In the high-stress environment of college life, where you feel pressured to figure out yourself and your life plan, achieving stability in your personal identity can be an ongoing challenge. Developing a sense of belonging takes time, but there are small steps that you can take to promote growth in the process. One simple thing that you can do to know yourself better is to take a personality test.
Personality tests aren’t just frivolous exercises for mandatory professional development meetings; these assessments are valuable tools for understanding how your personality traits fit into a larger picture of diverse identities. Taking a personality test not only helps you identify your own strengths, weaknesses, and emotions, but it also helps build a sense of self in the context of social differences.
Personality tests can evaluate many things: leadership traits, love languages, interpersonal skills, decision-making tendencies, and many more complex aspects of your personality. Notable personality tests include the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), Enneagram, True Colors, StrengthsFinder, and Apology and Love Languages. Some are free tools, while others require a subscription, but on the whole, you’ll probably find these to be more valuable than a BuzzFeed quiz.
Sometimes a little more emotional and social literacy is all it takes to feel a sense of stability in your identity. If you feel misunderstood, or you misunderstand others, then personality tests could be a valuable form of self-care and an important step toward knowing yourself.