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“People couldn’t know that a woman was running the business, so all of
my dealings with the company were conducted by mail,” says Elahi of the
service, which constituted a pre-Internet information portal and
social-networking site.
「他們都不知道，是一個女人在經營這個事業，我都是透過郵件和他們談生意。」衣籟說道。她的數位看板服務，成為網際網路，和群社網絡網站前端的資訊入口。
Elahi read about how to start a bulletin board service in an American
computer magazine. Armed with a master’s degree in computer science, the
young mother and recent widow ignored custom and ran the business. Over
the next 20 years in Pakistan, Elahi forged a successful career in
computer science and project management training and has worked toward
expanding gender equality.
衣籟在一本美國的電腦雜誌上，讀到如何開始從事數位看板服務。這個擁有電腦科學碩士學位，剛守寡的年輕媽媽，不顧世俗的反對，開始經營這項事業。20年後，在巴基斯坦，衣籟領先同業，擁有一個電腦科學，及專案管理訓練相關的成功事業，並致力於兩性平等的推動。
Elahi is among the majority of Pakistanis who are Muslim. She describes
herself as “devout.”
衣籟身處在以回教信仰為主的巴基斯坦，她形容自己是「虔誠的教徒」。
“During Ramadan I have collective prayers at home,” she says. “I
struggle but manage to pray five times a day. I performed hajji
[a pilgrimage to Mecca] with my son two years back.”
「在齋月(譯按：伊斯蘭曆的第九個月，在日出和日落之間禁飲食)，我家聚集了許多的教徒，」她說：「我很努力去維持每天祈禱五次。我和我的兒子二年前完成了『哈吉』（指回教徒到麥加朝聖）。」
In 2008, she chartered a Toastmasters club in Islamabad, the country’s
capital. The Islamabad Toastmasters has 35 members – both male and
female – and has earned Distinguished Club status each of its first two
years.
2008年，她在首都伊斯蘭馬巴德成立了一個新的分會。伊斯蘭馬巴德分會有35個會員，包括男性和女性，連續兩年也都獲得傑出分會的榮銜。
Elahi’s experience with public speaking dates back to the mid-1990s.
After passing on the bulletin board service to a colleague, she took a
job maintaining an e-mail server. “At that job I was urged to hold
weekly public information sessions regarding the Internet and e-mail,”
she says. “During my first presentation I was really nervous, and the
session turned out to be excruciatingly boring. Afterward, a co-worker
who had fallen asleep during my talk critiqued me and offered tips for
making the session more exciting. I took his advice, and the
presentations got much better.”
衣籟公開演說的經驗，可以追溯到90年代中期。在把數位看板服務的事業讓給一位同事後，她轉戰電子郵件維護服務。「這個工作迫使我必須，就網際網路及電子郵件的議題，主持每週的公共資訊會議。」她談到：「我第一次主持時，真的緊張得不得了，當然，會議也是死氣沉沉的。後來，一位在我講話時昏昏欲睡的同事，給了我許多建議，以後的會議主持才漸入佳境。」
Elahi stayed at that job for a few years and then worked for the
government’s tax department, where she made waves expressing exactly how
she felt about the treatment of women in Pakistan.
待在這個工作幾年後，衣籟到政府稅務部門工作，在那裡，對於巴國女性被對待的方式，她表達了內心真實的想法，也引起眾多的爭議。
“There are some areas of the country where females wear trousers and
drive, but in other parts of Pakistan, women still remain behind the
veil,” says Elahi of the multicultural, ethnically diverse society.
“Peshawar, where I worked in the tax department, is ultra-conservative.
There many women walk three steps behind men, and most don’t drive their
own cars. I’ve never walked behind a man, because it’s demeaning and
there’s no logical reason for it.
身處在多元文化和種族的社會，她說：「在巴基斯坦，許多地區的女性，可以穿長褲，可以開車；但在其他地區，婦女卻必須藏在面紗之後。」「我任職的稅務部門在白沙瓦(譯按：巴基斯坦鄰近阿富汗邊境的一個城市），是一個超級保守的城市。那裡的婦女，必須走在男人三步之後；大部分的婦女也不自己開車。我才不要走在男人背後，不僅自貶身分，也沒道理這樣做。」
“When I worked for the tax department, I was quite rebellious and
insisted on driving my own Jeep. I got a lot of attention because I was
the only female driver in the city at the time.” Her rebellious ways
provoke strong reactions from people close to her. Elahi says her
independence has alienated her own mother. “We have parted ways,” she
says. Her siblings are also confounded by her nonconformity: “My sister
to this day says she can’t understand me.”
