Don't burn any bridges 给自己留条后路

Lisa告诉同事Emily新年过后准备辞职，因为她觉得眼下的工作很无聊，没有升职的机会，她还说：

Lisa: The other problem is that I think the company is really set in its ways.

Emily: What do you mean?

L: In other words, I think management is resistant to change. I've given great proposals to my section chief and I've even sent emails with ideas on how to streamline operations to the big boss, but the reaction is always the same.

E: What do they say when you offer suggestions?

L: Usually something like: "We'll take a look and get back to you." But that's the last I'll ever hear from them.

Lisa还觉得公司运作墨守成规，set in one's ways是指生活方式或做事方法一成不变，类似的说法还有stuck in a rut，rut是指车轱辘留下的印儿，to stuck in a rut陷在车轱辘印里，也是墨守成规、一成不变的意思。Lisa说自己向部门经理和公司老板提出过很多好建议，但都没有得到重视。得到的回答一般都是：We'll take a look and get back to you（我们看一下再答复你），然后就再也没有任何消息了。

E: So, do you have any job prospects lined up?

L: I've been sending out resumes and I've gotten a couple of bites.

E: I see...so you've pretty much made up your mind to quit then?

L: I think so. I'll miss seeing you everyday.

E: I'll miss you, too. Can I make a suggestion?

L: Sure!

E: Don't burn any bridges when you make your move.

L: What do you mean?

Emily问她工作找得怎么样了，Do you have any job prospects lined up? Lisa说自己发了一些简历，已经有一些公司对她表示有兴趣了，I've gotten a couple of bite. bite在这里是上钩的意思，意思是她的简历已经引起了一些公司的兴趣。看起来Lisa去意已定，Emily好心地建议Lisa： Don't burn any bridges. 辞职的时候不要把事做绝，最后给自己留条后路。Emily进一步解释说：

E: I mean, don't tell the boss you hate your job or him. Simply inform them that you plan to resign from your position and do your best to train your replacement. That way, this company can remain a back-up option for you.

L: You make a good point. I'll try to be as professional about this as possible. Thanks Emily! Talking to you makes me feel much better.

E: Sure! Now let's eat!

Emily劝Lisa不要burn any bridges（断了自己的后路），不用告诉老板对公司有多不满意，而且还要do your best to train your replacement（尽力把交接工作做好），这里所说的replacement指的是接替Lisa工作的那个人。Emily说，这样的话，现在的公司还能是Lisa的候补选项back-up option. Lisa觉得Emily这番话很有道理，并保证自己在处理这件事的时候，I'll try to be as professional as possible. 这里的professional是专业的意思，as professional as possible意思是尽可能按照职场的惯例去做。

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（来源：VOA英语教学 编辑：丹妮）