The science backed way to pick your next role

There's lots of "fluffy" advice about how to get a job you love and make as much money as possible.

Here's a science backed tip:

Do an OCEAN personality test.

OCEAN has 5 components:

1. Openness to experience:

Sometimes called intellect or imagination, this represents the willingness to try new things and think outside the box.

Traits include insightfulness, originality and curiosity.

2. Conscientiousness:

The desire to be careful, diligent and to regulate immediate gratification with self-discipline.

Traits include ambition, discipline, consistency and reliability.

3. Extroversion:

A state where an individual draws energy from others and seeks social connections or interaction, as opposed to being alone (introversion).

Traits include being outgoing, energetic and confident.

4. Agreeableness:

The measure of how an individual interacts with others, characterized by degree of compassion and co-operation.

Traits include tactfulness, kindness and loyalty.

5. Neuroticism:

A tendency towards negative personality traits, emotional instability and self-destructive thinking.

Traits include pessimism, anxiety, insecurity and fearfulness.

Here's how to apply each idea to your search:

• If you're higher in O, you're more likely to be a fit for roles which are more creative in nature like being a musician, artist, or a "visionary" type early-stage entrepreneur.

  
  If you're lower in O, you're more likely to be a fit for roles which have more rules and repeatable processes. This is more common in larger organizations or more conservative industries.

  
  

• If you're higher in C, pick a more demanding job so you can express your work ethic.

  
  

• If you're higher in E, pick a role which involves people interaction like sales or customer success and try to work in a shared workspace with real humans around you vs. working from home.
  
  You'll feel better.
  
  Conversely, if you're lower pick a job which requires comparatively less collaboration like engineering and consider working from home.
  
  

• If you're higher in A, you're more likely to struggle with negotiation.

  
  Since getting a job you love is contingent on feeling like you're getting paid well for the work you provide, invest in something (a therapist, a coach, someone, a course) that coaches you into being less agreeable.

  
  You're also less likely to do well in less collaborative work cultures or in roles where negotiating plays a role in how much you make like sales.

  
  

• If you're higher in N, stick to a schedule.

  
  Schedules create certainty and predictability which reduce negative emotions like anxiety.

  
  Also, consider a job that has more predictable income vs. a commission heavy role.
  
  

My favorite test is “understand myself” (google it), but there’s several similar assessments out there that are effective at testing OCEAN too.