mckinsey -聪明的人为何会从事不适合自己的职业 How smart people end up in the wrong careers

January2026

Mckunsey

&company

People&OrganizationalPerformancePractice

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers

Youmightbedoingwellatwork.Butareyoudoingwhat’srightforyou?

Manyhighperformersthinkthey’redoingeverythingright—yetstillfeelsomehowwrongabouttheirday-to-day.AndtheadventofAImeanswork-relateddecision-makingismorecomplex

thanever.Asjobuncertaintyupstheante,moreemployeesmightbetemptedtosettleforthe“B+life,”inthewordsofSuzyWelch,authorof

BecomingYou:TheProvenMethodforCrafting

YourAuthenticLifeandCareer

(HarperCollins,May2025.Inthisepisodeof

McKinseyTalks

Talent

,WelchtalkstoMcKinseyleadersandtalentexperts

BrookeWeddle

and

BryanHancock

,aswellasGlobalEditorialDirectorLuciaRahilly,aboutwheresomanysuccessfulpeoplego

awry—andmoreimportantly,abouthowtodiscoverworkthatyouvalue,that’seconomicallyviable,andthatyou’regenuinelywiredtodo.

Thefollowingtranscripthasbeeneditedforclarityandlength.

Movingbeyondthe‘B+life’

LuciaRahilly:I’msoexcitedtomeetyouandtalkaboutyourbook,BecomingYou.IgenuinelywishI’dencountereditwhenIwasstartingmycareer,lothesemanyyearspast.

SuzyWelch:Metoo.That’swhyIwroteit—becauseIneededit.

LuciaRahilly:Let’sstartwithsomecontext.Yourbookisabout

identifyingindividualpurpose

anddevelopingwhatyoudescribeas“relentlesscandor”aboutwhoweareandhowwewanttospendourtime.We’rearguablyinthethroesofaparadigmshift,giventheadventofAIanditspotentialtoupendtheworkplaceasweknowit.ThelatestconsumersentimentreportintheUSshowedAmericansareexperiencingrising

insecurityaboutthepotentialforjobloss

overthe

nextfiveyears.And,ofcourse,we’realsoreadingabouttrendslike

jobhugging

and

difficulty

amongcollegegradsinfindingjobs

.Whythisbook,andwhynow?

SuzyWelch:Thebookisaboutunderstandingyourvalues,youraptitudes—whatyou’regoodat—andwhattheworldneedsrightnow,andfiguringoutwhat’sattheintersectionofthosethreedatasets.Thereasontoreaditisifyouneedalittleguidanceandtoughloveatatimewhenthere’sakindofterribleperfectstorm.First,

traditionalcareerpathsareevaporatingas

workchangesdramatically

.Second,there’sagiganticvaluesdisconnectbetweenwhatmanypeopleenteringtheworkforce,atanyage,value—givenculturalandsocietalforces—andthevaluesthathiringmanagersarelookingfor.

BryanHancock:Suzy,there’sastoryinthebookframedas“myB+life”—theideathatanOKlifeisnotOK.Howwouldyouencouragepeopletothinkaboutthattakeawayinlightofthe

broaderenvironment?

SuzyWelch:AB+lifeisajobthatsortofmeetssomeofourneedsandgivesussomechanceofdoingwell.Wecanhoverthereforalongtime.It’sveryeasytogetusedtoB+.

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers2

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers3

‘Anytypicalcareerpathischangingasworkchangesdramatically.’

Sothebooksays,“Let’sfigureoutexactlywhatyourvaluesare.”Datasuggeststhatonly7

percentofAmericansaresurewhattheirvaluesare—theyoftenmixthemupwithvirtues.

Almostnooneknowswhattheiractualcognitiveandemotionalaptitudesare.Andtheproblemwithinterests,thethirddatasetweneedtoexcavate,isthattheworldisnoisyandcomplicated,andit’shardtodrinkfromthefirehosetellinguswhat’soutthereandavailable.

Thisisadiscipline:knowingourvalues,ouraptitudes,andoureconomicallyviableinterests.

