When you announced your college major and started your career path because someone special in your life said they thought you’d be good at it…

When you chose to work for that company because their mission aligned with your values…

When you said yes to that job offer because the job description mentioned you would be responsible for leading initiatives of your dreams…

...I bet you never thought you’d be sitting here wondering why you’re unhappy, dissatisfied, and annoyed by everything at work.

What would you do to no longer be a part of the 85% of people who hate their jobs?

Certainly it’s worth a few minutes of your time to rediscover yourself and the type of work that fills you with purpose.

At the end of this article, you’ll receive an opportunity to choose a career based on your unique needs and a game plan for reversing months or years of career regret.

Is it time to choose a career or job that's a better fit?

There are times when it’s necessary to switch jobs, like if you’re dealing with a toxic boss, unbearable colleagues, or a flawed company culture. It also might make sense to switch careers if your industry is being phased out by technology or the salary recommendations for your role don’t match the requirements of your lifestyle.

But if you’re disrupting your career path because you aren’t doing the type of work you thought you’d be doing or you want to be doing, pump the brakes.

You may just need to revisit your personality type and the kind of work you crave before you make any hasty decisions.

Choosing a career or job based on your personality requires a level of self-reflection that some may find intimidating.

Through his proprietary Sparketype quiz, Jonathan Fields, CEO of Spark Endeavors, has made this process so much more accessible and a lot less excruciating for those who want to spend the rest of their life doing something they truly love and calling it “work.”

3 steps to finding the right career for you

Before you can choose a career based on your personality type, you have to be in the right mindset. You must believe that your personality type impacts your satisfaction at work and that it is possible to achieve happiness between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. even if Dolly Parton sings the contrary.

If you follow the steps below derived from Jonathan’s Sparketype assessment (used by more than 500,000 people!), you will discover how to make more informed career moves.

1. Accept that sometimes it’s not your job, it’s you

When you’re feeling lost or dissatisfied at work, you may stick the blame on a boss, coworker, or a client. But what you’ll find as you take a personality-based approach to building your career is that oftentimes you’re either not utilizing the resources you have within your organization and you aren’t asking for what you really need or want from others at work.

“While circumstance is part of the equation, the bigger switch that often needs to be flipped is one of self-discovery,” Fields writes in Sparked. “We can’t know where to steer our lives until we better understand what makes us come alive, and what empties us out.”

So, the first step to choosing a job based on your personality is recognizing that you have a role to play in your discontent.

After taking the quiz and getting assigned your Sparketypes, you can read the book to not only discover those conditions at work that trip you up, but also how to make them work for you.

For example, if you’re a Maker—someone who loves to manifest ideas—you get bored by systems and scale, hate being disconnected from the output and impact of your work, and avoid collaboration or cease contribution when too many people are involved in a project.

Jonathan has found that Makers can make their current job situation better if they “choose carefully, negotiate wisely, and be clear about where [their] line in the creation sand is.”

2. Understand what it means to be happy with your job and in your career

Happiness is subjective, however, Jonathan proposes 5 objective indicators of career satisfaction in his book, Sparked. These include purpose, engagement, meaningfulness, expressed potential, and flow.

When a job covers all of these bases, you can be sure you’ll find a constant source of happiness during work hours.

3. Reflect, uncover, and revise your approach to work

Now, you’re ready to take the Sparketype quiz.

Your responses to a few dozen questions will help you uncover which of 10 different Sparketypes ranging from Maker and Maven to Advisor and Sage you are so that you can improve your experience at your current job or pursue a new opportunity that better suits your personality type.

You can expect to answer either “Totally not me!” or “Yes, this is me!” to questions including:

• When I’m immersed in the quest to solve big, challenging problems, it’s like I’m doing the work I’m meant to do.
• The work that makes me feel most alive is when I'm turning ideas into things.
• For as long as I can remember, I’ve been the one people turned to for comfort when they were troubled.

At the end of the quiz, you’ll receive three results: your primary Sparketype (the work you love), your shadow Sparketype (the work you’re good at), and your anti-Sparketype (the work you hate).

Combined, your three Sparketypes paint a full picture of the kind of worker you are and the contributions you’re meant to make to this world.

Find the work that sparks you!

Learn more about each Sparketype—especially your own—when you take the quiz.

Get the book to dive deeper into your Sparketypes and to understand your coworkers and employees better so you can develop strong relationships that lead to a more productive, fulfilling, and successful workplace.