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Many people who work with startup companies say that entrepreneurs are among the healthiest people they know. The reason, they note, may relate to the disciplined and driven personalities required for entrepreneurship, along with the flexible work schedules self-employment allows.
很多跟初创公司打交道的人都会说，创业者是他们见过的最健康的一群人。他们认为，原因可能跟创业所必需的自律与冲劲有关，此外，创业人士的工作日程也比较灵活。
But I know a different startup story. Most of my friends are men who graduated from Stanford in the past few years, which is to say, most of my friends are entrepreneurs. And many have dropped off the map for long stretches of time, only to resurface looking awful, with bags under their eyes and shoulders hunched under the weight of so much responsibility. I have long wondered if my friends were the exception or the rule.
但我也知道不一样的创业故事。我的大部分朋友都是近几年刚从斯坦福大学(Stanford)毕业的男人，换言之，我的大部分朋友都在创业。他们中的很多人忙得没有一点余裕，好容易出来透口气时，看起来都是形容憔悴，脸上挂着大大的眼袋，肩膀耷拉下来，一副被责任压得喘不过气的样子。一直以来我都在猜想，我的朋友们究竟是上述说法的例外还是常规。
A new analysis conducted by Gallup-Healthways for The New York Times using data from their Well-Being Index, which assesses everything from physical and emotional health to dietary habits and life purpose, paints a paradoxical picture. Nationwide, entrepreneurs tend to eat more healthful foods and exercise more than other workers. But they also have more stress and are less likely to have health insurance.
盖洛普-健维(Gallup-Healthways)运用其“身心健康指数”为纽约时报进行了一项新分析，分析了从身体到心理健康，从饮食习惯到生活目标的各种指数，它描绘了一幅看似矛盾的画面。从全美来看，相比其他职场人士，创业者往往吃得更健康，运动也更多。但他们同时也要承受更大的压力，而且有更大的可能没有购买健康保险。
The data come from random telephone interviews with more than 200,000 employed Americans across all 50 states, conducted on most days from January 2012 through June 2013. Entrepreneurs, defined as both "self-employed" and "business owners," made up about 3 percent of the sample, though the data is not separated by type of small business owner or number of years in business.
分析的数据源自对全美50个洲20多万受薪人士的随机电话访谈，调查时间在2012年1月到2013年6月间。在受访样本中，同时定义为“自雇人士”和“企业所有人”的创业人士约占3%，不过数据未能区分小型企业所有人的类型或开业年数。
Diet emerged as entrepreneurs' greatest health advantage. Compared with other full-time or part-time workers, self-employed business owners were slightly more likely to report they "ate healthy all day yesterday" or regularly eat fruits and vegetables. Fifty-nine percent of entrepreneurs reported they exercise for 30 minutes three or more days per week, versus 54 percent of other workers; and 19 percent reported being obese, compared with 25 percent of other workers.
创业人士最大的健康优势看来是饮食。与其他全职或兼职的员工相比，自雇企业所有人自称“昨天一天吃得都很健康”，或者常吃水果蔬菜的可能性要略大一些。59%的创业者自称每周有超过三天运动，每次时长30分钟，而其他员工的比例为54%；同时，有19%的人自称达到了肥胖标准，而其他员工在这方面的比例为25%。
"Believe it or not, everyone's not living off high-sodium ramen," said Joey Pomerenke, co-founder of UP Global, a support organization for entrepreneurs that was launched in Seattle in May. He has worked with hundreds of company founders during his career and says "there's a level of freedom you don't have at a corporation" that makes it easier to be active and eat well, and to create a healthy work culture when building a company from scratch. UP Global's employee handbook encourages employees to take advantage if "the snow is deep" or "the lake is calling" and to make up work later.
“信也好不信也罢，不是所有的创业者都在靠吃高钠的拉面为生，”乔伊·波默伦科(Joey Pomerenke)说。他是“UP Global”的联合创始人，这是一家面向创业人士的支持机构，今年5月创立于西雅图。在他的职业生涯里，他跟上千位公司创始人合作过，他说“创业者拥有在公司打工时所没有的自由度”，因此更便于运动和健康饮食，同时在白手起家创建公司时，也能创造健康的工作文化。UP Global公司在员工手册里鼓励大家在遇到“积雪很深”或者“好想去湖里游个泳”的情况下不去上班，然后加个班弥补时间损失。
But Dan MacCombie, a co-founder of Runa, a Brooklyn-based beverage company, said the need to reassure investors of one's commitment can complicate the health picture. He described a "martyr complex" among many entrepreneurs he knows, "the implicit expectation that if you're not wearing yourself a little thin you're not putting enough effort in." He puts a personal priority on sleep, while his business partner "will go out of his way to cook an elaborate, veggie-heavy meal because he believes that's important."
