Tag: MBTI

Understanding Personality Assessments

Article by Belinda Fuller

Understanding Personality Assessments - MBTI AssessmentAs one of the most widely used personality assessments in the world, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®) assessment tool is based on more than 50 years research. Through a series of questions, the MBTI tool assesses individual personality preferences and assigns one of 16 different personality types based on four scales which can be helpful in guiding training, personal development and career choices.

Just how can the knowledge of your personality type help with your career development? By taking the MBTI assessment, your personality preferences are assessed based on the theory that everyone has a primary mode of operation within four major categories:

1. Energy Flow – where you are either Extraverted (energised by the outside world of people, activity and things) or Introverted (energised by the inner world of thoughts, feelings and reflections).

2. How we gather information – where you are either Sensing (focused on information gathered through the five senses) or Intuitive (you look for patterns, meanings and possibilities in the information you receive).

3. Decision Making – where you either have a preference for Thinking (making decisions based on objective facts and principles) or Feeling (making decisions based on personal values and feelings).

4. Basic day-to-day lifestyle preferences – where you are either Judging (preferring a more planned and structured lifestyle) or Perceiving (preferring a more flexible and spontaneous lifestyle).

We all use one mode of operation within each category more easily, naturally and frequently than the other so we are categorised as “preferring” that function. The combination of our four preferences then defines our personality type. Through these combinations, there are 16 different personality categories.

Armed with the information, you can learn a lot about your natural strengths and weaknesses; as well as understanding your personality type’s preferred work tasks, ideal work environment, leadership style, learning style, communication method, and problem solving approach. Through identifying the areas that you value, you can start to develop strategies that may lead to improving your overall job satisfaction. By understanding your defined personality type, you can also start to analyse the most and least popular career choices for that type and hopefully pick a career that will reward and fulfil you well into the future.

While personality profiling via the MBTI tool or other assessment tools should not be used as the only guide to your perfect job, it can help. However, as with all theories, there are exceptions! Some people don’t fall strictly into one specific category; and as we develop, grow and have exposure to a range of situations, we learn to function outside of our ‘natural’ tendencies.

By taking the MBTI assessment, you can gain an insight into the careers that your personality type is most suited to, as well as looking at your current skills, qualifications and areas of expertise and matching those to some potential areas of interest. If nothing else, a better understanding of your personality may just contribute to helping you increase your job satisfaction in your current role.

Are you interested in understanding your personality type? If so, please see our Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Assessment service.

Want to Change Careers? Here is a Step by Step Plan

Article by Belinda Fuller

While we know many people go through the process, it’s difficult to estimate how common changing careers is, or in fact, how many careers, on average we go through during our lifetime. A job for life is a thing of the past, however changing careers is still a daunting thought for many people. If you’re feeling like you need a change but you’re not sure where to start, follow this step by step plan to get you moving in the right direction.

  • STEP 1 – Why – think about why you want a career change – is it really your career you need to change or is it just your job that doesn’t satisfy you? Often people are good at what they do, but the company they work for is not a good fit. It’s important to understand where your issues lie before embarking on a full career change. If it’s the job you dislike, then perhaps a similar job in a different industry or environment would make you happier. If you dislike certain aspects of your job, there might be an opportunity to diversify and take on a role with slightly different responsibilities.
  • STEP 2 – What – once you have decided that you do want to change careers, you need to think about what direction you’d like to pursue. If you have no idea, you should think about what you enjoy doing as well as what you’re good at. List your current skills, and think about how you might be able to transfer those to a different area. Many people who come to us for career counselling don’t know what direction they want to head in. They want advice or confirmation that their interest in changing careers is valid and ideas on what direction to take. At this point, it’s important to involve other people – professionals, family, work colleagues you can trust – to help you clarify direction. You could also consider taking a career assessment to better understand your interests, values and personality and help you narrow down your choices.
  • STEP 3 – How – from the overview you’ve developed, look at how you can make a change. Research different careers and highlight areas that best suit you and your interests. There are several online resources that might help here. Once you’ve narrowed down your options again, look at job search sites like Seek and MyCareer and identify what experience, knowledge, skills and qualifications you need to succeed.
  • STEP 4 – When – start making a plan. You may have a lot to consider before deciding when to make your transition, including financial, family and study considerations. If you need to study, research providers and decide whether you can complete some study part-time while still working. Find out if there is an opportunity for volunteer work to help gain experience. Make a plan that will get you to where you need to be.

Changing careers can be a very rewarding experience, but will probably require strong commitment and activity from you. It may involve a lot of hard work – especially if you have to undertake additional training or study to achieve a required qualification. Take into consideration all the points mentioned above and start planning for a successful career change today.

If you would like assistance from a Career Coach with identifying areas for a career change, see our career counselling services. If you’re interested in discovering your personality type, see our Myers Briggs personality testing.

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