BRIGHT IDEA
Size Yourself Up!
The
subject that you know the most about is YOU!
Organize YOUR information by
taking aptitude tests,
considering your interests and passions,
identifying those fields you dislike,
listening to comments about you made by others,
thinking about your values, etc...
J. Rock
Course:
You 101
Judy
Rock
Everyday
from childhood,
we are "judged" and receive feedback about our school or job
performance through grades, evaluations, and comments. Many of us have taken local
assessments to compare ourselves or school to other individuals or
schools. As scores and information come at us, we form opinions
about ourselves,
usually good ones if the numbers and words are positive.
Sometimes
we are required to take achievement, aptitude, interest, or values
assessments. Sometimes we choose to get additional personal
feedback. No matter what our motivation, we continuously obtain important
facts about ourselves.
The ACT (American College Test) program, which spans 8th grade through
adulthood, targets achievement and career areas. Students in 8th and
9th grades are eligible to take EXPLORE which includes the Uniact Interest
Inventory; 10th graders take PLAN; 11th and 12th graders take the
ACT
assessment. Work
Keys, a career assessment, is administered from 9th
grade through adulthood. This instrument compares one's job skills
preparation to job requirements in various areas such as English
competency, information gathering, and teamwork.
In addition to paper and pencil assessments, some "tests" can be
taken on the computer. One such aptitude, interest, and values
assessment is DISCOVER,
another ACT product, for grades 10 and up. Individuals are able to
match their characteristics to career clusters and search for schools
nationwide which offer appropriate training opportunities.
Offered through the military to individuals grades 10 through adulthood is
ASVAB (Armed
Services Vocational Aptitude Battery), which is based upon Holland's
Self-Directed Search. While this instrument is used to place
individuals in military positions, one can take this test with no
obligation to enlist and receive information about civilian careers.
In addition to these instruments, individuals sometimes seek direction
from private career counseling companies. Costs vary from company to
company. Listed below are a few examples of such services.
Once
an individual receives the results from a variety of sources, it is
important to study them and take appropriate steps to make acceptable
options a reality. This includes researching the employment outlook
in a selected field and seeking additional training.
How
About Your Own Team of Career Counselors? They're Closer Than You Think! by Barbara
Reinhold
Monster Career Coach
On every message board I've ever responded to, in
every career counseling session I've ever had, in almost every seminar
I've ever led, the same question has surfaced: How can I tell what I'd be
really good at?
It's a little ironic, but when it comes to career
possibilities (your first, your next or your last) sometimes the very last
person to have a clear view of yourself is none other than you. And a
positive, realistic picture of your strengths, talents, temperament and
less-developed places is exactly what you need to make your next career
move.
Here's the good news: You probably have a cadre
of free career counselors within earshot or calling range, anytime you
want to listen to what they have to say. Your friends, selected family
members, co-workers, coaches, clerics and supervisors have seen you in
action enough to have some ideas about how and where you might do really
good work. So make a list of at least 10 people you think you could
approach, and set to work asking them the following simple questions:
If I could magically have whatever skills,
experience or training I would need, what kinds of work could you see
me doing well and enjoying?
Why? What about me would make me good at those
things?
Do you know anybody else doing that work?
If yes, would you be willing to set me up with
an information interview with that person?
As you can imagine, this is a terrific way to
begin making a list of possible fields or jobs for you, and, in many
cases, a chance to build a list of contacts for eventual information
interviews. Once you have some leads-and these leads are based on the best
data in the world: what people think of you-then you're set to begin doing
your research. You can research various fields and organizations on the
web, of course, so you haven't paid a penny yet for career counselors or
career libraries.
For a quick path to information about various
careers, you can go to the Smith
College Career Development Office page and then click on the Research
button. That will take you to links with information about a wide variety
of career fields and training opportunities.
So start here. Let the people who know you best
give you some leads tailored to what they know about you. Then take your
questions about those fields to your favorite career
expert here on Monster. That will give them and you something concrete
to work with. Happy exploring!
