Would I Make a Good Film and Video Editor?

Instead of being in front of the camera acting, maybe you prefer to stay behind the scenes. Film and video editors make about $60,000 per year, and the field is growing much faster than average. The role includes manipulating footage to entertain or inform an audience, usually from an office setting. Minimum requirements include a Bachelor’s degree.

Does it Match Your Interests?

People with Artistic and Entrepreneurial interests typically have a multitude of ideas about what they would like to create. John was one of those clients, Marjorie at TheCareerProfiler.com told me. Among his list of career ideas he presented was a  videographer.  A videographer plays both roles: camera operator and film editing, but getting him to commit to a single career was challenging. In fact, working with creatives like John usually requires a different approach. For John to be successful as a “entrepreneurial creative” he needs to set a bigger vision in place that acts like a beacon on a hill – drawing him ever closer to his vision – yet allowing him the freedom to play his way creatively toward the vision that was compelling enough to draw him. Take the Strong Interest Inventory to see how you compare to John. 

Does it Match Your Abilities?

On the other hand, Bill, a hard-working family man, landed a job as a camera operator in his local television station years earlier. Not only was he tired of the work, he needed to earn a higher income to support the demands of his family. When we reviewed his three career test results, we discovered that he didn’t really have the abilities or interests to do the work of a camera person. But through experience he had developed some of the skills. To love camera work, most people possess at least one of two reasoning abilities at the “driving level.” That is to say, they press unconsciously for expression. He had none of them. We recommended that he work with his current employer to obtain more of an administrative or managerial role, which he did, and he has been managing there ever since. Take the Highland’s Ability Battery to see how you compare to Bill. 

A Quick Glance at Film Editing

• Artistic — Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.  
• Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.  

• Investigative — Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.  
• Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).  
• Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. 
• Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.  
• Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).  
• Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. 

Personality of a Film Editor

In a career as a film or video editor, possessing certain personality preferences and characteristics is extremely beneficial to the pleasure, general ease of work tension, and best fit an individual will find in this field. A certain Myers-Briggs Type Indicator®  personality type often finds happiness and satisfaction in this role more than others.

Would I Make a Good Actor?

Actors star in everything from Broadway musicals to made-for-TV-movies, and the annual salary could max out at $30 million. But before traipsing off to Los Angeles, take a test from the comfort of your hometown to see if acting is the right path for you!

Have you ever wondered why actors yearn to be acting that they are willing to live in poverty until they get their big break?  It’s really not just about the money, fame or the glamour lifestyle.  It may be because they possess the right combination of abilities.  Some of those abilities actually unconsciously demand to be expressed.  It acts like a need for water when you are thirsty or a need for solid  food when you are hungry. These are physical needs but there actually are mental health needs as well. If they do not find an outlet for their abilities, persons who possess them might say that they are depressed or feeling like they are going “insane” or needing to be “noticed.” 

Highlands Ability Battery: 

While Highlands lists Extroversion as a key ability to act, I would say otherwise.  An introvert when interacting with the world around them automatically “goes inside themselves” to reflect on how to project themselves.  This internal action causes them to create within their minds a role to play in the outer world around them.  That is a key ingredient for character acting.  Other types of acting would lend themselves more to an extroverted ability profile.  

Without the ability to read and comprehend what they read and to memorize the actor will struggle with performance. 

“Performing Communicator” is what The Highland’s Ability Battery calls someone who is an Extroverted and a Specialist, who also have Concept Organization and Idea Productivity. This combination presses you to be “out front” and gives you the ability to think quickly on your feet, to respond, react, and adjust to the flow of the conversation or performance and to convey information understandably. 

 You have to be adaptable to different situations and need variety. Seek variety in personal interaction and variety in any long term environment by using your Specialist orientation to dig deep into areas where a company might require some help with training its employees or contractors, or presenting new ideas or campaigns. 

Your strength is your ability to constantly adjust to the flow of conversation and to add new information to the discussion to lead people towards your point of view. Any career where you stand in front of others and interact with them in order to entertain, inform, or train will be a natural for you. Many industries have in- house trainers or information specialists that operate as an expert. Others utilize consultants and independent product trainers. Honing your skills of learning new ideas and deepening your knowledge in areas of interest create a readiness for you to share necessary information with others. 

