It’s funny. My life was all planned out at the young age of 26 as I read the personal mission statement created in 1994 for my first MBA graduate course. Although it was clear that my mission in life as a Working Girl was to have a successful career, I laugh now at what I read. My plan included a successful career in information management. HA! What was I thinking?
With a clearly mapped out career path in the document, I was to soar up the corporate ladder and retire at the age of 55. Funny thing was, all of my personality tests indicated that I was to work in creative field such as marketing or advertising. Tests don’t lie. In fact, as I reviewed the Myers Briggs, Strong Campbell and variety of other tests, I was ‘off the charts’ intuitive…not cut out for the geeky field of computer science.
An INFP is what the tests indicated. A quirky little personality type that represent only 5% of the population. Now that explains it!! The description describes intuitive, creative, in love with life, loves all people and despises details. Career path recommended: Social worker – no; Acting – maybe; Musician – closer; Inventor – hmm just like Dad, Writer – not an option at that time; Marketer – right on! The very next semester I dumped the field of IT and changed my major to marketing. INFP’s follow their gut…it wasn’t a hard decision.
Even funnier was the account of how I mapped out my personal life. I would only have one child. And SHE would be born by the time I was thirty. This was scary to me at the time considering that was only four years away. The real story was that HE was born just two year after the document was writen…and HIS brother was born 3 ½ years later. I still received my MBA in marketing and don’t regret for a minute that I didn’t have a SHE.
The craziest thing as I read the professor’s comments sixteen years later. “You engaged me throughout the document. Forget the MBA, you should be a writer.” Why did it take me so long to listen??
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