An Alternative to Aptitude

Do you find learning style quizzes and aptitude tests boring? Are you unsure of how to answer half of the questions on these tests because you hate school? Well I'm here to give you a new perspective.

Think about your favorite movie or story set in a utopian society. You know, those movies where the members of the society are separated into categories or sections. I'm talking The Giver, The Hunger Games, Divergent, etc. If you were in any of their societies, what would your category be?

Think about Divergent. The society in Divergent was separated into what they call factions. Dauntless, Amity, Erudite, Abnegation, Candor. Each of these factions represents a personality trait: bravery, selflessness, intelligence, etc. Take a moment to analyze what category you would fit into if you were a character in Divergent. If you're not sure, there's tests for that too, of course.

What's your Divergent faction?

Not a fan of Divergent or The Giver? Think beyond complex "utopian" movies. There are plenty of family friendly stories that deal with aptitude.

Think about Tinker Bell. Every fairy in Pixie Hollow has a function. Tinker fairies, water fairies, light fairies, animal fairies, etc. If you were a fairy in Pixie Hollow, what would your specialty be?

Think about Disney princesses! I'm pretty sure every little girl has wondered who their Disney princess equivalent is. Think about who you resonate with. Are you hardworking like Tiana? Are you brave like Mulan? Are you curious like Ariel? Which Disney princess are you?

Think about Inside Out! The movie that literally personified emotions! Joy, Anger, Sadness—every emotion contributes to an individual's emotional makeup. Each emotion also has its own personality that may correlate with yours. Are you optimistic like Joy? Do you have a comforting maternal nature like Sadness? Are you impatient like Anger? Which emotion from Inside Out are you?

I know what you're thinking. What does any of this have to do with the career planning process? These are personality quizzes, not aptitude tests! Well, believe it or not, all of this is aptitude. In the career planning process, you're not just choosing a career based on your talents or skills, you're choosing based on your personality. Before you can determine the kind of life you want to create for yourself, you must first establish self-awareness and analyze your personality. What better way to do this than by taking personality quizzes?