Many of my clients wish they had first met me much earlier than when they do – they reach 5 years and more from university and realise they had not really given much thought to why they chose their career and the longer they spend in it they less happy they are.

I’m always delighted when I get to work with younger clients and over the past week I’ve worked with three 17 year old students.

Their personal stories are different, but what they share is a maturity to understand themselves and to ensure they are choosing the right subjects for A level.

Yesterday I saw Anne, she had taken 4 AS levels, was really enjoying 2 of them, struggled with one and the other was ok. As we talked about her life story and reviewed the results of the Highlands Ability Assessment it was clear that she was creative and enjoyed making things so Design Technology could be a good option for an additional A level.

The session I’ve undertaken with these students is what I call the Student Silver Programme which combines the Highlands Ability Assessment  with an extra hour of coaching so the young person spends 3 hours with me.

In each case the student has a list of possible career paths and the next thing for them to do is to begin to explore via the net.

I certainly don’t want to tie my students down to a particular career but aim to raise their interest in different options so that their choice of A levels and degree course will suit the different options they have.

If you would like to discuss, do get in touch. 

I’ve reminded her of these test results, so if she does get to study medicine she will be forewarned of some possible challenges related to her Highlands score:

•            With a very short time frame you must be very focused on a long term goal as it will be easy to get distracted
•            With a verbal memory score you will have to work hard to deal with all the reading. 

It can be done, Martin, a client of mine from about 4 years ago, managed, but did say that he had to give up all his hobbies and spent almost all his time at medical school working rather than other things. He found it useful to go, knowing this as it meant he was focussed on concentrating on this.

Sometimes I get incredibly moved by feedback I receive from clients. I recently worked with a young man who had yet to find the right career path for himself and whose self esteem was dropping as he didn’t think he could do anything. Taking the Highlands Assessment has proved very powerful for him.  He says: “I am writing to you to thank you for sparing your time just to help me. I want you to know that I am forever grateful for all your help.  I found it really helpful because you opened my eyes and showed me something I never knew about myself.”  He is now set to start a level 3 course in music engineering. 

There are many young people who are so uninterested in the subjects they have to study. Or they start in a job and don’t enjoy it resulting in problems, they appear unmotivated and often leave, to start again in another job that again they lack interest in.  This quote is from a young client (I don’t have permission to use his name) who is finally on his way to a job that appeals to him and now understands why certain jobs have been difficult. 

To find out more about the Highlands Ability Battery you can visit my website or the Highlands Company web site.

One of the most popular assessments I use with clients is the Highlands Ability Battery. Clients love it because it is an objective assessment rather than a self report. They get objective data on what they can do well and what will be less easy. The assessment is published by The Highlands Company and is based on the work of Johnson O’Connor.

 Finding out your natural abilities is a fundamental step towards a satisfying and successful career.

Real career success is rarely down to money and status and much more to do with finding a job which ties in with what you can do with ease.

We all have talents and abilities we are born with. These give us a special ability to do things easily and a reason why we can find other things difficult. We develop this ability through heredity and in childhood and our abilities can be measured from age 14.

 Because they are hard wired they do not change. Practice won’t make them stronger and ignoring them won’t mean we lose them. They differ from skills, which we can develop, but which we can also lose, and interests which can change. However, both skills and interests can enhance our abilities.

We are happiest and most satisfied when we make maximum use of our abilities.

An individual may develop the skills to practice law, for example, but if she doesn’t have the inborn talents which make the practice of law easy and satisfying, she will find her work unrewarding (and, even, as in the case of many lawyers, frustrating). When we apply our abilities to our study or work, we do our tasks better.

 Knowing your abilities and natural talents can help you to

• Understand where you are naturally talented

• Know how you solve problems and make decisions most effectively

• Understand in black and white why you would be happy in some fields and not happy in others

• Choose the best option from a group of study/ career/ job/ business choices

• Know how to study most effectively

• Know what other jobs within your organisation you would be better and more fulfilled with

• Use your true strengths more effectively and more consistently

When we study and work in line with our natural abilities it is like driving along a brand new four-lane motorway. Working against your natural talents is like trying to make your way along a narrow, muddy, footpath. You can get there either way, but working with your natural talents is a lot easier and you will find much greater success.

 Sometimes people ask for more detail about this battery and you can read the history at the Highlands Company website. You can also read details on the validity and reliability of the assessment.

Many people seek out to work in line with their strengths and natural gifts.  One way of identifying these is to ask people what they consider to be the strengths, their skills, values, passions and if they have a sense of vocation. But people don’t always know themselves well.  Many people will tell me about what they have learnt to do, but this won’t necessarily be what makes their heart sing.

Assessments are out their to identify passions and strengths but what I’ve found is the very best way for people to understand their natural abilities is to undertake an assessment which does not ask people what they think are their strengths but which instead gets people to take timed work samples to find out what they can actually do.

