Whether you are a first-time job seeker or exploring a career change, navigating the endless possibilities can be daunting. Choosing a career path can be overwhelming with seemingly endless possibilities.
Personality assessments are a fun, interactive way to get started. With these short, online surveys, you can gain insights into your personal strengths and preferences, helping you to narrow potential career paths.
Benefits of Personality Assessments
Job seekers can benefit from taking personality tests in several ways beyond career planning:
Self-Discovery: Personality tests can help job seekers better understand themselves, their strengths, and their weaknesses. This self-awareness is crucial for personal growth and development.
Relationship Insights: Personality tests can help you understand your communication style, interpersonal preferences, and compatibility with others. This knowledge can be valuable in personal and professional relationships.
Stress Management: Knowing your personality type can help you identify potential sources of stress and develop coping strategies that work best for you.
Personal Growth: Personality tests often offer suggestions for personal growth and development. They can help you set meaningful goals and work on areas that may need improvement.
A wide variety of personality tests are available. Listed below are a few examples that are available for personal use and meant for leisure and self discovery.
Enneagram Personality Test
The Enneagram Personality Test is free, available online, and will reveal your personality based on a bank of nine personality types. This test takes around ten minutes to complete. Once the test is completed, the website offers descriptions of your results including strengths and weaknesses for your particular enneagram personality type. Try out the Enneagram Test at www.truity.com/test/enneagram-personality-test
Myers-Briggs Assessments
Another useful personality test is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). This test will result in one of sixteen personalities and is geared toward revealing personal strengths. This test can be useful for figuring out possible career choices and learning more about how to apply your strengths to everyday interactions. This test takes about 15 minutes to complete. Take a free version of the test at www.16personalities.com.
Remember when taking these tests that they are not mental health evaluations! They are simply a way to gain deeper insight into your own self, including your strengths and weaknesses. In addition, no one personality test is accurate for everyone!
How to Use Personality Tests to Choose a Career Path
To make the results of a personality test actionable, follow these steps:
Reflect on the Results: Set aside time to really sit with your test results. Consider what resonates with you and what doesn’t. Jot down notes about projects or situations that illustrate your unique personality traits.
Identify Strengths and Weaknesses: Consider how you can leverage your strengths in various aspects of your life and work on mitigating your weaknesses. When choosing a career path, focus on roles that play to your strengths. Avoid agonizing over how to improve your weaknesses so they would better fit a particular career. These insights also can also be useful when crafting an answer to a common interview question which asks the interviewee to discuss strengths or weaknesses.
Seek Feedback: Share your results with trusted friends, family members, or mentors and ask for their input. They may offer valuable perspectives on how you can apply the insights to choosing a career path. Consider seeking career counseling and share the results.
Using Personality Tests for Personal Growth
From a personal growth perspective, choose insights that resonate the most and set a few actionable goals. For example, can you take insights on communication style and interpersonal preferences to understand and improve relationships with friends or family members? If stress triggers are highlighted, develop a plan or coping strategies to manage stress more effectively.
Remember that personality is not fixed. In fact, motivations and values are certain to evolve throughout your life. At each step in your career journey, you may find it beneficial to revisit your personality test results or take the test again to see what has changed.
About JFCS Pittsburgh Youth Services
Jewish Family and Community Services (JFCS) Pittsburgh is committed to supporting youth and young adults achieve their goals and secure a strong future. For more information about education, workforce development, and mental health support services available, please call JFCS Youth Services at (412) 422-7200 or visit www.jfcspgh.org/youth-services.