New Career New Year 2014 – New Career Factors to Consider (part 2)

Posted on January 2, 2014October 26, 2026 by Marjorie Wall Hofer, M.Ed., PCC, PCM

Historical article. The dates, pay figures and employment projections below reflect the article’s original sources. For current occupational information, consult the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook.

There are many reasons why someone looks for a new career. But regardless of the reason, one should always consider three main factors when looking for a new career.

Employment Projections

First of all, it is always prudent to consider employment projections for the potential new career. Look for a new career which is forecasted to grow faster than the average. By doing so, you’ll improve your chances of getting hired, given that you have the right skills, experiences, and education or training. Check out the post on fastest growing industries by 2020. There’s also a post on the fastest growing jobs with low education requirements. The information here is a great place to get started to find data on growing industries.

Which new career is right for me?

However do not choose a new career based on employment statistics alone. People who choose a new career solely on external factors such as employment projections often find that they are not well suited to their new career. As a result, it’s hard to succeed. They don’t get chosen for promotions, get a small bonus pay, and are often the poorest performers. In addition, when lay-offs come around, these employees are usually the first to go. Therefore, it is equally if not more important to consider personal, internal factors when deciding on a new career.

Career Interests

Secondly, finding out how your career interests (what you like) correlate to occupations is the best way to find a career you will enjoy and commit to in the long run. Most new career tests measure only interests. This is fine if you’re in the early stages of your career. High school and college students should definitely complete at least one such test before choosing their college major. On the other hand, for working adults, an interest test can give them “clues” about where to begin their search for their new career. It is, however, typically inadequate as a stand-alone new career test. Why? Because no one chooses a new career based on “likes” alone. This is just a helpful starting point.

Internal Factors

Lastly, similar to the second point, your values, personality, and abilities or aptitudes play a large role as well. Let’s look at abilities or aptitudes first. Oftentimes we “like” careers for which we possess a natural ability. In other words, we enjoy work that we are naturally good at doing. Maybe you’ve had a carer that felt like an uphill battle, where you couldn’t master the techniques and nothing came easy. When this happens, it will be very difficult for you to be successful or happy in this carer. Therefore, it is useful to consider your abilities when choosing a new career. To find out more about these, read the blog post on the career abilities test.

Many people have “demanding” abilities. These abilities unconsciously “demand” expression for themselves in a new career. If these abilities not not expressed, the worker will probably feel discontent or dissatisfied. Over time, this can slide into depression. Should you be one of the individuals with “demanding” abilities (and most have at least one), it is absolutely imperative to take one of the two ability career tests that measure these abilities before choosing a new career.

Your personality also plays a significant role in choosing a career. Personality career tests identify suitable careers based on more than your interests. They identify your career preferences. Career preferences account for the tendencies and predispositions of your working style. Therefore, your natural style of operating in a job is a crucial factor to consider when choosing a career.

Values play a subtle but powerful secondary role. What I mean by this is that you only notice how important your values are when you experience a career dilemma. The two most common career dilemmas are:

Feeling unsure about why a career does not sound perfect even though it should
When you can’t decide between two job opportunities.

Clarifying your values is the step that enables you to sort through the career dilemmas to reach a decision.

It’s a new year; I’m ready for a new career. What’s next?

Get in touch with The Career Profiler to start your journey in understanding yourself. I will help you find the right tests to measure your abilities, personality, and interests. With all of this information we’ll make a career plan guaranteed to get you a job that makes you happy and successful. If you want to get a head start, take a new career test.
Find a career in which you can actually gain employment. Consult any of the blogs I’ve written about finding a career in a growing industry. Don’t forget to combine the results of steps one and two. It is wisest to choose a job you will love and succeed in, as well as one where the likelihood of being hired is highest because it’s a growing industry.

How Career Assessments Approach Career Fit

Posted on December 15, 2011October 28, 2026 by Marjorie Wall Hofer, M.Ed., PCC, PCM

Reviewed October 28, 2026

Career Personality and Career Personality Tests — Part 3

Career assessments examine different parts of the career decision. Personality preferences, interests, natural abilities and interpersonal needs are related, but they are not the same thing. Understanding what an assessment measures helps you choose it for the question you need answered.

It is misleading to divide all career assessments into two simple categories called “type” and “trait” and then place interests, abilities and values beneath them. An assessment’s framework, method and purpose each matter.

MBTI: personality preferences

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator draws on Jung’s theory of psychological types. MBTI Step I describes four preference pairs concerning how you direct attention, take in information, make decisions and approach the outer world. Their combinations produce the familiar four-letter types. Step II adds detail through 20 facets within those pairs.