不过，总部位于布鲁克里的饮料公司Runa联合创始人丹·迈考比(Dan MacCombie)说，努力打拼好让投资人放心的需求，往往会搅乱健康的前景。他形容说，他认识的很多创业者都有“烈士情结”，“如果你没有把自己累瘦，言下之意就好像是你没有全力以赴。”他个人把保证睡眠放在一个最重要的位置，而他的商业伙伴则会“精心烹制一份有很多蔬菜的晚饭，因为他相信这很重要。”
A new, nationwide online training group called Minimum Viable Fitness was designed specifically to address the unique challenges of people working in the tech industry. It was co-founded by Julie Fredrickson, who saw her health plummet when she started her first company and, as a chief executive, "put on 25 pounds, had terrible habits and was exhausted all the time," she said. "And I grew up as a competitive athlete in Colorado." She and co-founder Dick Talens explained that the scarce breaks and frequent travel required of tech entrepreneurs, along with catered lunches and schmoozing over cocktails, often result in decision fatigue when it comes to diet and exercise.
“极简可行健身”(Minimum Viable Fitness)是一个新的为解决科技业界人士面对的独特挑战而设立的全美在线训练小组。朱莉·弗雷德里克森(Julie Fredrickson)参与创建了这个小组，她在开办自己的首家公司时，健康状况急剧下滑，作为公司首席执行官，她“长了25磅，生活习惯很糟糕，而且无时无刻不感到疲惫，”她说，“而且当年我在科罗拉多长大，打小是个竞技运动员。”她和小组的另一位创始人迪克·塔伦斯(Dick Talens)解释说，科技业界的创业人士往往休息极少，频繁出差，同时要面对觥筹交错，结果就是每当碰到节食和锻炼时，往往会出现决策疲劳(decision fatigue)。
Entrepreneurship certainly has its upsides. Entrepreneurs are more optimistic about their futures than other workers, according to an earlier Gallup analysis of the Well-Being Index conducted last fall and optimism is correlated with good health in some studies. The same analysis found they are also more likely to experience enjoyment and intellectual stimulation on a daily basis.
当然，创业也有它的好处。盖洛普去年秋天进行的较早期的身心健康指数分析表明，比起其他员工，创业者对未来更乐观，而一些研究发现，乐观与健康状况良好有联系。通过同样的指数还能发现，创业者每天体会到的喜悦情绪与脑力激荡要更多。
But entrepreneurs also report more stress and worry than other workers do, and slightly more sadness, both of which have been tied to worse health. Edward Marks, co-founder of a mobile app company called Twist, said that, unlike being an employee, "so much of your self-worth is actually invested in a company. I've seen entrepreneurs cry."
不过，创业人士自称感到压力与焦虑的程度也甚于其他受薪人士，同时他们体会到的悲哀程度也略高，而这些情绪都与健康恶化有关。爱德华·马克斯(Edward Marks)是一家叫Twist的移动应用软件公司联合创始人，他说，跟普通员工不一样，创业者“把自己的身家性命都投到了公司里。我曾亲眼见过创业者大哭。”
Lack of health insurance may deepen entrepreneurs' stress. Three-fourths of self-employed business owners reported having health insurance, compared with 9 in 10 among other workers — the most significant difference between the two groups. (Likely related, entrepreneurs are also less likely to visit the dentist.)
缺乏医疗保险可能会进一步加深创业人士的压力。相比受薪人士90%的医保覆盖率，自雇企业所有人中只有75%拥有医保——这是这两类人群最显著的区别。（创业者看牙医的可能性也较低，这也许跟上述情况有联系。）
"One of the biggest reasons a would-be entrepreneur doesn't become one is lack of health care," said Scott Gerber, founder of the Young Entrepreneur Council, which provides startup mentorship and resources and conducts research on entrepreneurs' needs. To address this problem, his organization is introducing StartupInsurance, an online platform of health insurance plans offered by major health insurers, which will be compliant with the Affordable Care Act by 2014 and are tailored for entrepreneurs.
“之所以有人本来有机会创业，但最后放弃，很大一个原因就在于没有医保，”斯科特·葛伯(Scott Gerber)说。他是“青年创业者理事会”(Young Entrepreneur Council)创始人，该机构提供创业指导和资源，并视乎创业者的需求开展研究。为解决这个问题，他的机构引入了“初创保险”(StartupInsurance)，这是一个由大型医疗保险商提供医疗保险计划的在线平台，它将在2014年前根据“平价医疗法案”(Affordable Care Act)完成修订，专为创业人士量身打造。
The net effect of all the differences is that slightly fewer entrepreneurs report being diagnosed with health problems like high cholesterol and high blood pressure. But stress remains a constant, and too often ignored, factor in the lives of self-employed business owners, said Carter Coberley, vice president of the Healthways Center for Health Research. He said these "motivated go-getters" either "choose not to pay attention to the stress or are so focused on making their work succeed that unfortunately they ignore it to their detriment."
综合各种差别产生的净效果是：自称得到确诊，出现了高胆固醇和高血压这类健康问题的创业人士，比例要略低一些。但据健维健康研究中心(Healthways Center for Health Research)的副总裁卡特·科伯雷(Carter Coberley)说，在自雇企业所有人的生活中，压力仍是一个持续存在、而且往往被忽视的因素。他说这些“上进、有进取心的人”要么“选择不把压力摆在心上，要么完全把注意力放在如何令事业成功上，不幸的是，他们忽略了这样做带来的危害。”
"I think that's a picture that's been missing in the workforce over all," he added. "But it appears to be exacerbated in small business owners because of additional demands."
“我认为在整个劳动力人口中，这都是一个缺失的画面，”他进一步说，“但看来在小企业业主中问题最严重，因为他们要面对额外的需求。”
