Becoming You: The Proven Method for Crafting Your Authentic Life and Career―A Step-by-Step Journey To Uncovering Your Unique Path to Achieving Success

by Suzy Welch

An inspiring, wise and highly practical method for discovering your true self and identifying the fulfilling career just for you.

No matter where we are in our lives, be it atop the heights of achievement or just setting out on our journey, we’ve all had that moment where we’ve wondered, “What is my purpose? What was I born to do?” The answer can feel just within our grasp, or as far off as the horizon. How in the world do we get there?

Enter Becoming You, a joyful, deeply researched, and immediately applicable step-by-step guidebook to help you answer that very question. Based on the phenomenally popular NYU class by the same name, and used by thousands of people around the world, Becoming You is an empathic yet absolutely zero-BS method designed to help you understand where you want to go and what you want to do in today’s ever-changing world.

Professor Suzy Welch, a respected expert in careers, decision-making, and identity formation, is the Director of NYU Stern’s Initiative on Purpose and Flourishing. A graduate of Harvard and Harvard Business School, and a former columnist for O: The Oprah Magazine, she has consulted for some of America’s largest companies, is a frequent commentator for the Wall Street Journal, and a regular guest on the Today Show and CNBC. Her previous three books have been New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers, and her fast-growing, authentic, and often hilarious "Becoming You" podcast has fans worldwide.

But more than anything, Professor Welch is a teacher and agent of transformation. After a life filled with wide and varied experiences, from crime reporter to tech entrepreneur, her own purpose is helping others find theirs. She created Becoming You out of fifteen years of researching and testing with the heartfelt goal of helping people discover a way forward in a complex world. To that end, Becoming You guides readers through the process of excavating their truest values, identifying their outstanding aptitudes, and finally, pinpointing their economically viable interests, that is, the kind of work that calls them emotionally and intellectually, and also makes sense financially. Ultimately, Becoming You, at turns warm, witty, pragmatic, and filled with tough-love, is your guide to discovering the life you were meant to live.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Audiobook, Business, Personal Development, Productivity, Personal Growth

304 pages, Hardcover

Published May 6, 2025

About the author

Suzy Welch is an American author, television commentator, business advisor, and public speaker. She is also the co-author (with her late husband Jack Welch) of the business books Winning, published in 2005, and The Real Life MBA, published in 2015.

Reviews

[Joseph G]

Completely closed-minded about anything this person could possibly produce. I judge people by what they do, not by what they say, and even less by what they preach. See the American disaster of Welchism, in which she wallowed and from which she continues to profit. See, e.g., "The Man Who Broke Capitalism: How Jack Welch Gutted the Heartland and Crushed the Soul of Corporate America—and How to Undo His Legacy".

Go fish.

[LA · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think that Dr. Welch's work --particularly the values bridge test -- is incredibly cool and worth learning about. I actually encouraged multiple friends to take the test because I think it leads to fascinating conversations. But I had three major issues with this book:

1. This book was written too early in the midst of still-developing research. In the time between when the book was written and when I took the VBT, another value was added. I'd argue even more need to be added because many feel like compounds of different topics. For instance, as an aro-ace person, I find friendship to be a highly important value that I center my life around, but I scored moderately in Belonging because it also digs at your feelings about community, including "community" within powerful institutions. More perspectives need to be gathered and more work needs to be done to sift through this -- surely this topic could be broken into two or more values.

2. The book tried to do way too much. I understand she wanted to go through her whole course, but I didn't feel the VBT descriptions were fully explored, and the parts that followed also felt rushed. I feel this would have better translated as a multi-part workbook rather than trying to stuff a semester's worth of information into a relatively short book.

3. This woman is obsessed with capitalism and, despite claiming to understand the perspective of younger people and to not judge people for their values, doesn't seem to have actually made a good-faith effort to understand why many young people score low in Workcentrism. Workcentrism, as she describes it, is about centering your life around your primary career, not about having a work ethic at all. Despite that disclaimer, my jaw dropped at the way she spoke about work-life balance. Her perspective feels like it was plucked out of a previous century, and she demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of what it was like to come into the workplace at a time when we should be able to dial back and rely on technology more to build a richer life outside of a career (to pursue things which yes, also can require a work ethic), yet we were expected to produce increasingly more. This problem is only going to get worse with AI, and people who are at the forefront of how we are thinking about the future of work need to do a better job of listening when it comes to this topic.

