During my four years at Treasury, I witnessed the first technology boom from a distance. 在财政部的4年里，我从更高的角度见证了技术发展的第一波高峰，

Its impact was obvious and appealing even beyond being able to wear jeans to work. 它所造成的影响显而易见、令人瞩目。这不仅因为我可以穿着牛仔裤上班，

Technology was transforming communication and changing lives not just in the United States and developed countries, but everywhere. 而且我发现技术正在改变着人们交流与生活的方式，这种变化已相继渗透到世界各国。

My long-term dream instinct kicked in. 于是，我长远的梦想又本能地冒了出来。

When President Clinton's administration ended, I was out of a job and decided to move to Silicon Valley. 当克林顿政府执政结束时，我刚刚失业并决定搬到硅谷去。

In retrospect, this seems like a shrewd move, but in 2001, it was questionable at best. 现在来看，这似乎是个明智的抉择，但在2001年，就算从最乐观的角度来看，这个决定也是有风险的。

The tech bubble had burst, and the industry was still reeling from the aftershocks. 当时，技术泡沬已经破灭，整个互联网行业都受到影响，仍在蹒跚前行。

I gave myself four months to find a job but hoped it would take fewer. It took almost a year. 我给了自己4个月时间找工作，满心期待能早点如愿。但事实上我花了快一年时间才如愿以偿。

My Silicon Valley job search had some highs, like getting to meet my business crush, eBay CEO Meg Whitman. 我在硅谷找工作的过程中有高峰，比如碰到了我的商界偶像梅格·惠特曼；

It also had some lows, like meeting with a high-level executive who started my interview by stating that her company would never even consider hiring someone like me 当然也有低谷，比如我遇到过一位首席执行官，在面试刚开始分就声称她的公司根本不会考虑雇用我这样的人，

because government experience could not possibly prepare anyone to work in the tech industry. 因为凭我在政府的工作经验根本不可能应付得了科技领域的工作。