「我在稅務部門工作時，我很叛逆地堅持開著我的吉普車。當然，這會引來很多異樣的眼光，因為我是當時唯一在城內開車的女性。」她的叛逆行徑，也讓身邊的人對她議論紛紛，甚至媽媽也因為她的獨立和她疏離。「道不同，不相為謀。」她說。兄弟姐妹也不苟同她的特立獨行：「我姊姊到現在還說，她不了解我。」
On the other hand, Elahi notes, she has friends and family who are
supportive of her independence.
但是，衣籟提到，還是有一些朋友和家人認同她的獨立。
Struggles and Perseverance
不屈不撓的奮鬥
While many men in the tax department accepted Elahi, she struggled with
harassment from some who refused to take her seriously. She resigned in
2000 and moved on to work for the National Database and Registration
Authority (NADRA) where she served as head of Data Warehousing
Directorate for the entire country of Pakistan. That position required
her to give presentations to high-ranking visitors about NADRA’s
state-of-the-art technology. In 2003 she also began training individuals
on project management.
儘管在稅務部門得到許多男性的接納，但是對於許多人，不把她的努力當一回事，衣籟仍然感到困擾。於是，2000年她辭掉工作，接著任職國家資料庫豋記局的主管，管理巴國境內所有的數據資料庫。這個職位，必須對許多位高權重的來賓簡報，解釋該局所使用的最先進的科技。從2003年，她也開始個別訓練許多人專案管理的能力。
“Training took some getting used to, but once I got comfortable, I
learned that I had a knack for public speaking,” she says.
「訓練讓人熟能生巧，一旦我覺得如魚得水，我就知道我掌握了一項演講技巧。」她說。
Elahi eventually started her own training company, Business Essentials,
which she ran for several years, serving as a consultant to a wide range
of businesses.
衣籟進一步開創她自己的培訓公司。名為「商機」的這家公司，她經營了許多年，主要是為各行各業提供諮商服務。
Suhail Iqbal worked with Elahi at NADRA and praises her professionalism
and speaking ability. “NADRA was developed from scratch, and Maliha was
a pioneer member,” he says. “Her straightforward approach made it
possible for NADRA to have an immaculate Data Warehouse that is still
functional and serving the entire population of Pakistan.
蘇黑•艾柏，和衣籟是資料庫登記局的同事，相當讚賞她的專業態度和演講能力。「資料庫登記局是從無到有發展起來的，衣籟是一個先鋒。她勇往直前的態度，造就了資料庫登記局，擁有一個零缺點的數據資料庫，可以持續地提供全國民眾有用的服務。」
“Her personality is imposing and charismatic, and when you supplement
that with her exceptional speaking skills, she has a magnetic,
motivational appeal that has allowed her to achieve great heights in her
career.”
「她大氣，又具魅力。當你震攝在她優異的演說技巧時，你會感受到一種魔力般，具有激勵性的感染力，這讓她總是能在事業上更上一層樓。」
Elahi stumbled onto Toastmasters in December 2007, when she was at a
conference in the city of Lahore in Pakistan to present a paper. There
she met a Pakistani man who had moved to America but was attending the
conference; Elahi shared with him how boring she thought the conference
speeches were. “He told me about Toastmasters, and I remember thinking
how funny the word sounded,” she recalls. “I wrote it on a napkin and
looked the organization up on the Internet when I got home.”
2007年12月，衣籟在偶然間得知，有演講會這樣的組織。當時她在拉合爾(譯按：是巴基斯坦的第二大城市，僅次於喀拉蚩，旁遮普省的省會)的一場會議做報告，在會場遇見一位住在美國的巴基斯坦男性。衣籟向他抱怨，這是一場無趣的會議。「他向我介紹演講會，我當時覺得這個組織的名稱(譯按：字面意義是「宴會主人」)還真是有趣。」她回憶地說：「我把它記在餐巾上，回家後，上網了解這個組織。」
Elahi felt that her community would benefit from Toastmasters, so she
decided to start a club in Islamabad. She found one active club in the
country, located in Karachi and asked for its guidance and support. At
the end of January 2008, the Islamabad Toastmasters held its first
meeting. Guests from the Karachi club attended and demonstrated how to
conduct a meeting. Elahi served as club president that first year and
has since helped charter other clubs, including one in Lahore.
