As for mid-career individuals contemplating a change, testing can help frame a person's skills, values, and interests in ways that shed new light on them. It is, however, unlikely that testing will uncover a career-related dimension of personality or experience that will come as a discovery or surprise.

1. Career Testing Washington DC
Career testing is a big industry, and many a career advisor
DC relies heavily on such testing to guide clients as they
explore possible career paths. Career tests come in many
shapes and sizes. Perhaps the most widely used one is
Myers-Briggs. In a previous post, I expressed significant
reservations about Myers-Briggs' value as a guide for people
looking to switch careers Myers-Briggs sorts people into one
of sixteen categories, and then provides a list of suggested
careers for people in each of the categories. Back when I
took the test I was given a list of eighty (!) career
possibilities.

2. Career Coach Jim Weinstein
A list of career options by career coach DC can provide
valuable stimulus, allowing clients to expand their vistas,
and if a career test is used in that way I fully endorse it.
Unfortunately, too many clients investigating career
options (and too many career consultants who
administer these tests) look to them for concrete
answers rather than for possible paths to explore. All of
the companies, organizations, and websites offering
career testing tout the value of their tests, but in fact,
there is virtually no research that examines the track
record of career testing as an artifact able to predict
career satisfaction and / or success.

3. So, if career testing isn't terribly accurate as a predictor,
why is it so universally popular? I think the answer is a
fairly simple one: choosing a new career is a
monumental, life-altering decision, and a highly complex
one. It's also one that is best undertaken over time
through a process of self-reflection, conversations with
people who know the person who is seeking to select a
career path or make a change, research, networking,
etc. A career test provides a quick, relatively definitive
set of answers - a seeming shortcut. But if the shortcut is
to a destination that isn't write it's not a terribly valuable
shortcut.

4. Career Advisor
Rutgers University Career Services expresses my
philosophy well as it applies to people just beginning
their career path: "Your results are not likely to provide a
final academic or career choice, but may help you
discover more about the values you think are important.
This information could be shared with your advisors,
parents, professors, and/or career advisor DC to help
brainstorm potential college majors and career options".

5. As for mid-career individuals contemplating a change,
testing can help frame a person's skills, values, and
interests in ways that shed new light on them. It is,
however, unlikely that testing will uncover a careerrelated dimension of personality or experience that will
come as a discovery or surprise. I couldn't help but
chuckle when I read one of three testimonials listed on
what is purported to be the most popular free career
test, offered on Livecareer.com, which claims to have
administered five million tests. Here it is:

6. "LiveCareer made me reconsider my future plans and
gave me a deeper vocational insight. It made me move
in a slightly different direction educationally than I
originally planned to." - Sam

7. Less than a ringing endorsement, I'd say.
Fortunately there are many free tests that can be found
on-line that will adequately serve the purpose of
suggesting possibilities. One of the best is the VIA
Signature Strengths test, featured on famous
psychologist Dr. Martin Seligman's website:

8. I encourage a number of clients to take this test, as it
provides fodder and stimulation for the kinds of in-depth
conversations that are more likely to shed light on viable
career possibilities than is testing alone. In my
experience, it is in those conversation that little
anecdotes emerge that point the way to fruitful career
choices.

9. Thank You
Jim Weinstein
DCLifeCounseling.com

10. Thank You
Jim Weinstein
DCLifeCounseling.com