What the tests say about Identity…
Personality is something people seek; we want to find where we belong, find ‘our people’, and find our groove. This ‘finding myself’ quest isn’t a treasure hunt, it’s a scavenger hunt where we find little clues throughout our journey. One of the paths to diagnosing our individuality is taking tests. Let’s take a look.
Personality tests.
Do these things really work? Everyone has their own opinion on whether these tests are true-ish or as flighty as a dandelion blowing in the wind. So are they worth taking? It depends. Ask yourself WHY you are taking the test. Is it for fun? A career change? Job enhancement? Relationship health? Curiosity? Go into the test with a purpose. As for cost, most have a free version, but others can cost $$.
Let’s understand personality.
According to the Owlcation (a group of educators and experts on education), there are 5 common personality determinants:
1 The Brain: how it is stimulated.
2 Physical Characteristics: Height, skin tone, weight, hair color… these factors play a role in social communications.
3 Social Experiences: Syed Hunbbel Meer states, “The things that occur around a person on a regular basis determine how that person will behave and perceive themselves.”
4 Culture and Religion: Traditional practices, customs, values, rules/regulations.
5 Heredity: It’s in our genes.
There are 2500+ personality tests in the United States! However, I compiled a shortlist of the most common and revealing tests used today.
Take your pick:
- Myers-Briggs one of the most popular tests out there. Employers like to use this one.
- Enneagram helps us to see ourselves at a more objective level. It has 9 type descriptions.
- DISC: helps with improving relationships
- Big Five: looks at your Openness, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Extraversion, and Neuroticism. This site also describes in detail the Myers-Briggs personalities, best career, etc.
- 16 Personalities: has a quick and free 12-minute test.
Family Tree & DNA
Want to take it a step further? Check-out DNA testing like Ancestry, 23andMe, SelfDecode, or FamilyTreeDNA . What’s the difference? Generally speaking, if you’re looking to get a better understanding of your family tree, go with FamilyTreeDNA or Ancestry. Both entities help with genealogy, family history research, and DNA matches.
If you’re looking to get a better understanding of your health, go with 23andMe or SelfDecode. 23andMe helps reveal health screening. They also do a basic Y-DNA (looks into a male’s direct father’s line heritage) and a mtDNA (allows you to discover your own family history in the maternal line) test. SelfDecode primarily looks at your genes and well-being…all about health.
You can explore the sites here: Ancestry, FamilyTreeDNA, 23andMe, SelfDecode
Love Languages
Wait there’s more! Gary Chapman wrote a book, The 5 Love Languages. In his book, he talks about ‘love language’ and how beneficial it is in strengthening relationships. There are essentially 5 love languages: words of affirmation, acts of service, receiving gifts, quality time, and physical touch. The 5 Love Languages works for everyone: couples, kids, teens, and people who are single. I took this test and read his book many years ago and my husband and I still reference it. Mr. Chapman also has a quiz to help discover your love language. Check it out here: The 5 Love Languages
Introvert or Extrovert?
“How dare you!” No, no, no I’m not calling you a bad name. Introvert and Extrovert are two terms used to describe a piece of our personality. An introvert is someone who tends to be quiet and private; they aren’t too fond of large crowds, and they recharge by spending time alone. An extrovert is outgoing and talkative; they recharge in social settings and enjoy getting attention. More info here on differences. Now before you make your own conclusion, you might want to take this test. A lot of people are both, and depending on the situation one will shine above the other. You can check out the test from Psychology Today.
Birth Order
Well, you probably don’t need to take a test to figure out your birth order. There are tests out there, but I didn’t find it necessary to list them. Although after looking through many sites on birth order I found that REAL SIMPLE Magazine sums it up nicely. Their article describes the traits of birth order: from firstborn (only child) to multiple middles, to the baby. They go into why certain stereotypes are true and when it’s not! It’s quite interesting and may help you understand a little bit more about yourself and your siblings.