So TL;DR: I would give the concept of the VBT itself a 4 star, but I wouldn't recommend the book as a whole.

[Chrissann Nickel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard the author on the Happier with Gretchen Rubin podcast and was fascinated by her explanation of her “values bridge” framework and the course that she teaches at NYU.

Her online values assessment was incredibly insightful, so I got the book to expand my knowledge of her theories on living within your personal values, aptitudes, and personality.

I found all of this very enlightening, engaging, and accurate. While I wish there had been more of a deep dive into the values, I think this covers finding your direction in life—at whatever stage in life you’re in—thoroughly and holistically. And the values information available on her website goes deeper, if that’s what you’re interested in most like me (though I do wish you got a code to get beyond the paywall with the purchase of the book!).

I highly recommend this book for anyone who feels dissatisfied or lost or at a crossroads, or even for those who just want reinforcement that they’re on the right path. Living a meaningful life is an ongoing project, after all, for as long as we are living.

“It is a lifelong challenge to know who we really are. But if we don’t, we will never change. Which means we will never find our purpose in life, or get the chance to live it to the hilt.”

[Anisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you ever felt a bit lost in life, this along with Designing Your Life are a great combination to figure out next steps

[Ally · Rating 2 out of 5]

In my line of work, I’m always eager to consume anything related to young adult development, flourishing, career readiness, and the like. When I saw this book, written by the Director of the NYU Initiative on Purpose and Flourishing, I figured it was worth the read!

Here are things I liked:
1. You don’t have to be “one big thing” — you can be a series of commas.
2. Love her take on networking— I hate how it feels performative and advantageous. It's way more important to make REAL friendships with people without seeking something in return; they will help you more than anyone you meet briefly at a conference.

This didn't contain any monumental breakthroughs, but it was still relatively enjoyable.

[Caroline Cutler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobooked. Basically an MBA class about finding yourself and I ate it right up. Did all the tests and unironically learned a lot about myself and everyone else I forced the tests on. Loved!

[Tilak · Rating 4 out of 5]

The values section of this book I do find to be a great framework for identifying your purpose. Easy and compelling ready that gives you really accessible language for identifying what you want.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did the audiobook version, highly recommend. It’s like listening to her podcast!

This is kind of another personality assessment book, but it’s still really helpful and valuable. I most appreciate her storytelling and use of examples of other people’s lives! Enjoyed this read a lot

[Daniel Stahly · Rating 4 out of 5]

holy middle age white lady book. the intro speaks on how video games impact children’s development ✅ obvious proverbs ✅ says “bye Felicia” ✅ i wont go on. thanks for the book rec mom.blocked.. i actually appreciated some of her personal anecdotes and the part where she said shes not a control freak except for her sons wedding and everyone loved it thank you very much HAHAHAH. shes always sliding how successful she is like we get it you have it all figured out damn. regarding values she said that people come to them honestly, through life experiences (real) so i wont judge mfs now.

[Charmin · Rating 4 out of 5]

HIGHLIGHTS:

1. Authenticity is admitting who you are to yourself.

2. Shitty compromise for money makes sense, until it doesn’t anymore.

3. Whose Life:
- What would you want from this person’s life?
- What would you NOT want?
- Patterns that reveal values.

4. Expediency: Live by values or live by the glide path of least resistance.


RESOURCE:
Quiz - https://www.suzywelch.com/products/

[Cor T · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with all self-help books, the podcast contains everything you need to know. Heard Suzy Welch interviewed on 10% Happier and actually bought the book as I'm in one of those times of life. She's a professor of MBA students so it's quite professionally focused and gives a lot of Ivy League examples of success. What made me interested from the interview is that she's a widow and this is nothing about widowhood.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The part I found most useful was the section about identifying your values and the gap between your stated values and how you're making decisions/living life. I find myself returning to that as I hit a milestone birthday this year that has me taking stock of life. The rest of the book feels like it would be much more useful taken as a class or course (which, of course, for a lot more money is available!).