Whenwegothroughthatdiscipline,wecantakethedifficultstepofpushingthroughtheB+lifetoseewhetheranA+lifeisavailabletous.I’mnotsayingthat’strueineverycase—youmay

haveconstraints—butit’savailabletomoreofusthanweletourselvesthink.

Discoveringtheworkyou’rewiredtodo

LuciaRahilly:Suzy,youmentionedhowdifficultitcanbeforpeopletohomeinontheirvalues.

And“values”canbeachargedterm,atleastinpoliticaldiscourse.Howdoyouthinkaboutvaluesinawaythatinformsprofessionalgrowth?

SuzyWelch:Valuesaredistinctfromvirtues.Virtuesaresocialconstructsthatmostpeople

agreeweshouldallhavemoreof—kindness,resilience,decency,honesty.Valuesarethingsyoucanoperationalize.They’repersonalchoicesabouthowweorganizeourlives.Valuesarethe

underlyingdesires,wants,andmotivationsthatgalvanizeouractions.They’realmostlikeaDNAprofileofwhat’smotivatingyou.

Therearethreewell-knownvaluesinventories.IdevelopedavaluesinventoryattheUniversityofBristol,whereIearnedmyPhD,calledtheWelch–BristolValuesInventory.Itidentifies16

valuesthatinformyourcareerchoices,andforce-ranksthemandshowshowmuchyou’relivingeachone.Butvaluesaren’tenough.Youalsoneedyouraptitudes.

LuciaRahilly:Walkusthroughwhataptitudesareandthedifferencebetweenskillsandaptitudes.

SuzyWelch:Aptitudesarethecognitiveandemotionalwiringthatmakesusbetteratsome

things.Therearevariouscognitiveaptitudes,andtheyexistonacontinuum.Whereyoufallonthatcontinuummakesyoubetterorworseatcertainkindsofwork—that’shardwired.

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers4

‘Only7percentofAmericansaresurewhattheirvaluesare—theyoftenmixthemupwithvirtues.’

Thinkaboutitthisway:Areyouageneralistoraspecialist?Areyouabrainstormer,afontofideas,oranideaprocessor—someonewhodevelopsonebigideaayearandtakesitunderconsideration?Areyouadiagnosticproblemsolver—mostconsultantsare—orafact-checker,someonewhoprocessesonetaskatatime?

Differentkindsofworkneeddifferentkindsofwiring.Youcandoworkyou’renotcognitivelywiredfor,butit’sharder.Ifyou’reaspecialistbywiring,youshouldbedoingspecialistwork.

BryanHancock:Oneofthethingswe’veobservedaboutmanagersbecomingmanagersisthat

noteverybodyiscutouttobeamanager

.Inmanyorganizations,theonlywaytosucceedhasbeentotransitionfrombeingagreatindividualcontributortomanagingpeople.We’restartingtoseesomeorganizationsask,“Ifyou’reareallystrongindividualcontributor,whydon’twe

createpathswhereyougrowinresponsibilityandpaywithoutnecessarilyhavingtotakeonbroadermanagerialroles?”

SuzyWelch:Itotallyagree.Theonlywaytomakemoremoneyorgaincredibilityinmanyorganizationsistobepromotedintomanagingpeople,andit’sveryfrustrating.

LuciaRahilly:It’llbeinterestingtoseewhether,asAIdrivesdelayering,specialistsbecomemorevaluablethanever.Suzy,doyouwanttospeakbrieflytothethirdpartofyourVenn

diagram—economicallyviableinterests?

SuzyWelch:Mostpeopleneedtofigureouttheireconomicallyviableinterests.Researchshowsthatwhenkidsgraduatefromhighschool,theycanlist—withoutprompting—onlyfivejobs.Two

aretypicallythejobstheirparentshold.Youmightthinkthataftercollege,theworldwouldbreakopenandpeoplewouldbeawareofmanymorejobs,butaftercollegetheycan,

unprompted,nameonlyseven.

Nowmorethanever,jobsarechangingrapidly.Beyondthat,therearemegatrends—theAIindustriesofthefuture.

BryanHancock:Ilovedtheexampleinthebookaboutshipbuilding.Brookeisoneofthe

foremostexpertsinshipbuildinglabor.Brooke,canyoutalkabitaboutwhyshipbuildingissuchastrong,economicallyviable,growingfield?