I use the Highlands Ability Battery:

 http://www.amazingpeople.co.uk/HAB.htm

I believe it is very helpful for people to know their abilities and natural talents to understand in black and white they  would be happy in some fields and not happy in others; know how to study most effectively  and to use their true strengths more effectively and more consistently.

When we study and work in line with our natural abilities it is like driving along a brand new four-lane motorway. Working against your natural talents is like trying to make your way along a narrow, muddy, footpath. You can get there either way, but working with your natural talents is a lot easier and you will find much greater success.

How clear are you on your natural abilities? Has careers coaching helped you to understand your natural gifts? Are you still unsure on what you should do? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Real career success is rarely down to money and status and much more to do with finding a job which ties in with our   natural talents and abilities.  Understanding our natural abilities helps us understand why we find certain situations difficult and where we will gain most career satisfaction.  The Highlands Ability Battery is an   objective assessment of your natural ability and consists of 19 different work samples. It’s extensive, taking around 3 hours (but you don’t need to complete it in one session) and the results will help you to really understand yourself. You receive a 31 page report, have an in-depth feedback discussion, plus get additional reference material. All supported with a 1 month follow up to help you make good use of this knowledge.

Your results are shown as percentiles on a graph, comparing your scores to other people who have taken the HAB.  A high score isn’t better than a low, it depends on whether a job requires it, or not.  It’s frustrating to have an ability and not need it in a job or need an  ability you don’t have.

To read more:

 http://www.amazingpeople.co.uk/assessments/HAB.pdf 

Wouldn’t it be fantastic to know what your natural talents are – what you can do, rather than what you have learnt to do.  Imagine having the knowledge to understand why a particular job isn’t right for you – it’s not that you are stupid, but that it requires a different blend of talents than what you have. Then using this information to help you make the right choice, choosing a job that wants problems solved in the way you best like to solve them, has the right amount of people contact, needs you to be observant, or not.  To find the answer to this you need to take the highlands ability battery. This reputable and extensive set of 19 different work samples allows you to measure your performance and find out what type of work best suits you.

Do I really need a test to help me find out my natural abilities?

Some people think they know their abilities. However, we get mixed up with our skills and abilities.  There are some things we are naturally good at, and other areas where we have developed a high level of skill. E.g. I’ve got quite a good reputation for proof reading, but my natural ability is very low. It’s something I’ve learnt to do. It certainly wouldn’t be a good fit if this was the main focus of my work.

Don’t forget, what we know of our talents is based only on what we have done before. You could have talents that you don’t even know about.  Our school days only cover a few of the abilities you will find out if you take this assessment

What if I’m hopeless at tests?

Don’t worry, this is not like an exam, you can’t pass or fail this test and there is no need for any revision. Your results will show if you have a high or low ability in something and it is just as important to know what you are low in as what you are high in. These tests are different from anything you will have done before. 

There is a scale called classification which is non logical problem solving – an ability to quickly spot the big picture.  I score very low in this, but the benefit of this is that it means I have a lot of patience in working with people and in going at a pace to suit others rather than me – a real strength in the work that I do. 

I’m interested tell me more

You need to visit the assessment page on the website to find out more but I am very happy to discuss how this can be of help to you. There are several people know offering the Highlands Ability Assessment I the UK. You might like to know that I trained to use it in 2001, the second person to train from the UK and since then I have used it with well over 200 individuals. My clients don’t just get the Highlands Ability Battery Assessment, report and discussion. They also get, a CD of our discussion, a reference booklet Highlands Explored, taking you beyond your report plus a one page summary Critical Career Implications.  You also get my Next Steps Booklet to help you explore more about the jobs that are a good match with your unique profile. To learn more, do contact me. I’d be very interested to hear from you.

Denise Taylor

www.amazingpeople.co.uk/contact.htm

If you are interested in assessments, you will find relevant articles here.

There are many different assessments out there, and you can access free ones but free ones will never give you a proper interpretation. Free tests are usually a “rip off” version which break copyright laws. if you want to be guided to make career decisions that take account of your ability, personality and interests, the best three are available here – the Highlands Ability Battery, Myers Briggs Type Indicator and Strong Interest Inventory.

Highlands Ability Battery

You can learn about your natural abilities and talents.  The things that are effortless for you to do through taking the Highlands Ability Battery.  Individuals use this as the foundation of their career programme and organisations use this to develop their staff.  Read more >>

Myers Briggs Type Indicator

As well as finding out about our personality, we also need to take account of our personality. Who are we are how do we relate to people, what is our approach to gathering information, making decisions and what is our preferred lifestyle. Taking the Myers Briggs Type Indicator will enable you to find out about your personality and how to become more effective in your relationships with others.  Read more >>

Strong Interest Inventory

The third assessment I recommend is the Strong Interest Inventory. Based on your responses, you will receive feedback indicating which occupational areas appear to be of greatest personal interest to you. You will also receive specific feedback on how your interests compare to the interests of people who actually work in 122 occupations and who enjoy their work!  Read more >>