[Maeve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book being overdue at the library before I even started it really helped me. Found Suzy on Gretchen Rubin’s podcast and loved her! Now I listen to her podcast, finally got her book and will make Dave take the values bridge test with me. We all know I love a personality test and self-help books so this is totally my new thing lol

[Anna B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will recommend this book over and over again if you are interested in understanding what drives your decision making and what you’re good at read this book. A lot of introspection in this book which I loved — would recommend getting the activity book with it if you want to follow along.

[Ryann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received this book as a gift from my grandmother and I enjoyed it! Love a personality quiz. The more the merrier. Definitely opened my mind up to different areas and questions about what I want out of my life. Would recommend!

[Mara Donoghue · Rating 5 out of 5]

iykyk - Suzy to the rescue!

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rounding up from 3.5/5 might need to revisit this rating once I’ve gone through the exercises

[Esther · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and this whole process, I learned a lot about myself by going through it.

[Sara Budarz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really surprisingly useful framework for thinking through what your skills sets are and what matters to you in terms of crafting a career.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listen to her podcast and really like what she has to say. I got the book to see if I could glean anything new about myself.

[Sarah Ressler Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay every kid going off to college and anyone who isn’t sure their career path needs to read and complete the exercises. We have kids do the You science excercises she mentions in the book but so many amazing resources I want to share with anyone trying to figure out what they want to do in life!

[Karina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was easy to read, although somewhat frustrating at times as the author wrote as if she were speaking. I'm not sure how editors looked over these lines and thought cool, okay, we'll keep in a line like "oops didn't mean to say that!" even though multiple people read this over and decided to keep it in, so, yes, you did mean to say that. Besides this NP, the book was great in describing the becoming-you method. I wish the homework assignments and additional activities were more clearly listed, not just mentioned in paragraphs, so I could easily reference and complete them. I never wanted to actually put the book down to do the homework that was mentioned mid-paragraph, mid-chapter. Again, an NP. I didn't find the paid assessments as frustrating as a lot of the other reviews did because I felt Suzy did a great job explaining how to self-evaluate. I always appreciated the anecdotes of previous students and acquaintances who went through the becoming-you process and felt them relevant to the part of the process the book was discussing. Overall, would recommend the book!

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t know who the author was before reading this book. Perhaps for many once they realized she is the widow of Jack Welch opinions were already solidified for good or bad. I absolutely loved this book, have already been recommending it to others, and found Susy’s writing and narrating of the audiobook to be both interesting and entertaining. Highly, highly recommended.

[Javier Olavarrieta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book has a great analysis of how what we value affects the way we live our lives, and to get there, it shares a more practical definition of what values are. It's a helpful methodology to understand ourselves better and it offers a way to put that information to use if you are willing to do the work.

[Diego Leal · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you want to evaluate what to do for work she provides great exercises to figure out that next step. I wish she did not just want to force humor every other paragraph as it often times it is just cringe and unfunny.

[Beth Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant, flawless, and timely. A must-read.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a gigantic personality test nerd like me this book will make your week! Loved it. Great read and gave me a lot to think about. Also confirmed I’m in the right job!

[Jenny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too heavy on stories and gimmicky nomenclature. Skip Part II Values and instead complete the online quiz on her website. You’ll need another resource to focus on next steps.

[Kenz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Becoming You was my neighborhood book club selection for January. While I’ve read - and understand the value of - self-help books, this is not one I would have been drawn to on my own. The author’s background, the cover, and the reason our host selected it led me to assume it would be very corporate-oriented, something I’m generally uninterested in.

I’ve never written a review for a self-help book before, so I’ll say up front that I’m approaching this one in two parts: first, my objective feedback, followed by some very subjective musings. My 3 star rating reflects that blend, potentially higher if judged purely on objective merit, but after sitting with it for a couple of weeks, I just couldn’t go there.

⋅ ⋅ ⋅

I consumed this as an audiobook and thought the narrator did a fantastic job. It felt less like I was being told a story and more like I was sitting in a presentation hall. Fitting, I suppose, given the content. There are online tests and appendices referenced throughout the book that likely would have been more accessible in a physical copy, but I didn’t feel hindered by the audio format.

