The 6 Personality Types and How They Impact Your Career Choice [2024]

People are happier and most productive when their career choice matches their type of personality, a widely accepted theory developed from The Holland Codes.

Researcher, John Holland, believed character traits of people work best when paired with jobs that utilize their strengths and are tailored to how they work best, resulting in more work and higher quality work.

How does this fit into managing a workspace? How your employees feel at the office, and their working environment will impact everything they do.

According to Holland, six key categories define the modern worker. His assessment offers a framework that considers interest in career choice and pairs ideal environments for types of personalities that also play a role in job satisfaction and performance.

The Six Personality types

The six types are Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. The theory classifies people into their respective categories by evaluating how a person approaches life situations — and most people fall into more than one category. People with the same personality type tend to work best with others of their type, while certain types work best alone or with specific groups over others.

Read through the 6 types of personalities and take into consideration the employee experience at your workplace. In the future, when creating teams or hiring new employees, it could benefit everyone to pair individuals with those they are most likely to succeed with.

Realistic (Doer)

Someone who likes to work mainly with their hands by making and fixing things, assembling operating equipment or using facility management software. They sometimes prefer working outdoors and find joy in a career that performs various manual labor. The Realistic individual works well with tools, machines, and mechanical drawings. Valuing practical things they can see and touch, they often see themselves as practical, mechanical, and goal oriented.

Best when working: Alone or with others in the Realistic category

Compatible with: Investigative or Conventional

Best career choice for the Realistic type:

• Carpenter
• Electrician
• Pilot
• Engineer
• Mechanic
• Facilities manager

Investigative (Thinker)

The most analytical of the six personalities, this detail oriented group loves to study and solve math or science-related problems. They aren’t skilled negotiators but work best in a career choice that lets them work with others who are grounded. They see themselves as precise, intellectual, and goal oriented people that like to be acknowledged for their achievements.

Best when working: Alone or with other investigative individuals

Compatible with: Realistic or Artistic

Best career choice for the Investigative type:

• Biologist
• Mathematician
• Computer Programmer
• Surveyor
• Pharmacist

Artistic (Creator)

This group of individuals values others who are expressive and independent with an openness to experience. They naturally admire the creative arts, including writing and music, and have high levels of creativity. They see themselves as expressive and original and prefer to avoid a career choice that requires highly ordered or repetitive activities. They enjoy working in groups, but only if they are allowed expressive freedom and are encouraged to share their ideas.

Best when working: In groups that allow creative expression and unsystematic teams

Compatible with: Investigative and Social

Best career choice for the Artistic type:

• Graphic Designer
• Musician
• Book Editor
• Art Teacher
• Actor

Social (Helper)

Those with a Social personality type like to “dominate” their environment. This is the most common category of the six, and many people have traits of this category along with their others. They particularly value providing services for others and enjoy a career choice that enables them to work closely with people. Their ideal working conditions are with other people who are also trustworthy, helpful, and show appreciation.

Best when working: In group and team situations where they feel needed

Compatible with: Artistic and Enterprising

Best career choice for the Social type:

• Counselor
• Librarian
• Social Worker
• Physical Therapist
• Nurse

Enterprising (Persuader)

Enterprising personalities are the people you want on your team when it comes to getting things done. They’re energetic, confident and assertive, and they don’t shy away from a challenge. They can be extroverted or introverted, but they all share some common traits: they’re ambitious, hard-working and willing to try new things.

Best when working: In groups and with all types of people in a leadership position

Compatible with: Social and Conventional

Best career choice for the Enterprising type:

• Sales Manager
• Real Estate Agent
• School Principal
• Attorney
• Hotel Manager

Conventional (Organizer)

A member of this group would prefer a career choice where they can work with numbers, records, or machines. They enjoy repetitive tasks done in an orderly fashion and like to avoid ambiguous activities. They see themselves as organized and good at following directions. They value success in business and enjoy working with other people. However, they do best in small, systematic groups where they know their responsibilities.

Best when working: In groups that have defined duties assigned to all

Compatible with: Enterprising or Realistic

Best career choice for the Conventional type:

• Bookkeeper
• Secretary
• Bank Teller
• Mail Carrier
• HR Consultant

What this means for workplace managers

When planning your office’s environment, consider the variance in career choice these six categories tend to enjoy working in.

Artistic and Enterprising individuals are probably more drawn to a career choice in marketing and sales and would likely enjoy interacting if grouped together.

Be sure to give your Investigative and Realistic groups space to work alone, but consider offering them smaller and private gathering spots to choose from if their career requires them to work with others.

Your Conventional and Social departments — most likely those whose career choice is in HR and possibly security — should be placed where they’ll have lots of interaction with people and opportunities to help others.

Consider placing Conventional near your Artistic and Enterprising groups considering these individuals are likely to make a career choice that lets them enjoy working in teams.

Taking it a step further, when looking into the design for your workplace, consider the career choice and types of environments each personality would thrive.

Because they are prone to picking a career choice that involves working with varying groups of people, your Artistic and Enterprise groups most likely enjoy lots of colored and movable space so they can stretch their creative talents. However, your Realistic employees may prefer a quieter tone in their workspace to analyze data with workplace analytics software.

Knowing what works best for each personality and career choice is really important — however, the best way to gauge what people want is to ask. During your next office renovation, survey your employees to see what they want to see in the new workplace upgrade.

Need help with your next office renovation? We’ll give you a blueprint for your future workplace. Take the assessment.