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers5

‘Youcandoworkyou’renotcognitivelywiredfor,butit’sharder.’

BrookeWeddle:Yes—shipsbeingthenewchips.It’shighlyeconomicallyviable,yetwestillseea

shortageofworkersgoingintoshipbuilding

,particularlyinthe

skilledtrades

.Someofthat

comesdowntoperceptions—notjustamongyoungtalent,butamongtheirparents,whothinkthere’saneedforafour-yeardegree.Butyoucanmakesixfiguresasawelderthreeorfouryearsoutofschool.That’swhatwe’reupagainst,andmanymanufacturingjobsstillcarrya

stigmathatisn’talwaysrational.

SuzyWelch:Ithinkthetradesareafantasticplacetogo.I’veseenstudentshavetheireyesopenedtoshipbuildingasanindustry.TheycanbringMBAskillsthereaswell,becausethosecompaniesalsohaveHR,logistics,engineering,andallkindsofmanagerialroles.

Whygoodpeoplemakebadcareerdecisions

LuciaRahilly:Suzy,you’veworkedwithawiderangeofpeople—studentsandleaders—using

thisframework.Wouldyoushareanexampleoftheconcretedifferencethismethodcanmakeinsomeone’slife?Forinstance,youtalkedinthebookaboutastudentwhohadajobofferfromMcKinseybutwhoyoufeltwasunlikelytobetherightfit.

SuzyWelch:AsIrecall,thestudentyou’rethinkingofwasonthefenceaboutgoingintoconsulting.Hehadtheofferinhand,whichinbusinessschoolfeelslikeawin.Buthistestresultskeptcomingoutinwaysthatwereveryantitheticaltotheconsultinglife.

Forexample,oneofhisstrongestcognitiveaptitudeswasspatialorientation.Thesearepeoplewhoseeeverythinginthreedimensions,drawalot,andcanmanipulateobjectsinspace.

They’reoftenverygoodwithproductsandmaybecomearchitectsordesigners.Hesaid,“Ilovetogointostoresandstareatpackaging.”Ontopofthat,hisvaluesshowedlowemphasison

achievement—thevalueofvisiblesuccessandcaringaboutwinningandlosing—andlowwork-centrism,meaninghewantedatruenine-to-fivelifestyle.Histopvaluewasbelovedness,whichreflectstheimportanceofaromanticpartner,andhissecondwasfamily-centrism.Andthiswassomeonewalkingintoconsulting.Itwaspainfultosee.

Hewentaway,andaboutaweeklater,hecamebacktoofficehoursandsaid,“ProfessorWelch,I’mblowingitallup.I’mgoingintobusinesswithmygirlfriend.I’veaskedhertomarryme,and

we’regoingtostartacompanymakingaspecialtydrink.”Hehadalreadydesignedthe

packaging.Theylaunched,they’redoingincrediblywell,andthefirstplacetheybroughtasix-packoftheirproductwastomyoffice.

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers6

‘Wemakedecisionsbasedonhard

numbers,evenifmoneydoesn’ttrulymattertous,becausenumbersfeel

concrete.’

LuciaRahilly:Suzy,youwriteaboutwhatyoucalltheFourHorsemen—signalsthatdon’t

necessarilyforetelltheendoffinancialsuccess,butofmeaningfulorfulfillingcareers.Whatarethosesignstowatchfor?

SuzyWelch:IcallthemtheFourHorsemenofValuesDestruction.AllfourstartwithE.

Thefirstisexpectations—someoneelse’sexpectationsforourlives,orourownexpectations,gettinginthewayoflivingourvalues.

Thesecondisexpedience.Wedon’tliveourvaluesbecauseitmightmakesomeoneweloveangry,orbecausedoingsowouldtakerealdisciplineandenergy.Lifeishardenough,sowetakethepathofleastresistance.

Thethirdiseconomicsecurity.Wemakedecisionsbasedonhardnumbers,evenifmoney

doesn’ttrulymattertous,becausenumbersfeelconcrete.We’veallmadebaddecisionsbasedonnumbers—buyingthewronghousebecauseit’scheaper,takingthewrongjobbecauseit

paysmore,orgoingonavacationwedon’twantbecauseitcostsless.

