Career Talents Sample Report

Your careerTALENTS analysis

Your skills and talents are vital to your future career success.  What you like to do and what you are confident that you can do play an important role in your future career satisfaction and success.  Your CareerTALENTS profiles your self-reported preferences and skills.  In this report you will find:

 Contents

1. Introduction 

 

2. Classifying your careerTALENTS

 

3. Talents Overview

 

4. Your Talents Matrix

 

5. Your Skill Preferences in Detail

 

6. Your Motivated Talents

 

7. Areas for Development

 

8. Full Talents Profile Charts

 

9.  Summary

 

10. What next and how to maximise your talents

 

 

1. Introduction

Motivation is what we LIKE to do.  Talent is what we DO well naturally.  They can exist independently, but when they combine, they create something special.  They create motivated talents. In the analysis, you were rating your skill and preference for a wide range of tasks and activities associated with many roles.  The patterns and preferences evident below enable you to gain more focus in your career management.  To enable you to understand what motivates you most and the talents that will be most fulfilling for you to maximise in your future career.  The first step in using our career talents is to take a look at the broad categories of skills and tasks which were sampled.

2. Classifying your careerTALENTS


All the skills have been grouped under five broad headings:

Interpersonal Communication	Skills involving working with people, any interaction or information exchange between people
Managing People & Tasks	Skills associated with the management, organization and co-ordination of resources and people
Information Processing	Working with information, including facts, figures, written documents, using thinking and computing skills
Physical/ Practical	Working with things and the physical environment; using your hands and body skilfully
Creative / Artistic	Using creativity, innovation.  Working in a variety of mediums to express ideas or concepts.

 This is a simple and flexible way of categorising skills, but is by no means prescriptive or rigid.  There will always be some overlap.  For example, writing can be both a means of Communication and of Information Processing, and of course can also be highly Creative as well.  The idea behind classifying the skills is to give you a pattern of relationships and one way of understanding your skills and talents.  After you have reviewed your Talents Analysis, it may be possible to group them in other ways that will be more meaningful to you and in your marketing of your skills to others.

3. Talents Overview:

For each item, two scores are calculated, one based on your Preference (P), the other based on your Talents (T). The Preference Score shows how much the specified activity appeals to you; the Talent score shows how confident you feel about performing these activities.
The top (blue) bar represents your reported level of MOTIVATION for each activity (M). The bottom green bar represents your reported SKILL level (T).

Following is a visual representation of your responses on this matrix. This can be useful as a visual record of your preferences and as a starting point for documenting what you want more of and less of in your future career.

Your Motivation and Talent pattern is more important than your overall scores.  Look to see if there is a relationship between than which you enjoy and that which you are good at.  Similarly, there should be a similar correspondence between that which you have little interest or motivation for and those activities for which you little talent.

The Skills have been colour coded for your reflection as follows:

Pursue.  Your Motivation and Talent scores were both high so you should actively Pursue opportunities to use these skills in your work. You are attracted to these activities and confident in your ability to perform them well.  These Pursue areas should be the major focus of your career planning.

 

 Develop.  In this area your motivation score was high however, your talent score is lower. You should carefully review skills and tasks in this area for you to Develop.  You enjoy these activities but feel uncertain about your ability to perform them.  Further education, training or experience with these skills might lead to better performance and greater confidence,  or you may want to simply enjoy these areas as hobbies.

 

 Explore.  When your Talent score is high and your Motivation score is lower, this is a possible area for you to Explore.  You are confident of your ability to perform these activities, but you do not enjoy them.  With some exploration, you may find a way to use your skills in other areas that appeal to you more.

 

 Avoid.  When your Motivation and Talent scores are both low, this is an area for you to Avoid.  You neither enjoy these activities nor feel confident in your ability to perform them.

Whatever your walk of life or experiences, you have already gained some skills that combine in ways that are unique to you individually.  No one else will have these skills and talents in quite the same combination as you.  A skill is more than just an ability to do something.  Having a skill means being able to do something because you have actually done it.  In other words a skill is a practised ability.

While abilities, interests and personal qualities are not skills in themselves they have a lot to do with them.  They influence the kinds of skills we choose to learn and the level of competence we reach.

Examples:    Artistic skills such as designing clothes or painting watercolours express creative talent

                   Someone interested in helping others is more likely to develop listening skills

                   Another person with a love of people and an enthusiastic personality may develop talents in Public Relations

Skills can be acquired or developed by education, training and practice.  They are more open to change than our abilities.

