If you had a chance to change the direction of your life, would you? Guess what? You can. How fun thinking about what you might do with your next chapter. It can be really uplifting to take a fresh new look at ourselves, our relationships, or even just thinking about something that can shake up the monotony of our everyday lives. With being inside for the better part of the year now, it’s starting to feel like Groundhog Day! Maybe you need a little inspiration to get you thinking about your own journey and where it might take you. Pick up a book like Oprah’s “The Path Made Clear” or Hoda’s “I Really Needed That Today” at piperanddune.com and get inspired. Should you decide you are ready for a change (whatever that might be), treat yourself to a beautiful new leather crossbody tote, satchel, backpack and more - all of them make great bags for commuting, starting a new job hunt, or even just to give you a pick me up. So, if living through the COVID quarantine has made you think about a new direction in life, but you aren’t sure what that might be, keep reading. We have a fun idea to get you started.
When was the last time you took a personality test? You know, the ones that are supposed to help you figure out what career you should consider - or that help you to better understand your own behaviors and interests. I know my children were inundated with these quests of self-discovery when they were preparing to apply to colleges, and then again before college graduation. I had to do a couple versions of these tests when I was in corporate, but haven’t really bothered afterwards.
Recently, I spoke with a friend about my career. We were discussing how I spent my career in the merchandising, media, advertising, and promotion businesses. They asked how I ended up working in those areas. I laughed and explained that I never chose to go into this industry. In fact, after college, it was common for you to take whatever job you were lucky enough to find, regardless of what you studied! I used to joke with some of my co-workers about this very subject (kids don’t necessarily view it that way today.) I never planned to go into the couponing or advertising business; I just found myself there and with time and tenure in the industry I stayed. I found almost all my positions through recommendations and networking, and this is the case for most people I know. It wasn’t until I left my corporate position that I started to think about what I might do if I had the opportunity to create a new career for myself. Would I pick Marketing if I had to do it all over again? In the last two years of my corporate job, we (my fellow Marketers and I) had to break-in two new Chief Marketing Officers. Each came with their own style, preferences and quirks. One of them was very curious to understand how her new staff would score on a Myers-Briggs or C.A.R.E. test, and how our personalities would align with how she viewed the person in our positions. She was clearly sizing us up to reorganize our department. This sparked what became a later life bout of career hunting for me; it made me realize there were other interesting things that I might like to explore doing that would fit my personality and that could make me happy - perhaps even happier.
Today I came across one of these personality tests called LQ (Learnability Quotient). It only took a few minutes to complete and I quickly shared it with my daughter Sarah who immediately took the test too. I couldn’t wait to tell her how my results described me perfectly. We both had fun comparing our personality’s with each other, and I bet you will too. It’s also fun to see if your personality has changed over time. I can tell you I’ve become much less rigid and much more open than I once was, while other things stay the same - I’m still labeled “a thinker.” Perhaps with age comes confidence and maturity, or maybe because I’m less scheduled and feel less pressure that I’m not the perfectionist I once was, I no longer sweat the small stuff and that was evident in my results. If you’ve never taken one of these tests, try it - the LQ test is free. There are actually many more of these tests all over the internet, so you should try a few; there’s a list of free tests from Monster and another list from HubSpot, they each list different career assessment tests. So whether you’ve been furloughed during COVID and need a job, or maybe you are ready for a career change, or perhaps you want to work on becoming more self actualized (you know, becoming “everything you are capable of becoming,”) give one of them a try. Maybe they will be the very thing to help you land the perfect job, a new relationship, or just to get you out of a rut! And most of all… make it fun!
Visit Piper and Dune today - we are receiving new items daily. Remember, we offer FREE shipping on all local deliveries to zip codes (no minimum required): 06488, 06762, 06478, 06798 as well. We offer FREE shipping on all other orders when you spend $75 or more. If you’d like us to wrap your order in our signature tissue and cellophane bags, just add a note in the box at checkout.
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Chris and The Piper and Dune Family
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