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Personality tests: Power in Self-Awareness
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It is not uncommon these days to see a personality profile or personality assessment at some point in your job search.
After completing an assessment myself, I found out how a company can benefit and save money spent on a bad hire and also how a job seeker can benefit from knowledge of this information.
Discovering your own personality profile may give you power in answering interview questions that you could be asked in advance so you may perform better. They can also help improve your problem solving skills.
When I completed a personality profile to see what all the hype was about, the accuracy was surprising. I completed a DISC theory-based assessment.
Here is a synopsis of how mine came back:
1: Assertive, competitive and direct.
2: Friendly and verbal.
3: Restless and Alert.
4: Firm and Independent.
This is only an overview but the profile went into much more detail. If you take one of these tests, take a look at the entire profile so you can see how an employer could view this information.
Candidate may demonstrate the following:
1: Pro: Appreciate being ranked.
Con: Bossy and could be hard to manage.
2: Pro: Can develop client relationships.
Con: May focus on people and could distract other employees.
3: Pro: Can multi-task.
Con: May bore quickly if not challenged, may be unorganized.
4: Pro: Little need for manager supervision.
Con: Not a team-player.
An interview strategy for anyone armed with this information could be to observe your skills and seek positions that appreciate the pros and are not as concerned with the cons.
You can also use the results to your benefit in an interview situation. The pros demonstrate that this candidate (in this case me) would be good at talking with clients and closing deals, but can get bored quickly in any position and not appreciate authority.
For the Job Seeker, you can understand your weaknesses and explain how you’ve overcome these areas in an interview if asked.
You may find that a personality profile is just what you need to identify your perfect job and help you become the best hire through your self-awareness!
You can find additional information on personality profiles here:
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