Some of your skills are more adaptable than others.  They are called transferable skills because they can be used in more than one task or activity.  They are called transferable because you can take them with you across roles, jobs and even industries.  Just as at university we can cross-credit from one course to another, we can use these transferable skills in quite different occupations. A skill is more than just an ability to do something.  Having a skill means being able to do something because you have actually done it.  In other words a skill is a practised ability.

A skill can be as basic as writing your name or as sophisticated as calculating statistics.  All skills are learned, even the most simple.  We are not born with skills.  Rather we begin life with an almost limitless capacity for acquiring them. 

Our talents are those things that come easily to us.  Naturally, we enjoy learning and using skills related to work that interests us.  We also prefer to learn skills for which we have a special aptitude or talent.  Skills are the expression of our interests and personal style which make up your unique marketable talents.

Review your full preference and Talents Profile in Appendix 1.  Following we provide you with a detailed description of your skill preferences.

Your preferred skills are:

Motivation is what we LIKE to do. Talent is what we DO well naturally. They can exist independently, but when they combine, they create something special. They create motivated talents. Your motivated talents have been identified as….

In this section, we have identified those skills in which you have considerable interest, but less confidence in using.  These are the talents for you to develop further.  This will be high pay-off for you to develop because of their appeal to you, the more skill and confidence you develop the more likely you are to enjoy using your skill / talent.  From an employers point of view, these should be areas which are worth investing further in you, because of the appeal to you, you are more likely to be most motivated and satisfied  if developing and further using this talent.

8. Full Talents Profile Charts

preference      talent.

INTERPERSONAL / COMMUNICATION These skills involve working with people, any interaction or information exchange between people Disciplining 65% 64% Informing / Briefing 54% 53% Co-operating 45% 44% Coaching 21% 20% Motivating % % Representing % % Training % % Liaising % % Appraising % % Influencing % % Advising % % Counselling % % Mediating % % Interviewing % % Presenting % % Negotiating % % Selling % % Empathising % % Handling Grievances % %

MANAGEMENT These skills are associated with the management, organization and co-ordination of tasks, resources and people Planning % % Organising People % % Implementing % % Organising Things % % Deciding % % Supervising % % Directing % % Expediting % %

INFORMATION PROCESSING These skills involve working with information, including facts, figures, written documents, using thinking and computing skills Researching 78% 77% Interpreting 68% 67% Investigating 64% 63% Observing 36% 35% Writing 35% 34% Estimating 23% 22% Classifying 22% 21% Monitoring 14% 13% Problem-Solving 12% 11% Budgetting % % Synthesizing % % Editing % % Assessing % % Information Collecting % % Calculating % % Analysing % % Checking % % Maintaining Records % % Reviewing % %

the CREATIVE category These skills involve using creativity, innovation. Working in a variety of mediums to express ideas or concepts Creating Images 44% 43% Generating Ideas 15% 14% Perceive Intuitively % % Visualising % % Designing % % Entertaining % % Initiating Change % %

the PHYSICAL / PRACTICAL category These skills involve working with things and the physical environment; using your hands and body skilfully Using Tools/machinery 56% 55% Composing / performing with music 53% 52% Tending Animals 47% 46% Preparing Food 34% 33% Transporting % % Using Physical Skills % % Using Mechanical Abilities % % Planting, Cultivating % % Building / Constructing % % Assembling % % Using Manual Skills % %

Our talents are those things that come easily to us.  Naturally, we enjoy learning and using skills related to work that interests us.  We also prefer to learn skills for which we have a special aptitude or talent.  Skills are the expression of our interests and personal style which make up your unique marketable talents. 

Identifying your Preferred Skills and Competency Levels enables you to define the tasks and activities which will most satisfy you in your working life.  In essence you are virtually able to develop your own job-description. With the careerTALENT analysis you are given a tool for identifying your preferred tasks which can enable you to match your skills with possible job or career opportunities. This is in much the same was that we, as occupational psychologists use very similar tools to analyse jobs and then find people with skills to match.  So by making these same tools available, you can identify your unique mix of skills and talents, and then use this analysis to seek work opportunities that will fit your skills.

From completing the careerTALENTS analysis you have a valuable tool for increasing your motivation and satisfaction through three steps.

