休假期間還需不需要收發工作郵件？

This is my first holiday in my new job at a small creative media group. Before I left I set up an out-of-office email, but on day one of my holiday I got a message from my boss (founder of company and total workaholic) saying that out-of-office messages look unprofessional, and I ought to keep on top of vital emails while away. I feel inclined to email back to say I worked my guts out the past six months and need a break. What do you think?
這是我在一家小型創意媒體公司的新工作的第一個假期。休假前，我設置了一封不在辦公室的電子郵件，但在我休假的第一天，我就從我的老闆（公司創始人，一個十足的工作狂）那裏收到一封郵件，說不在辦公室的郵件看上去不職業化，我應該在休假時繼續處理重要電子郵件。我想回信說過去6個月我已經拼命工作了，我現在需要休息。您怎麼看？

If there is one thing less relaxing than emailing on holiday it is being furious with your boss. So stop it. He has told you what he expects, and if you want to keep the job, you must go along with it.
如果有一件事比在度假時撰寫電郵還讓人不愉快的，那就是跟你的老闆生氣。所以不要這樣做吧。他已經告訴你他的想法了，如果你想繼續留住這份工作的話，你就必須聽從他的建議。

In any case he is right: you ought to check your messages when you are away. Lots of us think that to do so is mad, bad and dangerous to your mental health. But I’m not so sure. I remember what holidays were like in the pre-email age. There was a mad rush to finish everything off and tie up loose ends before you went away, which meant you were so wound up that it took most of the holiday to relax. No sooner had you done so than it was time to go back to work, where mountains of work awaited, which you, in your new slack state, were quite unequal to doing.
無論如何，他都是對的：你應該在休假時查看你的郵件。很多人認爲這樣做讓人抓狂，敗壞心情，而且對心理健康不利。但我不那麼認爲。我還記得在電子郵件問世之前休假是什麼樣子。人們會在休假前瘋狂地快速結束一切，完成收尾工作，這意味着你會非常緊張，以至於假期的多數時間都被用來放鬆。而你剛剛放鬆下來，就又該重新工作了，堆積如山的工作在等着你，而正處於新的懶散狀態的你是應付不過來的。

The BlackBerry put an end to all that. You need to email on holiday simply because everyone else does. It is how business is now done. According to one survey, about 90 per cent of us look at work messages on holiday. For all your indignation, you are part of that number already: even you couldn’t stop yourself checking your messages, which was why you found this one from your boss – and thank goodness you did, or you might have been in deeper water on your return.
黑莓結束了這一切。你需要在休假時收發電子郵件，這只是因爲其他人也這樣做。現在就是這樣。根據一項調查，我們中間約90%的人會在休假時查看工作郵件。儘管你對此感到憤慨，但你已經是這部分人中的一員了：連你也忍不住查看郵件，不然也不會看到老闆發來的郵件了，謝天謝地，你看到了他的信息，否則，在你休假完畢重新上班時你的麻煩可能就更大了。

What you need to do is to learn how to do holiday emailing better. Be firm with yourself. Don’t have your BlackBerry in your pocket all the time. Turn it on once, maybe twice a day. Reply only to the most essential things. That means to your boss, and to anyone else who can’t wait.
你需要做的是學會如何更好地在休假時處理電子郵件。對自己嚴格要求。不要每時每刻都把黑莓裝在口袋裏。每天開機一次，或者每天兩次。只回復那些最重要的郵件。也就是說，回覆老闆或者任何其他必須立即回覆的人的郵件。

On the matter of the out-of-office email, I’m with your boss on this too. During the summer, my inbox has twice the number of replies in it: an automated one comes first, followed swiftly (often within seconds) by one from the person themselves on the beach.
至於設置不在辦公室的自動電郵，我也認同你老闆的觀點。在夏季，我的收件箱收到的回覆郵件數量是平時的兩倍：首先是自動回覆的郵件，緊隨其後（經常是幾秒之內）的是某個在海灘度假的人親自發來的郵件。

So dump the automatic message. Anyone who needs a quick response from you will get one. Anyone else can wait. And when you get back, remember you worked (a little) when you were away. And so you deserve to play (a little) now that you are back in the office.
因此，拋棄自動回覆郵件吧。那些你必須很快回復的人，你自然會回覆。其他人等等也無妨。當你回來上班時，記得你在休假時曾經工作過（一點）。因此在你回到辦公室時，你有權放鬆（一點）。