把目前的工作當作未來機會的跳板，預計40歲退休的Small Talk

In a garment company's break room, two young female employees from different departments meet by chance. Emily from product development and Fanny from marketing, both recent graduates, find themselves alone by the water dispenser. As they fill their cups, they start chatting, quickly discovering shared career goals and a mutual interest in stock investment. Their hushed conversation reveals similar views on using their current jobs as stepping stones for future opportunities.
在一家服裝公司的休息室裡，兩位來自不同部門的年輕女性員工偶然相遇。產品開發部門的Emily和行銷部門的Fanny，都是應屆畢業生，在飲水機旁碰面。當她們裝水時，開始交談，迅速發現彼此有相似的職業目標和共同的股票投資興趣。她們壓低聲音的對話揭示了類似的想法：把目前的工作當作未來機會的跳板。

Emily: Hi there! I don't think we've met before. Are you new to the company too?

Fanny: Yes, I am! I started last month in the marketing department. How about you?

Emily: Oh, marketing? That's interesting! I joined the product development team just two weeks ago. It's nice to meet another newcomer. How are you finding it so far?

Fanny: It's been okay. To be honest, this isn't my dream job. I only chose it because it's close to home and traditional industries offer stable employment. I'm planning to stay here for about two or three years to gain some experience in the textile industry before moving on to a more innovative company. What about you?

Emily: Wow, that's quite similar to my plan! I figured a traditional garment manufacturer would be a good starting point for my career. It's stable, and I can learn the basics of the industry. I might even ask my supervisor if I can rotate through different departments - it'll make me look proactive, but really it's to gain diverse work experience. My ideal career path is to work for a multinational company. I love traveling, and my English skills are up to par.

Fanny: That's a great goal! I'm aiming for a company ranked within the top 100 in Taiwan. I'm hoping to secure a good position there until retirement. But for now, this job pays the bills and gives me time to work on my side projects.

Emily: Side projects? That sounds intriguing. What are you working on?

Fanny: Well, don't tell anyone, but I've been using some of my work time to study the stock market. I'm trying to build up my investment portfolio. The dream is to retire by 40!

Emily: No way! I've been doing the same thing! I thought I was the only one sneaking peeks at stock charts between tasks. Have you been following the recent tech stock rally?

Fanny: Absolutely! I've made some decent gains on my AI-related stocks. But I'm also looking into some more stable dividend-paying companies for long-term growth.

Emily: That's a smart strategy. I've been focusing on ETFs for now, but I'm thinking about branching out into individual stocks. Maybe we could share tips sometime?

Fanny: I'd love that! It's great to have someone to discuss investments with. How about we grab a coffee after work and chat more about our retirement plans?

Emily: Sounds perfect! It's nice to find someone with similar goals. Who knows, maybe we'll end up retiring early and starting our own business together!

Fanny: Ha! Never say never. For now, let's focus on surviving in this company and growing our nest eggs. See you after work!

Brooke Cagle on Unsplash

Emily：嗨！我們好像還沒見過面。你也是公司的新人嗎？

Fanny：是的！我上個月才加入行銷部門。你呢？

Emily：哦，行銷部門啊？很有趣！我兩週前剛加入產品開發團隊。很高興認識另一位新人。到目前為止你覺得工作如何？

Fanny：還可以。老實說，這不是我理想中的工作。只是因為離家近而且傳產工作穩定。我打算在這裡待兩三年，積累一些紡織業的經驗，然後再轉到一家更創新的公司。你呢？

Emily：哇，這跟我的計畫很相似！我覺得傳統的服裝製造商是我職業生涯的好起點。這裡很穩定，我可以學習行業的基礎知識。或許我會跟主管請求在各部門之間輪調，表面上積極主動，實則多累積不同類型工作歷練。我的理想生涯是為一家跨國公司工作，我喜歡旅遊而且我英文能力足夠。

Fanny：那是個很棒的目標！我自己則是瞄準了台灣排名百名內的公司，預計佔個好缺到退休。不過現在，這份工作能支付帳單，也給我時間做些副業。

Emily：副業？聽起來很有意思。你在做什麼項目？

Fanny：嗯，別告訴別人，但我一直在利用一些工作時間研究股票市場。我在努力建立我的投資組合。我的夢想是40歲退休！

Emily：不會吧！我也在做同樣的事！我還以為只有我一個人在工作間隙偷看股票圖表呢。你有關注最近科技股的漲勢嗎？

Fanny：當然！我在人工智慧相關股票上賺了不少。但我也在關注一些較為穩定的高股息公司，為長期增長做準備。

Emily：這是個明智的策略。我目前主要關注ETF，但我在考慮開始投資個股。也許我們可以找時間交流一下心得？

Fanny：我很樂意！能有人一起討論投資真是太好了。我們下班後一起喝杯咖啡，多聊聊我們的退休計劃如何？

Emily：聽起來很棒！很高興能找到一個有相似目標的人。誰知道呢，也許我們最後真的能提前退休，一起創業！

Fanny：哈！永遠別說永不可能。現在，讓我們專注於在這家公司生存下去，同時增加我們的儲蓄吧。下班見！