For career direction, the appropriate MBTI career report connects personality preferences with fields, work environments and occupations to explore. Other reports support communication, teamwork and leadership development. A personality preference is not a measure of ability, competence or experience. The publisher explains what MBTI does and does not measure.

Holland’s RIASEC: interests and work environments

John Holland’s framework describes six vocational themes: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising and Conventional—often shortened to RIASEC. It considers the relationship between a person’s interests and corresponding work environments.

The Strong Interest Inventory and Self-Directed Search both use Holland’s framework, but their reports organize and develop the information differently. SDS provides a code and resources for exploring occupations and education. Strong provides broader themes, more specific interest areas, occupation comparisons and additional report-dependent guidance. Both have research behind them; report depth and interpretation services are important distinctions when choosing.

Holland’s work uses the language of vocational personality. That terminology does not mean that Strong or SDS measures the same personal-style preferences as MBTI. In this series, I distinguish an interest assessment from a personality-style assessment so you can see what each contributes. See the SDS publisher’s description and the Strong publisher’s explanation of combining Strong with MBTI.

Highlands: performance-based ability assessment

The Highlands Ability Battery uses work-sample tasks to assess natural abilities. Rather than relying only on your opinion of what you do well, its performance-based exercises provide another perspective on how you solve problems and work with information.

Highlands distinguishes personal style, driving abilities, specialized abilities and vocabulary. Its vocabulary component reflects acquired knowledge rather than a natural ability. Its personal-style information does not turn the whole battery into an MBTI-style personality assessment.

Driving abilities help explain the work functions that need expression. Combinations of findings can illuminate problem solving, communication and ways of contributing. High, middle and low results all have meaning; a profile is not a contest to score highly on every measure. Read the Highlands explanation of driving abilities.

An ability profile also differs from a record of learned skills. You may have natural potential for particular tasks and still need training and experience to perform a specific job. Your interests and preferred work style must be considered too.

Behavior, relationships and career development

DISC-style instruments examine behavioral tendencies and can support conversations about communication, teamwork and leadership. Different publishers offer different products, so the specific model, graphs and report must be checked. A development report need not supply occupation lists to be useful.

FIRO examines interpersonal needs and behavior, adding a different perspective on relationships at work. Values assessments and tools such as Career Anchors help clarify what matters in career choices and development. These tools can inform a career profile without being treated as interchangeable personality or aptitude tests. See the FIRO publisher’s explanation.

How are the findings combined?

Suppose you enjoy healthcare, show abilities suited to organizing complex information, and prefer work with substantial interaction. The combination gives us more to investigate than any one finding. We still need to examine the actual duties, training, work setting and practical requirements of the roles you are considering.

Sometimes the assessments point in different directions. That is useful information to discuss. Consultation helps us understand the differences, identify suitable work functions and examine ways to meet your needs within a career and your wider life.

Through your completed profile and consultations, you will know the careers in which you can achieve success and satisfaction—and what those careers need to offer you.

Choose your profile package

You begin by buying and completing your chosen package. Each assessment includes consultation, with video interpretation followed by consultation or consultations alone as specified by the package. Marjorie Wall Hofer is your consultant when you come through The Career Profiler.

Decide your next step at the final profile consultation. Targeting or Landing, if you choose either afterward, involves further coaching sessions with Marjorie.

Find My Profile Package, or book a free 30-minute consultation to clarify the process before purchasing.

The Career Profiler owns TestEts, where assessment and package purchases take place.

Success Story: Dream Career Starts in Career Reality

Posted on November 30, 2011October 26, 2026 by Marjorie Wall Hofer, M.Ed., PCC, PCM

Career Success Story #3

Here’s another story from a former client who came to me for help. If you are already on your way to your dream career but feel stuck, this is the lesson to learn. To achieve your future dream, focus on the present reality! The Career Profiler can help you stay motivated, focused, and working towards your career goals.

“I couldn’t seem to get my career jump-started. I was stuck had a job that bored me and was desperate to escape. Then I finally decided to work with The Career Profiler. We began by identifying my talents through some career tests to find my dream career – the job I’d love doing most. Then we formulated a career strategy to move towards my dream career.

However, I continued to be frustrated by indecision – re-analyzing and perfecting the career choice. The Career Profiler applied her career coaching expertise to help me understand that dream careers begin in the present – in reality. Once I stopped struggling with and resisting my present circumstances, I was able to focus on my career search. And that’s when career opportunities showed up.

I am so thrilled to finally be working in a fulfilling and challenging career. It uses my talents and captivates my interests. I love what I do now and I can finally see the beginnings of my dream career becoming a reality for me in the future. I learned this career secret: Act and move forward in the present career situation – don’t be immobilized by the grandeur of the dream.” Keith M.