Honey Mag

What is my purpose and what should I do with my life? More than likely this is a question that many dissatisfied workers across America ask themselves at some point. Think about it, you probably spend 50 percent of your waking hours at work which is even more of a reason that you should like your job.

For over 90 years, a company called The Conference Board has created and disseminated knowledge about management and the marketplace to help businesses strengthen their performance and better serve society. In the 2009 edition of an annual job satisfaction survey they conducted, only 45 percent of Americans said they were satisfied with their jobs, which is a marked drop from the more than 61 percent who said they were satisfied in 1987.

Discovering a career path that you love is easy! It may not seem easy but it is. The signs are usually all around you but you probably just haven’t picked up on them. Lets say you work as an accountant but you love painting. In fact you paint during the week, on weekends, and even decided to find a painters meet up group in your area. Yet day in and day out you ask yourself what career you should take? Or lets say you work in a clothing store but are secretly obsessed with ancient history. You are always the first one at a new museum exhibition and have tons of books on the subject. Yet you still can’t figure out what you should be doing when the answer is already there. The key is to pay attention to the things you are naturally drawn to and listen to your instinct…let it guide you. In addition to becoming more conscious of the things you like, you may also want to try a career aptitude test.

Career aptitude tests use a series of personal and career related questions to help you figure out your strengths and career preferences. They will usually ask about some of your interests, your people skills, your work style etc. After you have answered all of the questions the test then matches your answers with a database of careers. This is a great way to enhance your current career that you love or expose you to a list of careers you may have never even thought about.

It is also important to find a test from a reputable company. Some of them are free but many of the good ones charge a small fee. If you have done your research on the company then the small fee is nothing compared to the possible benefits. When trying to figure out the right company to choose from, pick one that has scientific proof that it works or a company that can prove that their tests have been used by many people.