Do you wonder if you have ‘what it takes’ to succeed in business? Have you exhausted your list of friends, relatives, and critics, each of which has their part of your interest at heart? Would you like to finally, once and for all, discover the potential you have and how to direct that potential? Here’s the answer!

CAREER PLANNING
You can now obtain inexpensive professional help in making the big decision by using one of the emerging career planning firms. Entrepreneurship still requires that need for independence and a willingness to take risks, but discovering whether you have the other attributes for success can now be measured. We are seeing the re-emergence of an early 90s type of business designed to help you discover what it is you want out of life, then guiding you in understanding how to use this new information. Many of these firms use the words, 'Career', 'Focus', 'Life', 'Purpose' or something similar in their title.

These new firms are characterized by four criteria:

1. You will be given a series of standard tests, and the results will be interpreted and explained to you in plain words – no buzz words or psychobabble.
2. You will not be psychoanalyzed. In practically every case, the person you talk with will not be a psychiatrist, but a trained analyst.
3. You will be introduced to life choices such as career paths, personal involvement, entrepreneurship, educational choices, and similar activities.
4. You will learn a great deal about yourself, how you function under pressure, your likes and dislikes, and whether you would make a good candidate for entrepreneurship. (Be sure to request this up front!)

There are also two traditional groups which have been around seemingly forever. These firms can perform the same service as the new kids on the block mentioned above, and are often ignored when people like us are looking for answers. They are:

1. Psychological testing laboratories. (Usually accessed through a psychologist or psychiatrist, but available to you directly. Check your yellow pages.)
2. Your local university or state-run vocational schools. (These tests are often free or nearly free to students of the institution.)

You will receive a lot more personal attention from a career firm, but testing at universities and state-run schools can offer additional aids such as reference books on careers, life-style choices, and similar information. We have talked with the testing services at several universities and have found their service available to the public for a nominal fee. Of course it would be nice to know something about what you could learn from these tests, so we asked several ‘testers’ about the typical tests they use and what they indicate. Here are the results.

MYERS-BRIGGS PERSONALITY TEST
This is the basic building block of most career-change analysts, no matter where they come from. This test helps to define how you look at the world, and is a great lens to use to look at the results of the other tests.

KOLB LEARNING STYLE INVENTORY
Some of us learn by observing, some by conceptualizing, some by experimenting, and some only through concrete experiences. Most of us learn using some combination of these, making this test invaluable in helping us understand our personal learning process.

SIXTEEN PERSONALITY PROFILE INDICATOR
This test rates your personality by providing sixteen positive and healthy outlook paths for personal growth.

HOLLAND SELF-DIRECTED SEARCH
This test is an excellent indicator of where you might better fit in the world. It measures and categorizes six attributes: reality (about things), office skills, artistic skills, investigative bent, social interaction (teaching), and enterprising (being in business for yourself). It then shows you jobs where people with your attributes seem to perform effectively.

THOMAS-KILLMAN CONFLICT RESOLUTION PROFILE
Can you change the way you handle conflict? Of course you can! But first, you need to know how you handle conflict right now. This test provides background information absolutely vital to your career.

McBER & ASSOC. MANAGERIAL STYLE QUESTIONNAIRE (MSQ)
There are probably dozens of tests devoted to answering the question of management style, but we have found this one helps you learn why people do what they do when you want them to do something else; and then it provides a guide on how you might change your management style to get the performance you want!

A WORD OF CAUTION
Test results are not determinants, they are indicators. Just because you test one way today does not mean you couldn't test entirely different next year. Use test results to guide you in making choices, not determine what you should do! Your ‘tester’ may suggest other tests based on results from the basic core they offer. Do it. The tests listed above are just a start, and you shouldn’t lock yourself into them as the only test for you.