职场差距背后的深层原因
What Really Creates the Gap Between People at Work
人的职场表现并不只是由我们常认为的重要因素(如智力、学历等)决定的,很多隐藏的特质,才是真正影响职场表现的关键。
Performance at work is not determined only by the factors we usually consider important, such as intelligence and education. Many less visible qualities are what truly shape how people perform.
人和人在职场上的差距是如何形成的?学校里我们可以通过成绩排名来区分人,但一进入职场,差异变得更加多维。即使是曾经的学霸,也不一定能在工作中成为明星,而有些看似普通的人,却也可能在职场中一路高歌猛进。
How do differences between people emerge in the workplace? At school, grades can be used to rank people, but once we enter the world of work, the differences become far more multidimensional. Even a former top student may not become a star performer, while someone who once seemed ordinary may go on to thrive.
到底什么样的人在职场上更有潜力?这是每家公司都会思考的问题。招聘简直就像在找对象——简历筛选、几轮面试、各个角度考察,千挑万选,最后才决定招进来。而这仅仅是人才培养这场“马拉松”的第一步。
What kind of person has the greatest potential at work? Every company thinks about this question. Recruitment can feel a lot like choosing a partner: reviewing résumés, holding several rounds of interviews, assessing candidates from every angle, and making a decision only after careful comparison. Yet this is merely the first step in the marathon of developing talent.
有的人在学校成绩特别好,拿各种奖学金、脑子也灵活,面试时侃侃而谈,但一进入职场,表现却不如预期;而另一些初期看起来很普通的人,后面却超乎预期地出色。这种偏差感,很多管理者都深有体会。
Some people excel at school, win scholarships, think quickly, and speak impressively in interviews, only to underperform after entering the workplace. Others appear unremarkable at first but later perform far beyond expectations. Many managers know this mismatch all too well.
人的职场表现差异到底是如何形成的呢?麦克利兰早在上世纪70年代就在研究这个问题。
So how do these differences in workplace performance arise? David McClelland was studying this question as early as the 1970s.
1973年,麦克利兰在《美国心理学家》杂志上发表了一篇名为《测量素质而非智力》的文章,正式提出“素质”的概念。简单来说,他指出, 人的职场表现并不只是由我们常认为的重要因素(如智力、学历等)决定的,很多隐藏的特质,才是真正影响职场表现的关键。
In 1973, McClelland published an article titled “Testing for Competence Rather Than for Intelligence” in *American Psychologist*, formally introducing the concept of competency. Put simply, he argued that performance at work is not determined only by the factors we usually consider important, such as intelligence and education. Many less visible qualities are what truly shape how people perform.
他提出的“冰山模型”形象地描绘了人的素质像一座冰山,分为“水面之上”和“水面之下”的两部分。水面上的部分是容易看到的,比如知识和技能;水面下的部分则是难以察觉的深层特质,比如动机、特质、价值观等。 而真正影响职场表现的,往往是这些隐藏在水下的东西。
His “iceberg model” vividly portrays a person's competencies as an iceberg with one part above the water and another below it. The visible part includes knowledge and skills. Beneath the surface lie deeper qualities that are harder to detect, such as motives, personal traits, and values. These hidden qualities are often what truly shape workplace performance.
为了更好理解,我们可以把冰山模型划分为 知识技能、通用能力和核心特质 三层。
To understand the model more clearly, we can divide it into three layers: knowledge and skills, general capabilities, and core traits.
知识技能(冰山之上)
Knowledge and Skills (Above the Waterline)
这一层是我们在工作中看得见、学得会的能力。比如,程序员的编程技能、财务人员的报表分析能力。这些知识和技能可以通过学习、培训和经验积累获得,也比较容易通过考试、测试等方式直接评估。
This layer consists of abilities that can be seen and learned at work, such as a programmer's coding skills or a finance professional's ability to analyze financial statements. This knowledge and these skills can be acquired through study, training, and experience, and they are relatively easy to assess through examinations or tests.
通用能力(冰山中间)
General Capabilities (The Middle of the Iceberg)
这一层指的是那些适用于多个场景的能力,比如 沟通能力、学习能力、逻辑思维、 归纳 总结、问题解决能力 等。通用能力的培养比专业技能要难一些,它既包括显性部分(容易观察的),也包括隐性部分(不易察觉的),比如 理解力、创新力、判断力、影响力 等。
This layer refers to abilities that apply across many situations, such as communication, learning, logical thinking, induction, summarization, and problem-solving. General capabilities are harder to develop than professional skills. They include both visible elements that are easy to observe and less visible ones that are harder to discern, such as comprehension, creativity, judgment, and influence.
核心特质(冰山之下)
Core Traits (Below the Waterline)
最后,最深的一层是个人的核心特质,位于冰山的底部,几乎完全隐藏。包括一个人的 动机、性格特质、价值观、责任心、情商 等。 这些特质虽然难以直接观察,却在决定一个人的长期职场表现中起着至关重要的作用。 核心特质往往由个人经历、性格和内在驱动力形成,通常很难通过培训改变。
The deepest layer is a person's core traits, located at the bottom of the iceberg and almost entirely hidden. These include motivation, personality, values, responsibility, and emotional intelligence. Although difficult to observe directly, these traits play a crucial role in determining a person's long-term performance at work. Core traits are often shaped by personal experience, character, and inner drive, and they are usually difficult to change through training.
因此,冰山模型告诉我们,职场上的差异不仅仅来自看得见的知识技能,深层的核心特质才是关键。 通过冰山模型,我们可更加全面准确地分析和预测一个人的职场表现。
The iceberg model therefore shows us that differences at work do not arise only from visible knowledge and skills. Deeper core traits are decisive. The model helps us analyze and predict a person's workplace performance more fully and accurately.
我在多年招人、用人、育人的经验中也发现 , 即便一个人具备很强的专业能力,如果他在沟通、情商、责任心、成就导向等方面存在短板,最终也可能会遇到职业发展的天花板。 这些深层素质,往往决定了一个人在面对复杂环境、机会、压力和长期挑战时的表现。
Over many years of recruiting, assigning, and developing people, I have also found that even someone with strong professional expertise may eventually hit a ceiling if they have weaknesses in communication, emotional intelligence, responsibility, or achievement orientation. These deeper competencies often determine how a person responds to complex environments, opportunities, pressure, and long-term challenges.
当然,无论这些特质位于冰山下多深,只要有成长的欲望,人总是能够通过学习和行动来不断自我调整改进。只是,这种深层次的改变往往只能是靠自驱力。所以,我一直认为 动机和驱动力 对一个人的成长和发展至关重要,这个话题后面值得再聊。
Of course, no matter how deeply these traits lie beneath the surface, people can continue to adjust and improve themselves through learning and action as long as they genuinely want to grow. Such deep change, however, usually has to come from within. That is why I have always believed that motivation and drive are vital to a person's growth and development—a topic worth returning to another day.