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Self-assessment is a process by which you learn more about yourself -- what you like, what you don't like, and
how you tend to react to certain situations. Knowing these things can help you determine which occupations and work situations
could be a better fit for you. You may recognize some of these tools if you ever worked with a career counselor or consultant.
There are many varieties of assessment tools, easy measuring a particular facet of you, like your interests, skills,
personality, and values. Self-assessment tools are also either Self-Directed or Requiring Interpretive Assistance.
- Self-Directed means the tool is designed so you can use it and review your results without a licensed or trained
professional interpreting the data for you. Even though they do not require intervention to read the results, you may
still find you have questions. If that is the case, the service offering the tool may offer a way for you to follow-up or
you can turn to our list of counseling associations for help in finding a counselor.
- Tools Requiring Interpretive Assistance mean your results will have to be discussed with a person licensed or trained
in this particular tool so you can understand what the data is saying. The cost of the tool will include this interpretive
assistance in some form.
Sometimes the problem is finding the right tool to help you in a particular situation.
For example, you were just promoted and want to learn how to be a more effective manager. An interest inventory would not
be your best option here, but what would be? Career-Intelligence.com has put together a nice table identifying which assessment tools are best for which learning situations.
Many people talk about their "type" or how they have taken personality tests, but I really think that few understand
the information they have been given. What exactly is "type" and personality and what do they have to do with your job search?
According to the Myers & Briggs Foundation,
"Psychological type describes the different ways people:
- prefer to take in information,
- prefer to make decisions,
- are energized by the outside world or by the inner world, and
- prefer to keep things open or to move towards closure.
These four preferences result in a person's psychological
type, sometimes called personality type. The theory of psychological type says that people with different preferences naturally
have different interests, perspectives, behaviors, and motivations. Awareness of preferences helps people understand and value
others who think and act quite differently."
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