Article written by Bridget Moncado
People are happier and most productive when their career choice matches their personality. According to recent research, there are six key categories that define the modern worker. These six types are Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. The theory classifies people into their respective categories by evaluating how a person approaches life situations — and most people fall into more than one category. It should also be noted that people with the same personality type tend to work best with others of their type, but certain types work best alone or with specific groups over others.
The Six Personality Types:
Realistic (Doer)
Someone who likes to work mainly with their hands by making and fixing things, assembling or operating equipment. They sometimes prefer working outdoors and find joy with a career choice that performs varying types of manual labour.
Investigative (Thinker)
The most analytical of the six personalities, this group loves to study and solve math or science-related problems. They aren’t skilled negotiators but work best in a career choice that lets them work with others who are grounded. They see themselves as precise and intellectual and like to be acknowledged for their achievements.
Artistic (Creator)
This group of individuals values others who are expressive and independent. They naturally admire the creative arts including writing and music. They see themselves as expressive and original and prefer to avoid a career choice that requires highly ordered or repetitive activities. They enjoy working in groups but only if they are allowed expressive freedom and are encouraged to share their ideas.
Social (Helper)
These people particularly value providing services for others and enjoy a career choice that enables them to work closely with people. Their ideal working conditions are with other people who are also trustworthy, helpful, and show appreciation.
Enterprising (Persuader)
Most likely to lead and persuade, this group was born to sell and tends to value business or politics. They see themselves as being social and ambitious and these folks really have the skill for getting a group of people to lean a certain way. They are careful to avoid people who are too scientific and analytical but are definitely drawn to a career choice where working in groups is common.
Conventional (Organizer)
A member of this group would probably prefer a career choice where they can work with numbers, records, or machines. They enjoy repetitive tasks done in an orderly fashion and like to avoid ambiguous activities. They see themselves as organized and good at following directions. They value success in business and enjoy working with other people, but do best in small, systematic groups where they know their responsibilities.
To sum it all up…
When planning their office’s environment, workplace managers should consider the variance in career choices these six categories tend to enjoy working in. Artistic and Enterprising individuals are probably more drawn to a career choice in marketing and sales, and would likely enjoy interacting if grouped together. Investigative and Realistic groups need space to work alone, while Conventional and Social departments should be placed where they’ll have lots of interaction with people and get opportunities to help others. Knowing what works best for each personality and career choice is really important — however, the best way to gauge what people want is to ask. During your next office renovation, survey your employees to see what they want to see in the new workplace upgrade.
