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We often hear people telling us to follow our heart or our passion when it comes to finding the right career path. But more and more experts are saying we should be trying to match our personality or character traits to the roles we should be pursuing.
According to American psychologist and researcher John Holland people are happier and most productive when they are placed into jobs that match their personality. His research suggested that people work best when paired with jobs that not only utilise their strengths but are then tailored to how they work best, resulting in more work getting done and higher quality work.
The Six Personality Types according to Dr. Holland are:
Realistic (Doer)
People who like to know how things work and enjoy working with their hands. Often enjoy the outdoors and doing practical things like manual labour.
Occupations with a realistic environment:
- Carpenter
- Electrician
- Mechanic
Artistic (Creator)
This group are expressive and creative and don’t gel well with highly ordered or repetitive activities. They thrive in environments where they are allowed to express themselves openly and are encouraged to share ideas.
Occupations with an artistic environment:
- Graphic Designer
- Book Editor
- Art Teacher
Enterprising (Persuader)
This group love to lead, and were born to sell. They can be social and ambitious, and are masters at getting people on the same page as them.
Occupations with an enterprising environment:
- Sales Manager
- Real Estate Agent
- Hotel Manager
Investigative (Thinker)
Investigative types like to study and analyse. They see themselves as problem solvers and like to be acknowledged for their efforts.
Occupations with an investigative environment:
- Computer Programmer
- Surveyor
- Pharmacist
Social (Helper)
They value looking after others, and enjoy working closely with people. Their ideal working conditions are with other people who are also trustworthy and helpful, and show appreciation.
Occupations with a social environment:
- Counsellor
- Librarian
- Nurse
Conventional (Organiser)
This group love numbers and don’t mind repetitive tasks. They see themselves as organised and are good at following directions. They value success in business, and thrive in small, systematic groups where they know their responsibilities.
Occupations with a conventional environment:
- Secretary
- Bank Teller
- Postie
You can take the Holland personality test here to see which group you fit into, and which other traits you might have.
At Ryan we use psychometric personality tests to find the right fit for our candidates. It’s one of the reasons our people last much longer in their roles, and why we can offer our clients a 4 month placement guarantee.
