Five Ways to Master the Pre-Employment Personality Test

The hiring process has become more and more competitive with each passing year. There are an increasing number of steps involved in getting your dream job. Gone are the days of a simple job interview. Today, a popular practice among employers is using personality tests as a screening tool. Personality tests help companies to find the most suitable candidate for an open position. Employers want to see how well you work with others and if you fit in with the company’s corporate culture.

Here is an inside tip: employers assume you don’t know anything about personality tests. They believe that you will come into the exam unaware and answer the questions instinctively. The problem is, answering randomly without proper preparation can paint a disorganized personality profile. I am here to outline some helpful hints for mastering the pre-employment personality assessment.

Keep It Strictly Business

Keep in mind that all the personality questions you will be asked are focused on your typical behavior in the workplace. This means you must ensure you are answering every question professionally. Do not factor in your personal opinion.

Strike a Balance

Personality tests are usually untimed. So, what does this mean for you? Make sure you work at a steady pace, but don’t spend too much time on any one question. Overthinking a question can ruin your test-taking groove. Personality tests are usually lengthy, so you want to make sure you don’t tire yourself out.

Prepare in Advance

Gather as much information as you can about the interview process before going down in person. Ask which personality test you might face. This will allow you to familiarize yourself with the directions and the types of questions you will encounter on exam day. Review and take practice tests at home. The bottom line is that stress can greatly affect the results of your personality assessment. Thus, you want to be as a cool as a cucumber on test day. Advance preparation can ensure this. Check out this free practice test to get a picture of what to expect.

Try Not to Overanalyze

I know what you’re thinking—easier said than done. It is best when taking a personality test not to read too much into the questions. Avoid getting stuck on trying to figure out what the test is asking. If you prepare in advance, you will easily be able to parse out the different types of questions. This will ensure that on test day you don’t get stuck looking too deeply into any one question.

Be a Strong Decision Maker 

When you answer the personality test questions, try not to respond with the “I don’t know” option more than five times. It makes you seem indecisive. You may be tempted to answer questions in various ways, to show you are a well-rounded person. Fight that temptation! Make sure you are consistent in your responses. Research shows that employers across various professions are looking for confident candidates.

This article was contributed by Jennifer Feldman. She is a speech and language expert and blogger at JobTestPrep. She specializes in writing about the employment hiring process.  JobTestPrep is a market leader in preparation for job assessment exams. It has helped more than 500,000 people achieve their academic and career goals.

How to Choose a Career That Suits You Best

How much do you know about yourself? If you plan to live a highly satisfying work life and enjoy your work, you should choose a career that suits you best. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who end up choosing the wrong career and frustrate themselves in the long run. Being in the wrong line of work doesn’t only ruin your professional life, but it harms your personal life as well.

So, it’s crucial to choose the right career.

But how do you choose the right career? There are a number of things that you should take into consideration to pick a career that suits you best. A lot of people end up choosing the wrong careers due to a lack of appropriate guidance and advice. You shouldn’t be one of them.

Given below are some important tips or guidelines that you should follow to choose the right career and be happy for the rest of your life.

Know Your Strengths

Every one of us has some strengths – and some weaknesses. The point is to find out what you are really good at. Are you good at telling stories? Do you find it easy to coach other writers? Do you love teaching students? There must be something that you feel passionate about and are good at doing. You need to find out what those skills and strengths are.

Create a list of skills that you have, and then pick the strongest skills from that list. Consult your friends or family for an outer perspective. If you play by your strengths, you’ll enjoy a great professional life.

Discover Your Personality Type

You might have heard about Myers-Briggs. It’s an introspective self-report questionnaire which helps you find out what type of personality you have. Different persons have different types of personalities; someone could be an introvert and someone else could be an extrovert. By knowing your personality type, you’ll be able to find out what type of work environment will suit you best.

Take a Career Test

If you are confused deciding which career is right for you, you can also go for a career test. Typically, a career test presents you with a set of questions which you need to answer in the given time-frame. A career test is aimed at assessing your skills and strengths and then suggest a career that is a good match. Once you have finished answering all the questions, you’ll be provided with 2-3 career options that suit you best and promise a satisfying life.

On the internet, you’ll find a number of career tests that you can complete within a few minutes. Many of them are free.

Seek Advice from Others

No matter where you live, you’ll always have people who are already employed, expert in a particular field or have more professional experience. Feel free to get in touch with these people and talk about your aspirations. Gather information about different occupations and industries. Ask them for advice that you can use for choosing a career that’s best for you.

Work as an Intern

Internships provide you with an excellent opportunity to lay the foundation of your career. The experience of actually working in the real world is something that you should never ignore. Working as an intern helps you find out how being in a particular job feels like, whether the work environment is up to your taste and how you get along with people in the workplace.

Internships are also highly recommended for building connections with professionals and gaining work experience that can add extra weight to a resume. An internship can be either paid or unpaid.