【好文分享 - Google CFO 辞职信】30年连续工作的Patrick是个工作狂，连和妻子吵架的时间都没有。他总是告诉妻子：他爱工作，公司需要他。有一天妻子问：那哪天轮到是我们的日子？我的日子？可以环游世界，体验人生？听到这句话，他觉悟了。
Google CFO 的辞职信
After nearly 7 years as CFO， I will be retiring from Google to spend more time with my family. Yeah， I know you‘ve heard that line before. We give a lot to our jobs. I certainly did. And while I am not looking for sympathy， I want to share my thought process because so many people struggle to strike the right balance between work and personal life.
This story starts last fall. A very early morning last September， after a whole night of climbing， looking at the sunrise on top of Africa - Mt Kilimanjaro. Tamar （my wife） and I were not only enjoying the summit， but on such a clear day， we could see in the distance， the vast plain of the Serengeti at our feet， and with it the calling of all the potential adventures Africa has to offer. （see exhibit #1 - Tamar and I on Kili）。
And Tamar out of the blue said “Hey， why don’t we just keep on going”。 Let‘s explore Africa， and then turn east to make our way to India， it’s just next door， and we‘re here already. Then， we keep going; the Himalayas， Everest， go to Bali， the Great Barrier Reef.。。 Antarctica， let’s go see Antarctica！？“ Little did she know， she was tempting fate.
I remember telling Tamar a typical prudent CFO type response- I would love to keep going， but we have to go back. It‘s not time yet， There is still so much to do at Google， with my career， so many people counting on me/us - Boards， Non Profits， etc
But then she asked the killer question： So when is it going to be time？ Our time？ My time？ The questions just hung there in the cold morning African air.
A few weeks later， I was happy back at work， but could not shake away THE question： When is it time for us to just keep going？ And so began a reflection on my/our life. Through numerous hours of cycling last fall （my introvert happy place） I concluded on a few simple and self-evident truths：
First， The kids are gone. Two are in college， one graduated and in a start-up in Africa. Beautiful young adults we are very proud of. Tamar honestly deserves most of the credit here. She has done a marvelous job. Simply marvelous. But the reality is that for Tamar and I， there will be no more Cheerios encrusted minivan， night watch because of ear infections， ice hockey rinks at 6:00am. Nobody is waiting for us/needing us.
Second， I am completing this summer 25-30 years of nearly non-stop work （depending on how you wish to cut the data）。 And being member of FWIO， the noble Fraternity of Worldwide Insecure Over-achievers， it has been a whirlwind of truly amazing experiences. But as I count it now， it has also been a frenetic pace for about 1500 weeks now. Always on - even when I was not supposed to be. Especially when I was not supposed to be. And am guilty as charged - I love my job （still do）， my colleagues， my friends， the opportunities to lead and change the world.
Third， this summer， Tamar and I will be celebrating our 25th anniversary. When our kids are asked by their friends about the success of the longevity of our marriage， they simply joke that Tamar and I have spent so little time together that ”it’s really too early to tell“ if our marriage will in fact succeed.
If they could only know how many great memories we already have together. How many will you say？ How long do you have？ But one thing is for sure， I want more. And she deserves more. Lots more.
Allow me to spare you the rest of the truths. But the short answer is simply that I could not find a good argument to tell Tamar we should wait any longer for us to grab our backpacks and hit the road - celebrate our last 25 years together by turning the page and enjoy a perfectly fine mid life crisis full of bliss and beauty， and leave the door open to serendipity for our next leadership opportunities， once our long list of travels and adventures is exhausted.
Working at Google is a privilege， nothing less. I have worked with the best of the best， and know that I am leaving Google in great hands. I have made so many friends at Google it‘s not funny. Larry， Sergey， Eric， thank you for friendship. I am forever grateful for letting me be me， for your trust， your warmth， your support， and for so much laughter through good and not so good times.
To be clear， I am still here. I wish to transition over the coming months but only after we have found a new Googley CFO and help him/her through an orderly transition， which will take some time.
In the end， life is wonderful， but nonetheless a series of trade offs， especially between business/professional endeavours and family/community. And thankfully， I feel I’m at a point in my life where I no longer have to have to make such tough choices anymore. And for that I am truly grateful. Carpe Diem.
Patrick
【网友热评】
似水涟漪之年：至少他已经赚够了养活自己家人的钱。像我们这些，辞职了我们吃什么。
Syqiven：其实我想说的是，如果没有他之前二三十年的努力工作，也没有今天他能够和妻子去享受生活的条件。我们还只是没有背景没有财富的年轻人，今天不努力工作，以后如何有条件感悟这样的人生？
Zanpen：我觉得一个没有成功过的人是无法去环游世界，享受生活的。毕竟连住的地方都没有
水木土豆教主：只有“变态”的人才会在事业上取得成功。我早就意识到了家庭的重要性，所以我在事业（专业）上也就很难取得成功了。还好这个社会是开放的，提供了工作以外实现人生价值的途径。我从不后悔把应该加班的时间拿去做饭洗碗。
晨_魄：我翻印一下大意这样，BOOS 老婆命令我辞职带她玩去，反正钱赚够了。。。
一Odaddy：需要中文版的赞我，私信你。
alfray：某年9月，我与妻于南非登高望远，日出灿烂，心情畅快。妻说，不如一路向东，再往南极，体验人生之美？我答，如此颇险。归后，妻所求盘桓于心。我想，过去数十载醉心工作，如今儿女已成长，两鬓已苍苍，何时才能回报妻子的爱与付出？人生无外工作-生活的选择，如今，我要选择生活。差不多了。
浮尘陌客-Ran：写得确实入理，但应该每个人都是需要经过一段为工作奔忙的时期的，因人而异有长有短，没有为事业付出就没有以后小憩的本钱和胆量，至少普通人是这样的，还是那句话：先把必须走的路走完，才有资格走自己喜欢的路吧。
L_iusq：早知道他是只飞鸟，她老婆以为抓住了他 —— 其实只是一手的羽毛。。。
