Finding your first job is easy.

    第一份工作好找。

    You send in your resume for a position to which no one else is applying.

    你投簡歷到一個沒人申請的職位。

    You get a call back right away, have a successful interview (during which you are promptly offered the job) and of course you’re offered the salary to last a lifetime. Nothin’ to it. Dream on.

    馬上會接到電話通知、面試成功（立刻被提供工作），獲得了持續一生的薪水。一帆風順。繼續做夢吧。

    A more likely scenario might look something like this: You send out multiple copies of your resume to several different positions that have hundreds of other applicants.

    更有可能的情況也許是這樣的：你發出許多份簡歷，申請不同的職位，這些職位有數百位申請人。

    Maybe (if you’re lucky) you’ll hear back from five employers. Of those five, you might get two or three interviews, none of which will go as seamlessly as you think.

    也許（幸運的話）你會從五位雇主那里得到消息。在那五個中，你也許獲得兩、三次面試機會。而沒有一個會和你想象的一樣好。

    After waiting several weeks in career purgatory, you may or may not get an offer for a job that is closer to a nightmare than a dream and that pays just enough to foot the bills.

    在“職業煉獄”煎熬數周后，你也許會得到一個更像噩夢而不是美夢的工作機會，而且薪水剛剛糊口；也許你連這樣的機會都得不到。

    “Although the job market is a little shaky right now, recent grads don’t want to settle, either,” says Kristen Fischer, author of “Ramen Noodles, Rent and Resumes.” “Many recent graduates feel like taking a job is a life or death decision. While every job will impact their career, they have to remember that a first job is a stepping stone. Chances are that it won’t be an ideal situation or their dream job, but it can provide the foundation for a fulfilling career.”

    《速食面、房租、簡歷》一書作者Kristen Fischer說：“雖然就業市場此刻有些不穩，應屆大學生也不愿將就就業，許多應屆畢業生把一份工作看成生死抉擇。雖然每一份工作都會對他們的事業產生影響，但是他們要記住第一份工作只是一塊跳板。它可能不完美也不理想，但是能為實現抱負打基礎。”