Nicolas： Thanks for introducing me to this restaurant， Valerie.
　　Valerie： No problem， Nick. Hey， would you mind getting the check this time？ I’ll pay you back next week after payday.
　　Nicolas： Really， Val？ Out of cash again？ ①You must be getting paid peanuts at your job.
　　Valerie： My salary is pretty 1）modest. Actually， I’m not technically an employee yet. I’m still an intern.
　　Nicolas： How is that possible？ You’ve been at that company for four years already.
　　Valerie： It’s not that unusual these days. It’s called a long internship.
　　Nicolas： And you’re willing to accept that？
　　Valerie： ②Well， it’s not ideal， but I have to weigh the pros and cons. It’s exactly the kind of company I want to work for， and I’m learning so much about the industry.
　　Nicolas： Yeah， but you’d be learning that at a real job， too， and you’d be getting paid real money.
　　Valerie： This kind of job is very 2）competitive these days. I’m lucky I even got an internship.
　　Nicolas： I can kind of understand that. I wanted to go into media at first， but when I couldn’t find a job there I decided to settle for marketing instead. At least I’m getting a real salary， though.
　　Valerie： I’m thinking of it as a long-term investment in my future. ③I could be earning a higher salary now， but I’m trading that short-term gain for knowledge and skills that can help me down the road.
　　Nicolas： That’s all well and good， but when is “down the road？” Are you sure you’ll be able to get an real offer at this company？
　　Valerie： I hope so， but if I don’t， I can still use my years of experience here to apply for another job in the same field.
　　Nicolas： ④And they won’t turn their noses up at you when they learn you’ve only been an intern for four years？
　　Valerie： That’s a risk， but if they don’t like my work experience， I’ll just tell them that interning was part of my career development plan.
　　Nicolas： That might work. But why do you think your current company hasn’t taken you on as a full employee yet？
　　Valerie： That’s hard to say. Jobs don’t open up very often， and they usually hire people with years of experience.
　　Nicolas： Sounds like you’ve got some 3）stiff competition. You’ve got to learn how to sell yourself.
　　Valerie： How might I do that？
　　Nicolas： ⑤Be sure to take credit for the good work that you do. 　　Remember the projects you work on，why you were successful， and what you learned from them.
　　Valerie： Right. That way， I can easily talk about my experiences and make myself sound good.
　　Nicolas： That’s the idea. How are your communication skills， by the way？
　　Valerie： They’ve come a long way in these four years. At first， I was really shy， and I didn’t speak up much at meetings.
　　Nicolas： That sounds like you.
　　Valerie： ⑥Later， though， I got more comfortable introducing myself and making sure I was on good terms with everyone in the office.
　　Nicolas： That’s a big part of selling yourself.
　　Valerie： Last month， I had an idea that won a big project for our company.


　　Nicolas： Well， that’s perfect！ If they know you’re making a contribution， then they’re likely to feel good about keeping you on full-time.
