Selecting your career path can be one of the most important decisions you are faced with. Having a clear picture of your interests will help reduce the stresses involved with making this choice, by focusing your options on what truly excites you. There are tools that can assist with providing this focus and one which has shown to be successful for many years is the Strong Interest Inventory Assessment. This interest-based test not only narrows your options, it also assists with creating a goal-oriented plan for achieving success and happiness in your dream career.
The Strong Interest Inventory assessment was released in 1927 and created by E.K Strong. This test was the first of its kind and has been developed and revised for validity and reliability over nearly a century of research. It was based on studies derived from psychologist John Holland’s Theory of Career Choice. Holland suggests that people tend to enjoy their career more when they are surrounded by others who have similar interests as theirs. He suggested that people can be categorized into 6 different types: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, or Conventional. These types are commonly known as the RIASEC model. Using information gathered about each type, the Strong Interest Inventory can then suggest careers that coincide with each category selected by an individual’s interest patterns.
For example, a person who scores high as an Enterprising type may have chosen interests in risk-taking, debate, social environments, and the preference to take lead, among many others. Once your RAISEC score has been identified you can use it to find careers where others who have those same interests tend to thrive. For instance, other Enterprising personality types have stated to find success, happiness and longevity in careers such as Realty, Management, or Law. Moreover, your RAISEC score can be used at the powerful O*Net search engine where thousands of occupational options are updated frequently in order to stay versed in our ever-changing world of technology and innovation.
The Strong Interest Inventory assessment doesn’t stop at narrowing your career options. It also provides hobbies you may enjoy, organizations you may want to consider, potential skills you may possess, values you may have, learning environments that you may tend to enjoy, your leadership style, your interests with group activities or projects, and more! This tool provides action steps for achieving your goals and outgoing links to other resources you may find useful during your process of building your future. In addition, this assessment has a variety of reporting options for multiple different uses, such as the Strong College Edition, the Strong Interpretive Report, the Strong Skills Confidence Report, and even combination reports with the equally renowned Myers Briggs Type Indicator.
It is clear that the Strong Interest Inventory career assessment tool can be a valuable asset to your journey to finding the field of your dreams. The information reported from your interest patterns is bound to line you up with others who possess the same values and goal structures you may have and when we walk the same path together, we are destined to achieve more!