Early on, the author quotes a poem by Mary Oliver - “What are you going to do with your one wild and precious life?” - a line that appears again throughout the book. That question helped ease my skepticism almost immediately. I realized very quickly this wasn’t a book about finding your authentic self in a purely professional or corporate context, but rather within the broader scope of your life’s pursuits. I genuinely appreciated her takes on values and attributes and even took the free values assessment online, which identified my top four values. (Additional values, along with several other referenced tests, are available behind paywalls.)

Having existed reluctantly in the corporate world for over fifteen years, I’m well versed in personality tests, work attributes, and similar exercises, having gone through them repeatedly in team settings. Because of that, I didn’t experience any major revelations while reading this book. What I did feel, however, was a sense of reassurance in my current trajectory. Namely, my desire to move away from the corporate world.

I do think this book would be particularly useful for those early in their careers, or for anyone seeking realignment who hasn’t recently (or ever) taken the time to examine their own values and attributes. For what it’s worth, I did recommend both the book and the accompanying tests to my nineteen-year-old nephew.

⋅ ⋅ ⋅

I’m always hearing that reading is subjective - and it is. That said, some of the feedback below may not resonate with you, perhaps because my values or worldview are simply a mismatch.

1. The author mentions her late husband, Jack Welch, frequently throughout the book. As I have apparently been living under a rock, I didn’t know who he was and paused the audiobook to learn more. He was the former CEO of General Electric - perhaps a king of capitalism, with Suzy as his queen. They also co-authored a book titled Winning. No, I don’t know what that book is about. This is the subjective section.

What I do know is that her association with him made it harder for me to fully connect with her perspective. When I take life advice from someone, I generally want to feel that we’re aligned in worldview, and for me, that alignment wasn’t really there.

2. I struggled with the author’s framing of values perceived as less desirable as acceptable “as long as you’re not hurting anyone.” I mean…true, but to what extent? At a certain point, it starts to feel like a cop-out for poor behavior.

It reminded me of a moment in Soul, where a Jerry sends a soul down to Earth with a megalomaniac-type personality and shrugs, “You’ll be fun.” But hey - as long as we aren’t hurting anyone.

3. I took the recommended values test and received my top four (out of twelve, or maybe fifteen, it’s been a few weeks), with the remaining values locked behind a paywall. The author also references other assessments (such as attributes) that aren’t free. I didn’t mind that those additional tests required payment, but the paywall on the values test itself felt unnecessary.

Do I believe people should be paid for their work? Yes. Do I think this particular author was in a position to offer the remaining eight to eleven values without turning it into another FOMO moment for readers who may already be feeling vulnerable? Also yes.

⋅ ⋅ ⋅

Overall, I’m glad to have read this book, as it briefly encouraged a different way of thinking - not only about the content itself, but about how much our reading experience can be shaped by the person delivering it.

My next read most similar to this genre/content will be If Women Rose Rooted by Sharon Blackie, and I expect it to land much better.

[Doreenandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book didn't try to impress me. It located me.

Suzan Welch’s main idea is straightforward: a fulfilling life happens where your values, your skills, and your interests meet. If you miss one, you might still succeed, but you’ll feel off, restless, misaligned, and tired in a way that sleep can’t fix.

This was the most practical book I’ve read. She wasn’t trying to sell hustle culture or romantic ideas about passion. She wants clarity, brutal, honest clarity. The kind that makes you admit when you’re good at something you don’t enjoy, or when you love something you’re not really meant to do well.
Reading this book during my own season of life felt almost too accurate. I’ve been building, working, creating, and showing up, but I still wonder if effort alone means I’m on the right path. Welch would say no. Effort can hide a bad fit for years, especially for high performers.

One of the most grounding parts of the book is how it treats work not as your identity, but as a way to express yourself. Work isn’t who you are; it’s how you bring who you are into the world. That difference meant a lot to me.

I also liked how realistic the book is about timing. Becoming yourself doesn’t happen in a flash. It’s a process. It takes feedback, reflection, adjustment, and sometimes letting go of paths that used to make sense. That approach feels mature. There’s no pressure to change overnight—just a responsibility to notice what’s happening.

This book didn’t give me all the answers. It’s also one of the few books where I actually finished the workbook sections.

Some books motivate you. Some entertain you. This one quietly changes how you see yourself, then leaves you to do the real work on your own.

And maybe that’s the point.