Podcast

SPOS #969 – Michael Horn On Making Progress In Your Career

Welcome to episode #969 of Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast.

Michael B. Horn is one of those rare people who seamlessly bridges the worlds of education, innovation, and career development. As the co-founder of the Clayton Christensen Institute and a teacher at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Michael has dedicated his career to reimagining how we learn and work. He’s the author of several transformative books, including Disrupting Class, From Reopen To Reinvent, and his latest, Job Moves – 9 Steps For Making Progress In Your Career. In this conversation, Michael shares his thoughtful approach to helping individuals and organizations adapt to a world where education and careers are anything but linear. We discussed how his latest book applies the “Jobs to Be Done” theory to career moves, offering a framework that helps people align their work with their lives in a more meaningful way. Michael’s passion for unlocking potential shines through as we explore the challenges minimum wage workers face, the evolving role of AI in the workplace, and the need for more experiential learning in education. He also reflects on the legacy of his mentor, Clayton Christensen, and how his ideas continue to shape modern business and learning. What struck me most was Michael’s grounded optimism – he’s not just thinking about the future of work… he’s actively working to make it more accessible, human, and fulfilling. If you’re grappling with a career change, wondering how education needs to evolve, or just curious about how to thrive in an unpredictable world, this episode is full of insight and inspiration. Enjoy the conversation…

Running time: 1:03:06.
Hello from beautiful Montreal.
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Here is my conversation with Michael B. Horn.
Job Moves – 9 Steps For Making Progress In Your Career.
From Reopen To Reinvent.
Disrupting Class.
Clayton Christensen Institute.
Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Follow Michael on X.
Follow Michael on LinkedIn.
This week’s music: David Usher ‘St. Lawrence River’.

Chapters:

(00:00) – Navigating Career Choices in a Fluid Landscape.
(02:58) – The Evolution of Education and Work.
(06:06) – Understanding Learning Differences and Accommodations.
(08:51) – The Impact of Traditional Education on Career Paths.
(12:10) – The Value of Trades and Alternative Pathways.
(14:50) – Rethinking Professional Training in Healthcare.
(17:58) – The Role of Entrepreneurship in Modern Careers.
(21:09) – The Importance of Self-Discovery in Career Development.
(23:55) – Job Mobility and Employee Engagement.
(26:54) – The Challenges of Individual Needs in the Workplace.
(31:39) – Navigating Individual Needs in Organizations.
(35:40) – The Challenges of Minimum Wage and Job Mobility.
(41:49) – The Impact of AI on Job Markets.
(51:03) – Lessons from Clayton Christensen.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast – Episode #969.

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.