the supposed uselessness of your young boss, I can believe he is less experienced and more ignorant than you. Many of his generation are. However, he may have other qualities that make him a better manager - or he may not. It wouldn't be the first time a fool got over-promoted.
至于你认为这位年轻上司没本事，我相信他的经验没你丰富，见识比你更少。他们这代人许多都这样。然而，他可能有其它方面的素质，能让其成为一名更优秀的经理--当然，也可能没有。蠢才官运亨通并非没有先例。
Still, whether or not he actually deserves the job is beside the point. You have been foolish to offend him, and you must row back sharpish.
但是，问题并不在于他是否配坐这个位子。你冒犯他是愚蠢的，你必须立刻悬崖勒马。
As I can't see you landing a peachy job outside, you can either stick it out gracefully or become a grumpy nuisance. The latter would be silly because it will put your job at risk, and because by obsessing about him you'll end up bitter and boring - an old git, in fact.
我估计，你在外面也找不到一份很好的工作，因此，你要么体面地做好这份工作，要么做一个脾气暴躁的讨厌鬼。选择后者是愚蠢的，因为这将使你面临失业的危险，同时，由于你整天思考他的问题，你最终将变得尖刻、令人厌烦--成为一个真正的老蠢货。
Without kowtowing, you should concentrate on doing your own job well. The passing of time will help, and not just because it will get you nearer to a pension, which I assume is your end game. His schemes may get less hare-brained, and you will slowly get used to the shocking sight of his fresh face.
不用拍马屁，你应该专心把自己的工作做好。时间的流逝会有所帮助，部分因为你离退休越来越近--我想，退休养老应该是你的最终目标。随着时间推移，他的想法可能会变得不那么轻率，而你，也将慢慢习惯他那令人憎恶的年轻脸庞。
A final point: the word whippersnapper is a favourite of mine. It is deliciously evocative. My advice that I give with lingering regret: avoid.
最后一点："自以为是的年轻人"这个字眼我很喜欢。它很容易引起共鸣。但我不得不遗憾地建议：避免用它。
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