Vera Wang: Figure skater
王薇薇：花樣滑冰運動員
Before she became a world-renowned fashion designer, Vera Wang, left, was a talented figure skater.
在成為享譽全球的時裝設計師前,王薇薇（圖左）曾是一位頗有天賦的花樣滑冰運動員.
Wang competed in the 1968 US Figure Skating Championships but turned to fashion after she failed to make the cut for the US Olympic team.
1968年,她參加了美國花樣滑冰錦標賽,但未能成功進入美國奧運隊,之后便轉而進軍時尚圈.
"Skating was a chance for me to express myself in a creative way,"she said.
她說："滑冰能夠讓我以一種富有創造性的方式實現自我表達."
"It was the blend of all worlds - music, dance, athletics, choreography and, of course, costumes."
"它由各元素融合而成,包括音樂、舞蹈、田徑運動、編舞藝術,當然,還有服裝."
Michael Bloomberg: Parking attendant
邁克爾•布隆伯格：泊車員
Former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, the founder of the Bloomberg financial service, worked as a parking attendant to help pay for his tuition fees while he was a student at John Hopkins University in Baltimore.
前紐約市長、金融機構彭博社創始人邁克爾•布隆伯格在巴爾的摩約翰霍普金大學求學期間,曾為籌集學費而從事停車場泊車員的工作.
According to Forbes, Bloomberg now has a net worth of around ￡30bn. He spent months considering whether to run for US President, but said in March that he would not stand because of fear that his candidacy could make it easier for Donald Trump to secure the Presidency.
《福布斯》雜志稱布隆伯格目前凈資產高達300億英鎊,他曾為是否競選美國總統而冥思苦想數月,但在三月表示,他擔心自己的參選會讓唐納德•特朗普輕而易舉地成為總統,這令他無法忍受.
Sir Alan Sugar: Selling cigarette lighters and aerials
艾倫•修格爵士：賣打火機和天線
Lord Sugar was just 21 when he launched Amstrad, his electronics company.
修格勛爵在創辦其電子公司阿姆斯特拉德時年僅21歲.
Operating out of a van, he sold cigarette lighters, aerials, car radios and hi-fi systems.
他曾經營一小攤,銷售打火機、天線、汽車收音機以及高保真音響.
A couple of decades later, Amstrad was one of the biggest consumer electronics companies in the country.
數十年后,阿姆斯特拉德已經躋身該國最大消費電子公司之列.
Lord Sugar now has an estimated net worth of ￡1.4bn.
據估計,修格勛爵目前凈資產高達14億英鎊.
Marissa Mayer: Supermarket check-out
瑪麗莎•梅耶爾：超市收銀員
Yahoo! chief executive Marissa Mayer was one of Google's earliest employees and has amassed an estimated fortune of $380m (￡262m), according to Forbes.
據《福布斯》雜志,雅虎首席執行官瑪麗莎•梅耶爾曾是谷歌公司最早雇員之一,其資產累計約有3.8億美元（2.62億英鎊）.
But that wealth must have felt a long way away when she was working behind a till at a supermarket during high school.
這樣一筆財富,對于當時埋頭于超市收銀臺工作的高中生而言,真是任重道遠.
"I learned a lot about work ethic from people who had been there for 20 years," she told the LA Times.
她對《洛杉磯時報》記者說："在那里,我從那些工作長達20年的前輩身上學到了關于職業道德的諸多經驗.
"They could do 40 items a minute over an eight-hour shift. I was pretty routinely in the 38-to-41 range. I was pretty happy about that. I have a good memory for numbers."
"在當班的八小時中,他們可一分鐘刷完40項商品,我通常處在38至41項之間,對此我相當開心,我對數字記憶很敏感."
Walt Disney: Ambulance driver
華特•迪士尼：救護車司機
In 1918, a 16-year-old Walt Disney tried to join the military but was told he was too young.
1918年,16歲的華特•迪士尼想要入伍參軍,卻被告知年紀太小.
Instead, he signed up to the Red Cross and was sent to France, where he drew cartoons on the sides of the ambulances he drove.
他轉而報名參加紅十字會,并被派送前往法國,在那里,他在自己所駕駛的救護車兩側畫漫畫.
Four years later, he was fired from his job as a newspaper cartoonist for a lack of creativity...
四年后,他因漫畫缺乏創造性而被報社辭退.
Mike Ashley: Squash coach
邁克•阿什利：壁球教練
The controversial Sports Direct founder, who tries to keep a low profile despite his very high-profile ownership of Newcastle United football club, was a squash coach in the 1970s after playing at county level himself.
他是備受爭議的英國運動服飾公司Sports Direct創始人,盡管擁有奪人耳目的紐卡斯爾足球俱樂部,卻仍試圖保持低調不露鋒芒.二十世紀七十年代,他曾在縣級壁球賽事中表現活躍而后退為一名教練.
Sir Richard Branson: Would-be Christmas tree salesman
查理•布蘭森爵士：自稱為圣誕樹銷售員
Sir Richard Branson was only 10 years old when he started growing Christmas trees in a nearby field.
查理•布蘭森爵士10歲時就開始在家附近種圣誕樹.
"Unfortunately, the rabbits ate them all,"he said.
他說："很不幸,兔子把它們吃光了."
"Then I tried budgerigars, because I'd heard that budgerigars reproduce really quickly; unfortunately, the rats got in and ate them too."
"然后我試著養虎皮鸚鵡,因為我聽說它們繁殖非常快,但禍從天降,一群耗子闖入把它們全吃了."
來源：英國每日電訊報
