A: Excuse me, sir, may I talk to you?

老板，打擾一下，我想和你談談。

B: Bill! Sure, come on in. What can I do for you?

哦，是比爾。當然可以，請進。有什么事嗎？

A: Well, sir, as you know, I have been an employee of this prestigious firm for over ten years.

老板，你知道的，我在我們這家享負盛名的公司已經有十年了。

B: Yes.

是的。

A: I won't beat around the bush, sir. I would like a raise. I currently have three companies after me and so I decided to talk to you first.

老板，我就不拐彎抹角了。我想要加薪。目前有三家公司找我，但是我決定先和您談談。

B: A raise? Son, I would love to give you a raise, but this is just not the right time.

加薪？我也想給你加薪，但現在還不是時候。

A: I understand your position and I know that the current economic downturn has had a negative impact on sales, but you must also take into consideration my hard work, Pro-activeness and loyalty to this company for over a decade.

我理解你的處境，我知道目前經濟下滑對銷售產生負面影響。但是你也必須顧及一下我十余年的辛勤工作，積極主動以及對公司的忠誠。

B: Taking into account these factors and, considering I don't want to start a brain drain, I'm willing to offer you a ten percent raise and an extra five days of vacation time. How does that sound?

考慮到這些因素，而且我也不想人才外流，我愿意給你加薪10%，另外額外給你五天休假，這樣如何？

A:Great! It's a deal! Thank you, sir.

太好了！就這么定了！謝謝老板。

B: Before you go, just out of curiosity, what companies were after you?

走之前，我出于好奇問一下，什么公司在挖你？

A: Oh, the electric company, the gas company and the water company!

哦，電力公司、燃氣公司和自來水公司。

prestigious

有聲望的；久負盛名的

例句：

Yale is a prestigious university.

耶魯大學是名牌大學。

Her first novel won a prestigious literary prize.

她的第一部小說就獲得了一個頗有聲望的文學獎。

beat around the bush

拐彎抹角

例句：

Stop beating around the bush and tell me what you came here to say.

別拐彎抹角了，告訴我你來這里想說什么。

W can't keep beating around the bush like this. It's because sooner or later, they are going to find out.

我們不能再這樣拐彎抹角了。因為他們遲早會發現的。

直奔主題

Cut to the chase.

Go straight to the point.

I would like a raise.

我要加薪。

I want/would like a raise.

I would like to ask for a raise.

我要加薪。

例句：

He was so happy when he got a raise that he didn't stop smiling for a week.

當他加薪了之后，他非常高興，整整一周笑地合不攏嘴。

downturn

（商業；經濟的）衰退

a downturn in economy/sales/trade/business

經濟/銷量/貿易/商業衰退

例句：

We are going through a severe downturn in economy/economic downturn.

我們正在經歷嚴重的經濟衰退。

How long will the economic downturn last?

經濟衰退還要持續多久？

The downturn is making compaines rethink their strategies.

經濟衰退正在迫使企業重新考慮自己的戰略。

impact

影響

a positive/negative impact on...

對...有正面/負面影響

take into consideration

考慮

Before you decide which employee to promote, you should also take into consideration whether their skills would be better used at their current position or in their new position.

在你決定提拔哪位員工之前，你應該考慮他們的技能是否在當前職位上，或是新的職位上被更好的發揮。

loyalty

忠誠

loyalty to...

對...忠誠

例句：

His loyalty to the company is unshakable, so we can count on his vote.

他對公司的忠誠是不可動搖的，所以我們可以指望他的投票。

decade

/?deke?d/

十年

a period of ten years, especially one that begins with a year ending in 0,for example, 1980 to 1989.

take into account

考慮；顧忌；重視

例句：

We must also take into account the time factor in achieving our plans and our actions.

在實施計劃和開展行動時，我們必須將時間因素也考慮在內。

brain drain

人才流失

例句：

If the brain drain becomes an irreversible trend, a vicious circle will take shape in chinese academia.

如果人才流失成為一種不可逆轉的趨勢，那么中國學術界將會形成一種惡性循環。

out of curiosity

處于好奇

out of courtesy/respect/vanity/envy/anger

處于禮貌/尊重/虛榮/嫉妒/憤怒

例句：

He asked the question out of curiosity rather than out of his desire for knowledge.

他提出這個問題是出于好奇心，而非出于求知欲。