1. Review your talent fit.

2. Build on your talent.

3. Minimize everything else.

 

1. Review your talent fit.

The idea is to align your work with your natural motivations (preferences) and talents. 

This is what your careerTALENTS analysis helps you do.  It pinpoints your motivations and preferences and their corresponding talents. Most people find it difficult to articulate what it is they are designed to do. You now have a useful tool for communicating to others what it is you have a talent for.

2. Build on your talent.

It’s all about Alignment.  Align your work with your TALENTS profile.  Begin to make adjustments that will allow you to do what you are designed to do.  Some changes will be incremental, and some may be radical. The idea is to spend more of your time using your strengths.  That is where your performance and satisfaction both peak.

The natural place to begin is with your job.  Once you are familiar with your TALENTS profile ask yourself: 

• What have you learned about why you do, or don’t do, certain things at work?

• Which of your responsibilities draw upon your most motivated talents?

• Which of your highest skills / talents are rarely used?

• Which of your responsibilities call upon your lesser preferences /talents? What can you do about this?

• Review your responses to the Interpersonal Communication analysis, how does your job fit your preferred way of relating to others?

• Are the circumstances that motivate you present?

• Given your unique skill-set, is there a position in your company that is a better fit than your current one? If so, what do you need to do to prepare for it?

• If you are feeling drained or burned out, which areas are out of alignment?

• If you feel you are in the wrong role or profession for your skill-set, what can you do about it?

 Once you have resolved the questions above, it is time to share your motivations and talents with your manager/ mentor or other key stake-holders. Give them with plenty of examples to provide evidence of your skills and potential in these areas.  Also give them ideas about how else you can contribute or ‘add value’ to the organization through using your motivated skills. Plant seeds as to how you could use your skills through additional projects,and be alert to opportunities for developing your preferred skills through training, coaching and practice.  These are high pay-off areas both for yourself – in terms of enjoyment and satisfaction and for your employers, because of your natural capability, you are likely to be both more productive and happier in your work.

This is one of the most critical career moves you can make. That’s because if you and your manager talk regularly

about your careerTALENTS profile, you greatly increase the likelihood that: 

• He or she will have realistic expectations of you.

• You will get assignments / projects and opportunities that play to your strengths.

• Together you will decide how to handle tasks that require you to work in your least preferred areas.

• Identify areas where training/experience/mentoring will be most helpful.

• You will be able to spot opportunities and positions that are a good fit for you.

3. Minimize everything else

We are all designed to do something, but not everything.  A pen is a very useful tool for writing, but is less effective as a screwdriver or tool for opening things (although some have been known in desperation to try to use it as such).

It is no different for us.  We have a talent for some things, but not everything.  Don’t beat yourself up about your weaknesses.  Do not spend too much time working on areas of low talent.  Rather focus on building on your talents and motivated skills.

If you are in a role which requires you to work in areas where you have little talent, you have some options.

First, have realistic expectations of your performance.  Secondly, create a support system to help you.  For example, one client with little talent for organisation found that careful use of Diary Planner and some training helped her enormously.  Thirdly, try to find a role-model with someone who has high talent in that area. We can improve our enjoyment of a task, when we have developed further skills and strategies to support us. 

Each of your strongest, most motivated TALENTS / skills, represents a hub for further development in your career.  Like the hub of a wheel with spokes going from it, we can envisage the possibilities for using our talents in the work-world in a variety of directions.

This exercise will enable you to look at multiple strategies for developing your career around your unique talents.

Try this…

Take one of your strongest, most motivated talents.  On a blank sheet of paper, write the skill or talent, for example Empathising.   Now brainstorm ways you could use this talent in your life.  Brainstorming means that you should let your mind run freely, without restraint, identifying as many possibilities as possible without judging or evaluating the idea.  Generate as many ideas that come to mind as possible.

For example, the Motivated talent:   Empathising.

We could use this skill or talent in any of the following roles or ways:

• Customer services

• Problem-solving

• Dealing with disadvantaged kids

• Dealing with elderly

• Helping youth find their first job

• Interviewing
  

Now on a blank sheet of paper, create your own hub of opportunity by brainstorming how you could use one or two of your talents in as many ways as possible.Write the talent or skill in the middle with as many arrows or spokes of opportunities as in our example below. 

