Last week I completed a soft skills psychometric test, a product I wish to potentially use with clients. The great news is that I’m 97% suited for my role as a psychologist and 88% suited as a professional life coach.
When I did the test I scored a flat out 0/10 on individualism and that really did throw me off. For one, I couldn't immediately differentiate between individuality and individualism as my brain only saw the word 'individual' and secondly it set me on a journey of figuring out if that was a good or bad score. Maybe this is something I want to work on? I’m still figuring it out, but in the last few days with all the reading and reviewing my test scores, I realised something truly important.
It is very very easy to judge ourselves and box ourselves into categories on the interpretation of psychometric tests.
First of all there is a massive difference between individuality and individualism. Individualism looks at how we view our needs in relation to others in society. Whereas individuality is a character quality or trait of a person that makes them unique from others.
So why am I choosing to find a psychometric test to engage with clients? My belief is that sometimes we need to know where to start. It should encourage growth and evolving skill sets to compliment and enhance our choices.
For clients who have experienced traumatic events in their lives, it is sometimes very difficult to imagine the life you had prior to the incident. This is what happened to me. My fear took over for many years and I spent more time preferring to be hidden in shadows or blended in with the crowds. Safety came from not standing out. I recall the uncertainty of "What do I do now?". "Is my training enough to continue working with vulnerable populations?" At this time I was already doing the therapy, but I needed new skills to continue the work I was passionate about.
Trauma in the midst of calm changes your life like a 5 minute tornado.
There is no expectation of such drastic change. If we live life in the expectation of receiving or experiencing hurt and pain, then we’re not living. You feel like you’re drowning and there is a frantic and overwhelming desire to grasp onto something that can give you stability. When you’ve done the therapy, there is a different you. I believe we walk out the other side of our experience stronger and with the desire to thrive despite the pain we’ve experienced.
This is where I believe the right tool should be available to help not only identify the strengths we already have but help us to work towards the skills we need to equip us to either continue on the path we initially set out on, or change directions to something better.
This psychometric testing tool I'm using is creating a benchmark for where I can begin to engage in the skills to enhance my professional outcomes. There is dynamic insight into my strengths and challenges but the largest advantage is the opportunity to engage learning new skills and learnings from a plethora of industry experts that's accessible with this product.
I'll let you know how it goes :)
For further reading on Individualism: Johnson, D.W. and Johnson, R.T. (2010). Individualism. In The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology (eds I.B. Weiner and W.E. Craighead). https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470479216.corpsy0438
This blog is based on my own experiences in my personal and professional life. It is not a review or critique of any psychometric tool used by mental health professionals and researchers.