Check
out aol
discover
your perfect career quiz
This
system for understanding people called Personality Type
is based on the work of Swiss psychologist Carl Jung and
two American women, Katharine Briggs and Isabel Briggs
Myers, creators of The Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)®
. Over the past 40 years, many millions of people have
been introduced to Type through their jobs, churches or
synagogues, counselors or books. Now it's your turn to
get turned on to this powerful tool. But first, you have
to figure out your Type.
You
can do that now by taking the quick, easy and fun
Discover Your Perfect Career Quiz. First, read the
descriptions of the four "dimensions" or
aspects of Type below, and choose which characteristics
in each pair describe you best (for example, Extravert
OR Introvert). Your personality type is made up of your
natural "preference" for each of these four
dimensions. Take our quiz and discover your perfect
career now!
1.
Where
is your energy naturally directed?
Extraverts'
energy is directed primarily outward, towards people and
things outside of themselves. Introverts' energy is
primarily directed inward, towards their own thoughts,
perceptions and reactions. Therefore, Extraverts tend to
be more naturally active, expressive, social and
interested in many things, whereas Introverts tend to be
more reserved, private, cautious and interested in fewer
interactions, but with greater depth and focus.
Extraverts
often:
have
high energy
talk
a lot
think
out loud
like
to be around people a lot
are
easily distracted
Introverts
often:
have
quiet energy
talk
less
think
before they act
are
comfortable spending time alone
have
good concentration
Extravert (E) or
Introvert (I)
2.
What
kind of information do you naturally notice and
remember?
Sensors
notice the facts, details and realities of the world
around them whereas Intuitives are more interested in
connections and relationships between facts as well as
the meaning or possibilities of the information. Sensors
tend to be practical and literal people, who trust past
experience and often have good common sense. Intuitives
tend to be imaginative, theoretical people who trust
their hunches and pride themselves on their creativity.
Sensors
often:
admire
practicality
focus
on the facts and specifics
have
straightforward speech
are
more realistic; see what is
are
more present-oriented
Intuitives
often:
admire
creativity
focus
on ideas and the big picture
have
roundabout thoughts
are
more imaginative; see possibilities
are
more future-oriented
Sensor (S) or
Intuitive (N)
3.
How
do you decide or come to conclusions?
Thinkers
make decisions based primarily on objective and
impersonal criteria -- what makes the most sense and
what is logical. Feelers make decisions based primarily
on their personal values and how they feel about the
choices. So, Thinkers tend to be cool, analytical, and
are convinced by logical reasoning. Feelers tend to be
sensitive, empathetic, and are compelled by extenuating
circumstances and a constant search for harmony.
Thinkers
often:
are
cool and reserved
are
objective
are
honest and direct
are
naturally critical
are
motivated by achievement
Feelers
often:
are
warm and friendly
get
their feelings hurt easily
are
sensitive and diplomatic
try
hard to please others
are
motivated by being appreciated
Thinker (T) or
Feeler (F)
4.
What
kind of environment makes you the most comfortable?
Judgers
prefer a structured, ordered and fairly predictable
environment, where they can make decisions and have
things settled. Perceivers prefer to experience as much
of the world as possible, so they like to keep their
options open and are most comfortable adapting. So
Judgers tend to be organized and productive while
Perceivers tend to be flexible, curious and
nonconforming.
Judgers
often:
are
serious and formal
are
time-conscious
like
to make plans
work
first, play later
like
to finish projects best
Perceivers
often:
are
playful and casual
are
unaware of time or late
like
to wait-and-see
play
first, work later
like
to start projects best
Judger (J) or
Perceiver (P)
Note:
If the Type profile you are about to read does not
accurately describe you, come back to this quiz and
select the opposite characteristic in the area/areas in
which you may have been unsure. Then, read the new
profile and see if it describes you better. For some
people, this process simply takes a little longer than
it does for others.
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