衣籟認為，演講會會為她的社區帶來益處，決定在伊斯蘭馬巴德成立一個分會。她找到一個位於喀拉蚩(譯按：巴基斯坦信德省的首府，為該國最大城市和港口，亦是主要經濟及商業中心)，還在運作的分會，並且尋求指導和協助。2008年1月底，伊斯蘭馬巴德分會舉行第一次例會。喀拉蚩分會來了許多會員，同時也進行了一次示範例會。衣籟擔任首任會長，之後也協助成立許多分會，包括一個在拉合爾的分會。
Leading the Way
領導眾人前進
Mohsin Lodhi, the 2009-2010 president of the Islamabad Toastmasters,
says Elahi’s leadership has been key to the club’s development. “She
often comes up with creative ideas that encourage members to [stretch]
themselves,” he says. “Her mentoring to the executive committee...
enables members to excel in their professional and personal lives. And
she clearly promoted gender equality by opening up the club to men and
women.”
伊斯蘭馬巴德分會2009-2010年的會長，牟辛•拉第，認為衣籟的領導力，是他們分會發展的重要關鍵。「她常常有很好的創意，用來鼓勵會員精益求精。她指導我們的執行委員會……，讓會員在工作及日常生活上，都能過得精采。她又致力於兩性平等的推動，在分會上，對男性和女性會員都一視同仁。」
Elahi regularly mentors younger women, giving them career advice in a
variety of areas, especially when it relates to gaining equal treatment
in the workforce. And in her current position as business process
manager for Teradata Pakistan, she is involved in the Women of Teradata
Pakistan initiative, which is designed to promote gender equality.
衣籟定期指導年輕女性，在不同的領域的職業上，給她們建議，特別是如何爭取工作上的兩性平等。她目前是巴基斯坦特拉資料公司的業務經理，參與該公司「女性自主」的活動，該活動主要是推動兩性平等。
Iqbal, the former colleague from NADRA, notes how Elahi has helped women
in the workplace. “She has always promoted participation by other
females and introduced several talented women to the field who have
grown and progressed through her efforts,” he says.
艾柏，以前在國家資料庫登記局的同事，提到衣籟如何在工作領域上協助女性：「她總是激勵其他女性一起參與，並且推薦許多有天份的女性進入職場，這些人的成長和進步，都受惠於她的努力。」
When Elahi worked for the government’s tax department, she fulfilled a
lifelong dream by earning her pilot’s license. “I would go in for
lessons early in the morning before I went to the office, and some of my
most beautiful moments have been up in the Cessna,” she says. “You
realize when you’re suspended in midair how you can accomplish just
about anything you want.
當衣籟在稅務部門工作時，她實現了這一生的夢想，拿到飛行員執照。「我都在一早上班前去上課，西斯納的天空，有我人生中最精采的許多時刻。」她說：「當你懸掛在半空中時，你會了解到，天下無難事，只怕有心人。」
“I was restrained from doing much in life because of social taboos, but
I broke those taboos by taking flying lessons in a place like Peshawar.
The experience taught me that my dreams can have wings.”
「由於社會的禁忌，我曾經被箝制住，不能為所欲為；但是，我在白沙瓦這種地方拿到飛行員執照，就是要打破禁忌。這次的經驗告訴我，我可以讓夢想帶著翅膀飛翔。」
Julie Bawden Davis is a freelance writer based in Southern
California and a longtime contributor to the Toastmaster. You can reach
her at Julie@JulieBawdenDavis.com.
茱莉•博登•戴維斯是一名南加州的自由作家，長久以來，為演講會貢獻頗多。你可以透過電子郵件和她聯繫
Julie@JulieBawdenDavis.com
。
譯者：邱少為
Alex Chiu, Pingtung Toastmasters Club |