Thefourthisevents.Sometimesthingshappeninourlives,andourvaluestemporarilystop

beingexpressed—butthenwedon’tfighttoreclaimthem.Yougetfiredorloseyourjob.Whenmyhusbandpassedaway,Ifellapart,asmostwidowsdo.Therewasalongperiodofdeepgrief,andIcompletelyletgoofmyvaluesaroundworkandachievement.

HowCHROscanhelp

BrookeWeddle:Fromacompanyperspective,whatwouldyousaytoaCHRO—achiefhumanresourcesofficer—whowantstohelpemployeesbecomebetterversionsofthemselves?Whataresomewaystodothat,frombetterassessmentatthestartofthetalentcycletoupskillingandreskillingthattakethesecharacteristicsintoaccount?

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers7

SuzyWelch:ACHRO’sjobistohelppeopleunderstandthemselvesindetailsotheycanbe

placedincareerpathsthatalignwiththeirvalues,aptitudes,andinterests.Forexample,alargenonprofitbroughtmeintoassessaptitudesacrosstheC-suite.Werealizedthateveryoneatthetablewasaspecialistandthattheyneededmoregeneralists.WealsousetheEnneagram,a

personality-typeindicator,withexecutiveteamsandothergroups.

ThatledustocreatewhatwecalltheBecomingBook,whichletspeoplebuildausermanualofthemselves.Ithasastrongorganizationalapplication:Ingroupsettings,peoplebringtogetherallthisdataand,usingAI,turnitintoausermanual.Teamsthensharethosemanualswithoneanother.Youlearnyourcolleagues’values,aptitudes,andfoundationalbiographicalstories.It’sanefficientwaytosay,“Here’swhoIam.”

Iespeciallyloveitwhenyouseebosseshandingittotheirteamsandsaying,“Youwanttoknowhowtoworkwithme?”Itincreasesclaritybyhavingeveryonespeakthesamelanguage.

BryanHancock:Onethingthatstoodouttome,especiallythinkingaboutorganizational

application,ishowyoutalkabout

resilience

—specifically,resilienceastheintersectionofgritandforgiveness.Couldyouexpandonthat?

SuzyWelch:Everybodytalksaboutresilience.What’salwaysmystifiedmeisthatthetypicaldefinitionis,“You’redownonyourback,completelydefeated—nowgofindinnerstrength.”

That’swhenyou’reincapacitated.Sowheredoestheinnerstrengthcomefrom?Thatwasalwaysthephilosophicalquestionforme.

IreallyneededresiliencewhenIwasfired.Itwasembarrassing,andIfeltlikeIwasnevergoingtoworkagain.

Grithastobeunlocked

.Weunlockitbystoppingtheuseofpsychicenergytolitigatewhathappened.Ithappened.Weacceptourownroleinit.Weletgoofbeingangryatthepeoplewhodidittous.Thenwecanstarttorebuild.

There’snoscientificvalidationofwhatI’msaying—justlifeexperience.ButIstudythiscloselynow.WhenIseesomeonegetbackup,theyalmostalwaystalkaboutlettinggoofangerandlettinggoofblame.

LuciaRahilly:You’vesaidyouuseaversionofa360-degreetool,whichbringsinoutsideinput.Isitharderforpeopletoself-reporttheirvalueswhenthey’reincrisis—whenthey’requestioningwhatthey’vedoneandwhattheirvaluesreallyare?

SuzyWelch:Peoplecan’tself-reporttheirvaluesbecausetheiridentitygetsmixedupinit.

That’sonereasonwecreatedtheValuesBridge(whichmeasuresthealignmentbetweenyour

valuesandthewayyouliveyourlife).Beforeitexisted,Iusedtorunpeoplethroughseven

exercises,andtheywouldendupwithalistofvaluesthatwetriedtoforce-rank.Iwouldliterallywatchpeopleerasevaluesandmoveotherstothetop—especiallyfamily.Whenfamilydidn’t

showupatthetop,theywouldmanuallyputittherebecausethat’swhereitshouldbe.Inreality,ourdatashowsthatonly11percentofAmericanshavefamilyastheirtopvalue.