Key Abilities:

• Artistic — Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.  
• Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business. Persuading others to belief the role they are playing.

Personality – Is it a good fit for who I am? 

Several personalities lend themselves to acting.  Among them ESFP, ISFP but INFP yearn the most to have a job in the acting world.  Here’s why:  

• value inner harmony above all else 

• are sensitive, idealistic, and loyal 
• have a strong sense of honor concerning their personal values 
• motivated by deep personal belief or devotion to  a cause they feel is worthy 
• interested in possibilities beyond what is already known 
• focus most of their energy on their dreams and visions 

• Open-minded, curious, and insightful 
• excellent long-range vision 
• demonstrate cool reserve on the outside 
• compassionate, sympathetic, understanding, and sensitive to the feelings  of others 
• avoid conflict and are not interested in impressing or dominating 
• can be most ingenious when persuading others of the importance of their ideals 

Abilities of a Career Counselor

Group Influencing 

The foundation of this pattern is the personal style of a Networker (Extroverted Generalist) with an idea-reach, Flexible Problem Solving style (Idea Productivity, moderate Classification and Concept Organization). This combination leverages a natural ease with working with groups of people; others are likely to listen and respond. People with this pattern can quickly and easily generate a large number of ideas. They can think of a new approach to communicate a thought if the approach they begin with is not understandable to the audience. This is a strong pattern for any of the helping professions, motivation or teaching, or sales and marketing. 

Idea Productivity

Idea Productivity also enhances the natural Flexible problem solving style of people with this pattern. They are able to adjust their approach to influence others’ progress toward a goal, including in the helping fields.

Seeing a problem or challenge from more than one point of view, and keeping in mind the group’s perspective, you are able to create a plan without locking into it. You may find you are able to influence other people and persuade them to your point of view. 

Concept Organization

Concept Organization can be used to develop plans for influencing people through advertising or marketing campaigns. With this ability you are able to organize effectively. Marketing and advertising are not the only important. People with these abilities and an interest in public service may enjoy politics or lobbying as well. 

 If your visual abilities (Design Memory and Observation) are prominent, you can use them in fields such as advertising and public relations that often seek to shape opinions through visual media. The visual abilities can also be useful in the helping professions such as counseling and educational consulting. They will help you to notice and respond to body language, dress, and appearance, which can be quite powerful in any people- oriented profession. 

The Assisting-People pattern

The Assisting-People pattern combines the personal style of a blended Generalist/Specialist with an idea-rich Pragmatic Problem Solving style (Idea Productivity, lower Classification and Concept Organization), comfort with dealing with intangibles (lower SRV), and attention to visual details (Observation) and the capacity to listen (Tonal Memory). People with this pattern are naturally wired to connect with, understand and be sensitive to others’ needs and feelings – intangible elements of relating. They are patient and less likely to jump to conclusions when faced with new situations. 

Relying on an experiential problem solving approach, those with this pattern are able to draw on their own experiences as well as those of others to build a powerful database of information, solutions, and positive outcomes. Once a situation is experienced, they are very quick to know what to do without overthinking. They use their ability to draw on past experience to master a set of skills and pragmatically solve problems. People with this pattern are instinctively driven to provide a balanced perspective. They like to for consideration. Success and advancement in many organizations is based on this factor alone. 

This powerful pattern equips people to concentrate on the problems presented, to understand the sender, and to patiently work towards the best outcome for staff, clients, patients, students or even family members. Those with the Assisting- People pattern, with time and patience, can develop an area of expertise in almost any industry, and will likely be happy staying in the same industry for a long period of time.  

Connecting- Brainstorming

Connecting- Brainstorming – This is another “low bar” ability profile for counseling, psychology, therapy.  Persons with this profile will be inclined to provide a variety of solution ideas for whoever they are serving.  They will not be able to present a solution plan in any systemic or logical fashion so problem-solving will be a trial and error approach.  The audience they are most likely to resonate the best with will be the “common folk” not those in the professional or executive ranks. 

This pattern combines a Generalist orientation with rich idea generation (Idea Productivity) and the skill to communicate with most of the general public. This combination is useful in work roles requiring encouraging, endorsing, marketing, promoting and selling. These activities are valuable in a wide variety of fields depending on interests and goals. People with this pattern have ease and competence in initiating contact and working well with people. Others will usually listen and respond to the new solutions generated. This pattern has practical application in any of the helping professions, as well as in sales and marketing roles and can be applied in one-on-one, small group or large group situations. 

