I'll explain in a second, I'm a long-time admirer of Mark Bittman, the food journalist who recently left The New York Times. So when Bittman announced he was leaving journalism to work for a meal kit startup, I was sad. I would miss him. But the other day when I read the "first installment" of his entrepreneurial journey in Fast Company, my sadness turned to anger.

开始前，请容许笔者解释一下，笔者是Mark Bittman的骨灰级粉丝，但Bittman最近已经离职了纽约时报的美食记者职位了。所以当笔者听到他将从记者生涯转而投入餐具自创公司的消息时，着实让我沮丧了一阵子，我很怀念他写的美食专栏。但后来当我读到他在Fast Company开启企业家之旅的“首次上任”文章时，我的情绪从惋惜转而愤怒。

It's true that Bittman admitted that starting a company is "harder than I thought." (No kidding.) But, even though his new venture has a wonderful mission ("encouraging part-time veganism, supporting sustainable agriculture and, in general, helping build the good food movement"), Bittman is ambivalent about entrepreneurship.

Bittman所认为的“开创新公司比想象中困难”这个说法是对的。(并不是玩笑话。)但是即使他的新企业肩负着多么意义非凡的使命(鼓励部分时间素食主义，支持可持续性农业以及广泛的帮助建立健康食品运动)，Bittman的创业精神还是有点自相矛盾的。

As a long-time entrepreneur, I get very cranky when someone suggests that creating and building a business is anything less than a noble endeavor. Even if you're making widgets, you're still adding economic and social value. And if you've got higher aspirations (my firm helps our clients reach, engage and motivate employees), all the better.

作为一名资深企业家，当我听到有人发表类似“创立企业只不过是一件高尚的尝试”这种言论时，我都会非常抓狂。即使你所生产的产品再小，你仍然在为其增添着经济和社会利用价值。并且如果你有更高的追求(笔者的公司致力于扩大客户群体，关注且激励员工等)，那么各个方面都能随之提升一个高度。

Here are the 7 reasons entrepreneurs are awesome. We:

企业家之所以能够傲视群雄，是因为我们：

1.Dream big.

1. 有伟大的理想。

We aspire to solve problems, make people's lives better, make a difference.

我们努力解决问题，为人民生活谋利益，创造不平凡。

2.Fail hard.

2. 经常失败。

Failing is so painful while you're going through it and so valuable later. And it may sound cheesy, but it's the circle of life--somebody loses and someone else goes on to change the world.

当你正经历着失败，这种感觉确实不好受，但事后你会发现这是多么的珍贵。也许失败根本不值一提，但这正是生活的规律——有人倒下，就有人站起来改变世界。

3.Claw back from adversity.

3. 及时从逆境中战胜困难。

We fight our way out of economic downturns, natural disasters, acts of violence--and, by doing so, demonstrate courage and perseverance.

我们从经济倒退、自然灾害，暴力事件等事件中突破重重困难，通过这些磨练，我们增加了勇气和毅力。

4.Build something meaningful.

4. 干点有意义的事。

For most of us, we're not just creating a company. We're contributing to society. Making an economic difference. Helping the community.

大多数企业家，创建公司并不只是为了创建公司。我们在为社会做贡献。在经济上创造价值。帮助社会大众。

5.Create good jobs.

5. 创建有意义的职位。

Even if this were the only good thing entrepreneurs do, it would be a big one.

即使这是企业家只会做的一件事，但造成的影响却不小。

6.Nurture people.

6. 培养人才。

A majority of us are committed to growing our employees along with our companies. I hate it when an employee leaves my firm, but I understand that people have to leave the nest.

大多数的企业家都在公司发展的同时培养员工的素质技能。我很讨厌看到有员工离开我的公司的场景，但我能理解他确实要离巢了。

7.Live free.

7. 自在地生活。

Every entrepreneur knows that we're not in complete control of our lives. In fact, we acutely feel the pressure of employees, clients, suppliers and everyone else we're dependent on. But we know that the buck stops with us and we can shape our own destiny. (How cool is that?) By the way, in addition to all of the above, entrepreneurs also make money. And we're proud of that, too.

每位企业家都深刻理解到我们不能完全控制自己的生活。十几次，我们对员工，客户，供应商以及任何我们所依赖的人的压力都有非常敏感。但我们很清楚金钱会为我们而停下脚步，我们也能塑造自己的人生。(多么酷炫的事呀!另外，除了上述提到的这几点之外，企业家确实会赚钱，并且，我们非常引以为荣。