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers8

‘Peoplecan’tself-reporttheirvalues

becausetheiridentitygetsmixedup

init.’

BrookeWeddle:That’sfascinating.

SuzyWelch:It’struethatwhenpeoplecometoBecomingYou[workshops],they’reoftenveryvulnerable.ParticipationintheValuesBridge[assessment]peaksatnight.Oneofmyengineerssaid,“That’swhenpeoplestartspiraling.”TheBridgeisdesignedtoseparateyoufromyour

crisisandgetatyourtruevalues.Andwethinkitdoes—efficacytestingshowsit’s94percentefficacious.

Fromrookiestoretirees

BryanHancock:HavepeoplebeenusingtheBecomingYouprocessastheythinkaboutretirement?

SuzyWelch:Yes.The“third-halfers”loveit.Thatwasasurpriseapplication,alongwithaddictionrecovery—it’scurrentlybeingusedintwoaddictionrecoveryorganizations.Earlyon,wewere

struckbyhowmanypeoplesaid,“I’vebeenownedbymycompany.I’m55,Ihavesomemoney,andIcandesigntherestofthisstory.”We’reamazedbythenumberofpeoplewhocometothethree-dayimmersivesinNewYorkCity.They’reenergized,saying,“IcandosomuchmorethanIcouldwhenIwas25.”

It’sremarkable.Anditreinforceshowurgentthequestionofwhoweareandwhatweshouldbedoingwithourlivesfeelsrightnow.

BrookeWeddle:It’sfascinatingtoheartherangeofpeopleandorganizationsthisresearchisresonatingwith.Whatabouttheoppositeendofthespectrum—earlierinthefunnel?

SuzyWelch:Highschool.Theinterestindevelopingthisasahighschoolcurriculumisatsunami.Aversionofitbelongsthere.Valuesaren’tfullyformedinhighschool,butgivingstudentsalanguagetotalkaboutvaluesisincrediblypowerful.

Howsmartpeopleendupinthewrongcareers9

‘Culturebeginsandendswithvalues.’

Findingclarityinthethroesofchange

BrookeWeddle:Iloveyourpointaboutacommonlanguage.Idoalotof

workwithexecutives

onculture

,andwhilecultureisn’texactlysynonymouswithvalues,therearesimilarities.Withoutclarity,peopleoftentalkpastoneanother.

SuzyWelch:Ithinkthey’resynonymous.Withoutasharedlanguage,itgetsfuzzy.Youstart

sayingthingslike,“Ourvaluesareexcellence.”AndIthink,“Really?Isyourdefinitionof

excellencethesameasmine?”Or,“Wevaluecollaboration.”Whatdoesthatactuallylooklike?

WerecentlyworkedwithanengineeringfirminPittsburghthatsaid,“Wedon’thaveaculture.”

AndIsaid,“Yes,youdo—it’sjustnotdefined.Everyorganizationhasaculture.”Culturebeginsandendswithvalues.That’swhyhavingasharedlanguagematters—soeveryoneisspeakingthesamelanguage.

BrookeWeddle:Iagree.Ithinkvaluesarefoundational,andthencultureisalmostlikethebehaviorsthatcometolifeday-to-day,rootedinthosevalues.Whenyoudon’thavethis

commonlanguageorframeworktobeanchoredon,itbecomesveryconfusing.

SuzyWelch:Andthethingweneedlessconfusiononisculture.There’sawell-knownsayingthatcultureeatsstrategyforbreakfast.Ifyoudon’thaveagoodculture,nothinggetsdone.

LuciaRahilly:Suzy,Iwanttobringusbacktowherewestarted—thecurrentparadigmshift,orwhatyoucallinthebookthe“unsettlednatureofourcollectivefutureinanAIeconomy.”The

term“authentic”hasprobablyalwaysbeenunstable,butitseemsevenmoresoasAIintroducesavatarsandsyntheticrelationships.Lookingfiveyearsout,doyouseeauthenticity—ortheideaofbecomingourselves—evolving?

SuzyWelch:Ican’tlookfiveyearsout.ButIcansaythatauthenticityiseverything.Withoutauthenticity,there’snotrust.Andwithout