The Next Day: Transitions, Change, and Moving Forward

 
　　在梅琳達‧蓋茲（Melinda French Gates）60歲之前，世人對她的認識主要是比爾‧蓋茲的妻子，與比爾‧蓋茲共同管理全球最大慈善基金會。兩人結縭27年後，卻在2021年協議離婚。2024年梅琳達卸下聯席主席的職務，宣布專注於自己的慈善機構Pivotal，致力於推動女力與女權的發展。
 
　　正如梅琳達在書中寫下的：「活到一定年紀後，必然經歷到各種轉變，有些讓人樂於擁抱，有些則是始料未及。有些令人期待，有些則是讓人想要奮力抵抗。」在自傳中，她罕見地分享人生中幾個關鍵時刻的故事，包括成為一位母親、摯友離世、家庭生活和工作場域的重大改變……。
 
　　以優雅又溫暖的語調，梅琳達坦然地分享自己的人生故事，帶領讀者以全新的視角看待人生轉變，思索人與人之間共通的生命課題，像是如何學著放下完美主義，在友情陪伴中度過危機，擁抱改變……當我們告別前一個人生階段，處在摸索發展新模式的過渡期，感到困惑、茫然與不安之際，這本書將照亮前方的道路，賦予讀者邁向明天的勇氣。(文/博客來編譯)

In a rare window into some of her life’s pivotal moments, Melinda French Gates draws from previously untold stories to offer a new perspective on encountering transitions.

＂You don’t get to be my age without navigating all kinds of transitions. Some you embraced and some you never expected. Some you hoped for and some you fought as hard as you could.＂
- Melinda French Gates

Transitions are moments in which we step out of our familiar surroundings and into a new landscape--a space that, for many people, is shadowed by confusion, fear, and indecision. The Next Day accompanies readers as they cross that space, offering guidance on how to make the most of the time between an ending and a new beginning and how to move forward into the next day when the ground beneath you is shifting.

In this book, Melinda will reflect, for the first time in print, on some of the most significant transitions in her own life, including becoming a parent, the death of a dear friend, and her departure from the Gates Foundation. The stories she tells illuminate universal lessons about loosening the bonds of perfectionism, helping friends navigate times of crisis, embracing uncertainty, and more.

Each one of us, no matter who we are or where we are in life, is headed toward transitions of our own. With her signature warmth and grace, Melinda candidly shares stories of times when she was in need of wisdom and shines a path through the open space stretching out before us all.

Melinda French Gates is a philanthropist, businesswoman, and global advocate for women and girls.

For over 25 years, Melinda has led efforts to unlock a healthier, more prosperous, more equal future. Today, she heads Pivotal, an organization she formed in 2015 that works to accelerate the pace of progress and advance women’s power and influence in the U.S. and around the world. Previously, she founded and co-chaired the Gates Foundation, where, for more than two decades, she set the direction and priorities of the world’s largest philanthropy. Melinda is also the author of the bestselling book The Moment of Lift and the creator of Moment of Lift Books, an imprint publishing original nonfiction by visionaries working to unlock a more equal world.

Melinda grew up in Dallas, Texas and attended Duke University, where she received a bachelor’s degree in computer science and economics and an MBA. She spent the first decade of her career developing multimedia products at Microsoft before leaving the company to focus on her family and philanthropic work. Melinda has three children--Jenn, Rory, and Phoebe--and lives in Seattle, Washington.