Idea Productivity

 Many jobs do not provide an outlet for Idea Productivity, although people with this pattern will most likely feel a need to use it. One exception is a role that requires a direct response to people’s needs and then finding different ways to convince others of a solution. Think of selling in this broad context. Any time you listen to someone’s needs, come up with alternative ideas, articulate those ideas so they are understood, and successfully change their minds, you are using this complex group of abilities. You have persuaded them to agree with your assessment and accept your solution, which means you have sold them. 

You will be happiest and use your abilities most effectively when you can perform a variety of functions. The Generalist orientation suggests a drive toward variety in your work and Idea Productivity the drive to generate alternative ways to frame your communications. People with this combination often work on tasks that require the cooperation of others, so a Generalist orientation leverages your natural engagement in the success of the project. 

Other personal style characteristics can affect the work environment that will feel optimal to you. If you are more extroverted than introverted, projects where working with people is required will feel less taxing on your energy level. If you are more introverted than extroverted, plan to offset the intensity of team interaction with brief respites of time alone. 

Group Influencing 

The foundation of this pattern is the personal style of a Networker (Extroverted Generalist) with an idea-reach, Flexible Problem Solving style (Idea Productivity, moderate Classification and Concept Organization). This combination leverages a natural ease with working with groups of people; others are likely to listen and respond. People with this pattern can quickly and easily generate a large number of ideas. They can think of a new approach to communicate a thought if the approach they begin with is not understandable to the audience. This is a strong pattern for any of the helping professions, motivation or teaching, or sales and marketing. 

Idea Productivity

Idea Productivity also enhances the natural Flexible problem solving style of people with this pattern. They are able to adjust their approach to influence others’ progress toward a goal, including in the helping fields. Seeing a problem or challenge from more than one point of view, and keeping in mind the group’s perspective, you are able to create a plan without locking into it. You may find you are able to influence other people and persuade them to your point of view. 

Concept Organization can be used to develop plans for influencing people through advertising or marketing campaigns. With this ability you are able to organize effectively. People with these abilities and an interest in public service may enjoy politics or lobbying as well.  

If your visual abilities (Design Memory and Observation) are prominent, you can use them in fields such as advertising and public relations that often seek to shape opinions through visual media. The visual abilities can also be useful in the helping professions such as counseling and educational consulting. They will help you to notice and respond to body language, dress, and appearance, which can be quite powerful in any people- oriented profession. 

Specializing- Advising

 Specializing- Advising – Psychologist of all kinds tend to want to become experts in their field whereas counselors prefer to be generalists. This ability highlights the specialist ability.  This profile matches the key CL and CO abilities presented by ONET but fails to account for need to hear and understand clients probably because these specialist have their knowledge to share with you rather than the need to care and understand you, the client. 

This pattern combines the Specialist orientation with Consultative Problem Solving (Classification and Concept Organization) and a deeper connection with the intangible world (lower Spatial Relations Visualization). People with this pattern make connections easily and can diagnose situations quickly. They can also create solutions to implement by putting a procedure or protocol in place. These abilities allow you to quickly identify problems, logically look at each step in the process, and communicate your findings with ease. You have the natural ability to combine various components into a pattern and analyze cause and effect. And, as a 

Specialist, you will likely know all of the pros and cons, ins and outs, and the myriad of consequences of any solution selected. You will work most effectively in a career that demands a fast pace and rapid- fire problem solving within a specific niche. You will relish the opportunity to synthesize information and analyze causes. 

Your Spatial Relations Visualization indicates you lean toward the intangible and are comfortable dealing with laws, theories, concepts, and ideas. You probably do not require a tangible or concrete outcome of your work to feel satisfied. However, as a strong Specialist you will need to choose an area of expertise. Becoming an expert will be a driving force in your life and may require additional education. 

Giving advice as an expert is an ability that is highly regarded in many industries. The research scientist or lawyer has a depth of expertise that those outside their fields admire. You will be motivated to delve deeply into your area of specialty and will be very comfortable informing others of changes in your industry. If you are an Extrovert, you might want to investigate public speaking or making presentations about your expertise. If you are an 

Introvert, you may want to take the lead in research writing and documentation or possibly write a book about your field. 

