Assessments, from heavily researched personality tests to the scores of instruments that measure “personal styles” in some manner, are praised by publishers and criticized by a variety of sources including academics. In addition, I’ve recently seen an article providing “tips” on how to take these types of tests. I will first admit that I am a firm supporter of testing if done correctly and used the right way in the right situations. I’ve taken scores of “assessments,” administered hundreds in a variety of settings, and completed graduate level education in psychological testing.
While I’ve always been sensitive to articles criticizing testing, I was recently piqued by an article challenging the Myers-Briggs (MBTI) assessment on three points:
The assessment “puts you in a box,” labeling as a particular set of letters, e.g., ENTJ
The assessment purports to “guide to a perfect career.”
These criticisms have also been applied to the dozens of other “style-type” assessments that are essentially based on the same core dynamic of the ancient “four temperaments” and the personality theory of Alfred Jung. I believe these three criticisms are significantly missing the mark. A more valid criticism is the fact that there are dozens of different assessments claiming to be significantly different from one another when in reality they measure the same basic four elements.
Low Reliability Or Situational?
I’ll begin to address the low-reliability argument with a particular example. For several years, I worked with a particular version of an assessment that measured the four basic styles and during that time I completed the test personally at least twenty times. The results were always the same, within one or two points. My dominant style was always the same. Then, as part of an international training program in England, I administered the test to 200 plus participants and the staff of presenters I was supervising. I took the test again myself – and surprisingly came up with significantly different results. Contemplating this, and discussing it with a close colleague who was working with me on this project, we quickly realized that all of the circumstances were different. My task responsibilities for this particular program, even the physical setting, put me in a very different “role” – one perfectly represented by the style profile I’d just completed. The point is simple: personal “style” is to a major degree situational. My mother demonstrated a completely different style at home than she did at work. Scores of my workshop participants have reported their spouses or children scoring them differently than the role they perform at work.
Deeper Scores Not Labels
The second criticism represents the importance of any assessment being used correctly. Yes, the Myers-Briggs labels a person using a combination of the four elements. However, the criticism that this is an absolute, or black and white, category is false. Almost all these types of assessments calculate scores that indicate the strength of a particular style. Many will show a graphical plot that indicates the strengths of the scores. A colleague of mine recently completed the MBTI under my direction. His profile states that he is INTJ (Introverted-Intuition-Thinking-Judging). However, his detailed report reveals that, on two of these scales, his “preference” is only “slight,” less than five points on a 30 point scale. On another the “preference” is only “moderate,” seven points on the scale. Only one of the elements is “very clear,” 27 points on the 30 point scale. So a real understanding of my colleague’s profile is not that he is simply an INTJ – it is a much finer interpretation of what these scores really mean. This is why assessments should be administered and interpreted by a professional.
Not A “Guide To A Perfect Career”
From long before even my high school days decades ago, assessments intended to provide career information have been misunderstood. Unfortunately, this misunderstanding survives today. Even more unfortunately, it is often due, not to the design or purposes of the assessment itself, but to poor application by the organization or test administrator. When the printout of an assessment is simply handed out to students, like it was done for me, with no guidance or individual discussion, it heightens the danger of the “this is what it tells me to do” error. Whenever I sit down to discuss a “career” report based on the Myers-Briggs, or any other career interest type interpretation, I always issue a strong disclaimer that this information does not “tell you what to do.” The Myers-Briggs Career Report includes a strong clarification of this point of the first page of the report: “This report is only one source of information. When choosing a career or contemplating a career change, you must also consider your abilities and skills, your occupational and leisure interests, and your values and goals. You will also need information about specific tasks involved in different occupations, as well as current career opportunities.”
Conclusion
Although frustrating at times, I accept criticism of psychological assessments as part of a mostly valid process and too often the marketing driven process of competition. In reality, there are many versions of this type of assessments that claim to measure style with only a few questions and then state results too strongly. However, when the criticisms themselves are too simply stated or incorrect, it creates a risk that the valuable information provided by these instruments will not be available to career seekers who may be supported by the guidance.
This post was originally published on an earlier date.Disclosure: This post is sponsored by a Work It Daily-approved expert. You can learn more about expert posts here.Photo Credit: Shutterstock
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.