People often are naturally good at something (talented), but it just doesn’t turn them on.  For example, Heather is good with numbers, but she doesn’t go out of her way to find tasks calling for that talent.  Most people have such talents.  But then there are those talents that we really enjoy using.  These are the motivated talents, and this is where the magic is.

We use motivated talents every chance we get.  Most of the time we don’t even think about it.  For example, Dave has a motivated talent for conversation, and he naturally engages both friends and strangers in discussions.  He doesn’t consciously determine to do so; it just happens.  It’s natural and unforced.  He enjoys it, and he’s good at it.  That’s the hallmark of a motivated talent.

Motivated talents tend to be irrepressible.  They find expression.  In fact, if you’ve ever tried to stifle a motivated talent (either yours or someone else’s) it probably felt like you were trying to hold two dozen ping pong balls under water at the same time.  Motivated talents pop out, even if no one else is asking for them.  And doesn’t that make sense?  After all, it’s what we do well AND enjoy.

Well then, wouldn’t the ideal job be one where you can use your motivated talents daily and get paid for it?  Absolutely!  But more on that later.

What are your natural motivations?  Shouldn’t your boss know?  You can let him/her know by giving them a copy of you own careerTALENTS analysis.

This does not mean that anything that falls outside of your careerTALENTS profile can be shirked.  We all have to do things we do not enjoy from time to time.  We have responsibilities and duties that must be honoured. 

What it does mean is that we need to have realistic expectations of ourselves.  There is no such thing as the perfect person.  We all need to build on our strengths and minimise our weaknesses. There are a few exceptionally gifted people in this world. The wise person knows he or she has limitations.

Know yourself and then let your manager know you.  It’s a win/win situation. If you have your careerTALENTS profile, now is the time to start looking at it as a lifelong tool with these next steps: 

Identify your Marketable Skills Portfolio

• Analyse your experience

• Record your top ten talents, generate examples of how you have used these talents

• Review your resume to assess to what extent your talents are reflected clearly

• Brainstorm your top achievements with each talent or skill so you can provide evidence at interviews.

• Record these in your resume under achievements.

• Review the words used in your resume, do they match the talents you have identified.

• Generate a list of your personal qualities – what are the unique ways you do things?  Focus not only what you do, but how you do it. What is it about you that is unique to the way you do things?  When you use your talent, how is it expressed?Add an …ly to the description of your TALENTS e.g. positively, passionately, enthusiastically, thoroughly.  This will enable you to communicate both what you like to do, but also how you go about doing it.

In identifying how you use your unique skills, review your list, for the top five, what is it about the way you use this skill.  For example, the TALENT "Interviewing", what is it that you are always most interested to find out. What sparks your attention, what is it that you are most interested in learning?  Another example, with the TALENT "analysing" – how do you go about using this skill – are you highly methodical, creative, ordered – disciplined?  What is unique about the way you go about analysing things – what are you most interested in analysing? 

Play private detective, look around you as if you were a Private Investigator.  What is it that a Private Investigator would conclude about you from reviewing your surroundings and preferences – are things immaculate and ordered, or highly creative and inspiring and unique, or warm comfortable and friendly.  What books are on your bookshelf – what is it you most want to know about?  There are real clues for your future in your answers.  These answers will also help you to market yourself and create opportunities that are going to be most fulfilling for you, particularly if you can work in alignment with other facets of your unique motivators, values and personal style.

Create Your Own Summary

Summarise for yourself:

My high pay-off areas are: (This is where your Skills and Preferences are in alignment – Motivated Talents)

Skills I want to minimise in future roles:

Skills I want to develop further:

Remember there are opportunities to improve and develop your skills everywhere.  You do not need to confine yourself to formal training courses or university degrees.  You may find learning opportunities, just as effective or even better, from working on the committee of your local school, volunteering for the local Rotary Club, joining Toastmasters or through your own programme of reading.

Final Thoughts

Through knowing your personal talents, skills and motivational preferences, you can extend your confidence and enhance the realistic options ahead of you. 

If you want further assistance to translate your TALENTS profile into your self-marketing tools such as your resume and application letters, and at interview, contact us.

If you want to identify your unique Occupational opportunities and how your TALENTS  align with your INTERESTS,  we suggest you complete our careerPREFERENCES tools to identify those occupations which will enhance your motivation and interest in using your preferred TALENTS.