Would I Make a Good Career Counselor?

A career counselor helps all sorts of people figure out which career suits them best. On average, they earn anywhere from $56,000 to $86,000 annually. Most career counselors work for schools, but there are other options as well.

Career counselors should have three major abilities to find success in their work: group influencing, brainstorming, and assisting. They work well in groups and generate ideas. They can influence other people’s progress and see challenges from more than one point of view. They also develop plans to influence advertising campaigns and may enjoy politics.

These are simply the minimum abilities to perform this kind of work. Each ability combination plays a role in how they express themselves as a career counselor.

If you’re wondering whether you possess these traits, find out here.

One career counselor I worked with scored highest in the skill of selling and persuading.  That means she scored highest in Extroversion, Idea Productivity and Tonal Memory. She was good at getting clients but wasn’t as skilled at understanding and deciphering complicated ability patterns. She simply presented the information she saw without being able to see the unique pattern of real people. Few people’s ability pattern fit exactly any one of the 64 Highlands Career Patterns, and exact profile fits are rare. She was not able to customize the information for an individual’s specific career needs, and the individual would have to do that themselves.

Another career counselor I know has all the talent-based reasoning abilities. This counselor finds it relatively easy and enjoyable to customize and tailor testing information from multiple sources to individual needs. That means clients with unique ability patterns will find that this counselor is able to highlight the best career niche that fully appeals to them. Because her reasoning abilities are non-training based, she is capable of naturally reasoning through information without a book or formula. She can decipher each new pattern for specific careers. But, she was more reticent to and less skilled at selling her services.

In 2017, Google fired one of their engineers for disparaging female engineering abilities. His memo became public, a heated discussion arose about diversity, and then he was fired. However, the company settled his unlawful termination case. Probably because he had almost 100 years of research backing his assertions. 

Would I Make a Good Engineer?

Engineering careers demand the highest scores in two very specific driving aptitudes or abilities: Spatial Theory and Spatial Visualization, but also Design Memory.  The Highland’s Ability Battery test can help you discover whether you possess these traits. 

In other words, these traits come naturally, like thirst and hunger, and there is a push inside to express these abilities.  

The Highlands Ability Battery is an aptitude test.

Females score far lower on average than men because hormones tend to affect the expression of this ability. Women score differently on the SRV test at different times in their cycle. *See link at the bottom of this post.

Race Factors into Engineering Abilities

 In fact, Caucasians score far higher on engineering abilities than any other racial group.  That can be explained in part by epigenetics (the way the environment changes genetic expression).  In other words, those persons without the ability to engineer homes to withstand heavy snows of the north died out and so the gene pool among northern Europeans was left with primarily engineering related genetics.   

Sadly, in this day and age, the Spatial Visualization ability is coming under assault because men possess this quality and women do not. It’s not surprising that we are seeing a rise in depression and anxiety or numbing behaviors among males.  They possess significantly higher scores than women making it “driving” in them. They may even turn to gaming to relieve the need to manipulate hands, which causes depression, anxiety, or other mentally dysfunctional behaviors. 

I, Marjorie Wall-Hofer, founder and CEO of TestEts, had this ability first tested in high school. Back then they didn’t understand the full expression or need function of it. I was just told I could do physics. I chose not to because not many women were taking the course at the time so I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it either. 

Driving abilities generally get passed down from father to daughter and mother to son.  Therefore, if male, you will likely share more abilities in common with your maternal grandfather than with your father. If female, you will likely share more driving abilities in common with your paternal grandmother. 

Women Meeting the Engineering Quota

Women with the engineering profile tend to prefer to enter into human systems engineering such as clinical psychology, behavioral therapy, or human systems research. One client with high intelligence and the engineering profile was pursued in high school by Harvard and MIT and Stanford. This irritated her greatly because she felt that she was sought out only because she was a woman with the ability to do engineering.  Well, there was great truth to that. Both companies and educational institutions are trying to increase the number of women engineers. While they have no quotas, there is a public perception that there is intentional inequality in engineering jobs.

The inequality in engineering programs and companies is not about bias as much as it is simply lack of ability. 

Interested in learning more about the Google engineer or women in engineering? Click here: https://www.vox.com/identities/2017/8/8/16106728/google-fired-engineer-anti-diversity-memo