Find your niche p1 - Military Transition - Military Times EDGE

What are you good at? Many veterans have a stock answer to that question, says former Army Capt. Havard Whiles.

“You ask a military guy, what are you good at — they say, ‘I’m a good leader,’” Whiles said. “Well, sure, we’ve been learning to be leaders since we started in uniform. And companies want leaders, but they want other things, too.”

Not sure what “other things” you have to offer an employer? An aptitude test is one way to find out.

Available in a range of formats, from web freebies to professional assessments costing hundreds of dollars, aptitude tests can help you navigate life’s choices by giving you insight into your strengths and weaknesses. Career counselors, recruiters and employers use them, too, to get the same insights and better match job opening to job-seeker.

When Whiles applied for a job at the information management company Iron Mountain, he was asked to take the StrengthsFinder 2.0 assessment, an aptitude test developed by the polling firm Gallup. The results established a higher level of understanding between him and his new employer, he said.

The test illumined one attribute in particular: “I see ‘sense of urgency’ and I say, yeah, that’s me,” said Whiles, an operation manager. “When I see a problem that isn’t done, I can’t just get up and walk away.”

Having that quality spelled out in black and white in his “predictive index,” or assessment, has been helpful: “My manager really does refer back to these documents as we discuss things,” he said. “Then he may be more ready to let me ... take on something with more responsibility, something that needs to get done today.”

Aptitude tests have special value to people changing industries, going from school to work or from a military to a civilian career. Big changes call for high-level perspective, and that’s just what the best tests can give.

Brian McCann, a consultant with Consulting Psychologist Press, publisher of the famous Myers-Briggs personality assessment, offers this advice for getting the most out of a test:

• There are no right or wrong answers. The assessments can only tell you about yourself, so if you try to guess “what they are they looking for,” you’re only cheating yourself.

• Discuss your results with a counselor or trainer. They can help answer the key question: What do I do with this information?

• Tests can help you choose a meaningful career, but the main goal is to help you understand yourself: how you tackle problems, relate to others and make decisions.

Here are a few leading players in the field, all available online.

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is designed to give you a baseline understanding of your own personality, but it also maps personality types to general career areas.

“These are designed for people who are interested in finding themselves not just a job, but a career they can be happy with,” McCann said. The assessment is available through CPP and other vendors online.

Cost: $20-$60, depending on the company generating the report

http://www.cpp.com

Strong Interest Inventory

The Strong Interest Inventory matches your interests against those of some 55,000 employees to gauge your career potential in a given field. The report comes with a free phone consultation.

Cost: $125-$200, depending on the type of report. The $200 package includes an assessment of interpersonal relationship skills.

http://www.discoveryourpersonality.com

Keirsey Temperament Sorter-II

KTS-II sorts career seekers into four “temperament” groups: Artisan, Guardian, Rational or Idealist, and further sifts them into 16 character types. The Career Temperament Report includes advice on career options and suggests potential career matches.

Cost: $19.95

http://www.keirsey.com

Campbell Interest and Skill Survey

This test also compares your interests against those of people already successful in their field, focusing on nearly 60 occupations that require postsecondary education. It recommends vocations as pursue (high interest and high skill), avoid (low interest, low skill), explore (high skill, low interest) and develop (low skill, high interest).

Cost: $18

http://www.profiler.com

StrengthsFinder 2.0

This test identifies certain fixed character attributes, or “Personal Themes,” and a report defines 50 “Ideas for Action” based on your themes. It also offers a plan for setting specific goals for the next week, month and year.

Cost: $24.95 for the book StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath, which includes a code for taking the test online.

http://strengths.gallup.com/