Rochel had her first session last week, and is now anxiously awaiting her aptitude test scores. Unlike her friend Chana, her question is not how to decide on what to do, but rather how to choose from the many amazing options that she and her parents think she’d excel at!

I was never the nervous type, and I can’t remember the last time I was so antsy waiting for results — maybe my seminary acceptance letter. I knew that seeing numbers in black and white would make things a lot less hazy, and that all the “potential” I’ve been hearing about for years would now have to actualize into something concrete, but that scared me. It’s a lot more fun to hear, “Rochel, you’d make an amazing teacher!” or, “With your head, you’d make a great lawyer,” or my Aunt’s favorite: “If you ever open a bakery, I’m first in line!” Having to make a choice would narrow my options down to… just one thing.

It would have to be perfect. It would have to make enough money, give me flexible hours, and preferably, something I could run on my own one day. And it wouldn’t hurt if it gave me the opportunity to travel sometimes.

We sat down in person to review the scores, which is good because I had no idea what most of them meant. The results of the personality test matched the results of the test we had done in person — which I was glad to see, since I’m definitely in love with my type, supposedly one of the most fun types of people! I’m an “ESFP,” meaning I enjoy hands-on activity, action, and working with other people in a creative way. Which is very general… but also a good starting point. Now the question is — how can we match them all up to satisfy my wants and needs?

The higher scores revealed that I’m very “tribal” — I love to be part of a group. I’m also highly “spatial,” which means that my mind thinks about and visualizes things in pictures, as opposed to thoughts and intangible ideas. When I look at a drawing or design, I can easily picture the finished product. I scored fairly low in number and language memory, which explains why I can’t remember phone numbers and why I’m the only one in my family who still doesn’t understand basic Yiddish.

My analytical ability was average, which at first felt disappointing, but Shaina explained that having an average score can be a benefit. How? When someone has really high scores in any one area, that part of their brain rarely shuts off — it’s like automatic background music. When they don’t have a way to use that skill at work, which happens, they feel bored and unsatisfied with their jobs. Often, they don’t even know what that sense of restlessness is coming from until they see their scores. Having a low score can actually be useful too, since it highlights its opposite skill. It’s always a balance: If you are good at one thing, you won’t be good at its opposite. New way of looking at things for me. I can relate in terms of baking — I know it’s a plus that I am slow and deliberate; that’s one of the secrets to my amazing mousse. On the other hand, I have a hard time working quickly since I always want to get things just right. I could never “just whip something up.”

(Excerpted from Teen Pages, Issue 734)