　　Valerie： That’s my hope. But， to be honest， four years is a long time for an internship. I’m giving them one more year to offer me a job， and then， well...
　　Nicolas： And then what？
　　Valerie： Well， do you know if your company is hiring these days？
　　尼古拉斯：谢谢你推荐我来这家餐厅，瓦莱丽。
　　瓦莱丽：没事儿，尼古拉斯。嘿，你介意这次买单吗？下个月发工资我会把钱还给你。
　　尼古拉斯：真的吗，瓦莱丽？你又没钱了？你的工资肯定很低。
　　瓦莱丽：我的工资很合理。事实上，我还不是正式员工。我还是个实习的。
　　尼古拉斯：这怎么可能？你已经在那家公司四年了。
　　瓦莱丽：如今这并不奇怪。这叫长期实习。
　　尼古拉斯：而你愿意接受？
　　瓦莱丽：好吧，这并不理想，但是我必须权衡利弊。这确实是我想要效力的公司，而且我学了那么多这行的东西。
　　尼古拉斯：对，但是你也能在一份真正的工作中学到那些，而且能拿到真正的工资。
　　瓦莱丽：现在这种工作竞争很激烈。我能拿到一份实习的工作已经很幸运。
　　尼古拉斯：我能理解。我起初想进传媒业，但是当我在那儿找不到工作时，我决定投身销售行业。至少我能拿到一份真正的薪水。
　　瓦莱丽：我把它看作是对未来的一个长期投资。我现在（做别的工作）可能会有一份更高的薪水，但那是在拿短期回报和在将来能够帮助我的知识和技能作交换。
　　尼古拉斯：这样做是很好，但是什么时候才是你的“未来”？你确定能在这家公司得到正式的职位吗？
　　瓦莱丽：我希望是这样，但是如果不是，我还是能够用在这行多年的工作经验去去谋求行内的另一份工作。
　　尼古拉斯：但是当他们知道你只做了四年的实习工作，不会拒绝你吗？
　　瓦莱丽：这是场冒险，但是如果他们不喜欢我的工作经历，我会告诉他们实习是我职业发展规划的一部分。
　　尼古拉斯：这也许管用。但是你知道现在工作的这家公司为什么还没有把你转为正式员工呢？
　　瓦莱丽：这很难说。职位不是经常空缺，而且他们会雇佣有多年工作经验的人。
　　尼古拉斯：听起来你的竞争很大。你必须学会如何推销自己。
　　瓦莱丽：我应该怎么做呢？
　　尼古拉斯：记住把一切归功于你出色的工作表现。记住你负责的项目、你为什么会成功、以及你从中学到了什么。
　　瓦莱丽：对。这样一来，我能轻松地介绍我的工作经历，让自己听起来很棒。
　　尼古拉斯：就是这样。顺便问一句，你的交际能力怎样？
　　瓦莱丽：这花了我整整四年的时间。刚开始，我真的很害羞，我很少在会议中发言。
　　尼古拉斯：这听起来像你。
　　瓦莱丽：之后，我变得更自然地介绍自己，确保自己能跟办公室的每个人都搞好关系。
　　尼古拉斯：这是推销自己的重要部分。
　　瓦莱丽：上个月，我的一个想法帮助公司赢得了一个大项目。
　　尼古拉斯：嗯，那太好了！如果他们知道你在作贡献，那么他们很可能乐意让你做全职的工作。
　　瓦莱丽：这是我的希望。但是，说实话，四年对于实习来说真的够长了。我再给他们一年的时间给我一份正式的工作，否则，嗯…… 　　尼古拉斯：否则怎样？
　　瓦莱丽：好吧，你知道你的公司最近招人吗？
　　① You must be getting paid peanuts at your job. 你的薪水肯定很低。
　　pay peanuts： pay very low salary（支付非常低的薪酬）。例如：
　　No wonder the company is full of incapable people. They are paid peanuts.
　　怪不得公司这么多无能的人，原来他们的工资非常低。
　　② Well， it’s not ideal， but I have to weigh the pros and cons. 好吧，这并不理想，但是我必须权衡利弊。
　　weigh the pros and cons： consider arguments both for and against a particular issue（权衡利弊）。例如：
　　We need to carefully weigh the pros and cons before we decide whether to expand our market in China.
　　我们在决定是否扩大在中国的市场之前，要仔细权衡利弊。
　　③ I could be earning a higher salary now， but I’m trading that short-term gain for knowledge and skills that can help me down the road. 我现在（做别的工作）可能会有一份更高的薪水，但那是在拿短期回报和在将来能够帮助我的知识和技能作交换。
　　down the road： in the future（在将来，今后）。例如：
　　We are going to set up a new branch in Hong Kong sometime down the road.
　　我们今后会在香港设立新的分部。
　　④ And they won’t turn their noses up at you when they learn you’ve only been an intern for four years？但是当他们知道你只做了四年的实习工作，不会拒绝你吗？
　　turn one’s nose up （at sth./sb.）： reject sth./sb. because sth./sb. is not considered good enough（不把……放在眼里，拒绝）。例如：
　　He turned his nose up at the matchmaker’s suggestion because he wanted to marry a big-city girl.
　　他拒绝了媒人的提议，因为他想娶个大城市的姑娘。
　　⑤ Be sure to take credit for the good work that you do. 记住把一切归功于你出色的工作表现。
　　take credit for sth.： claiming to be responsible for doing sth.（把某事归功于……）。例如：
　　Mary got the promotion because she took credit for everything that Dan did.
　　玛丽是因为把丹的所有功劳都归为己有才得到晋升的。
　　⑥ Later， though， I got more comfortable introducing myself and making sure I was on good terms with everyone in the office. 之后，我变得更自然地介绍自己，确保自己能跟办公室的每个人都搞好关系。
　　on good terms with sb.： have a friendly relationship with sb.（与某人关系好）。例如：
　　We and our suppliers have always been on good terms.
　　我们与供应商一直关系都不错。