You need to know both your Highest and your Lowest Work Values. Your highest work values tell you what
to look for in a job, and your lowest work values will tell you what to avoid in a job. If you find a job that emphasizes your lowest work values,
you will know that you will be at a disadvantage in that job, so you would avoid any jobs that have those work values as a dominant part of them.
When you have the two lists of your highest and lowest work values, use the descriptions in the table below to
write out a description of Your Ideal Work Environment. Describe what you want and what you don't want in your work environment.
Going through this exercise is a great help in focusing yourself, so you are consciously aware of which types of jobs compliment your Work Values, and are therefore most suitable for you.
| SCALE | WORK VALUES INVENTORY
DESCRIPTION | SCORE |
| ACCOMPLISHMENT | Work that gives me a feeling of achievement in doing a job well, and/or producing significant results | - |
| BEAUTY | Work where I'm dealing with beautiful things, appreciating or making beautiful things, and/or contributing beauty to the world | - |
| BEING A TEAM PLAYER | Work that is done as part of a team of people who work well together | - |
| CONTROL | Work which permits me to be in a decision-making capacity, responsible for planning and laying out work for others to do, in order to meet desired goals | - |
GENERAL
CREATIVITY | Work that allows me to develop new ideas, design new systems or products, to think 'outside the box' | - |
| DIVERSITY | Work that provides an opportunity to do different types of tasks, is not routine or repetitive, may have a wide range of duties | - |
| ENVIRONMENT | Work that is carried out under pleasant physical conditions, or in a location that I find desirable | - |
| ETHICAL COMMITMENT | Work that requires me to have a high degree of commitment to conforming to a predefined code of ethics | - |
| EXCITEMENT | Work that allows me to experience a high degree of emotional stimulation, and excitement during the performance of it. | - |
| FINANCIAL GAIN | Work that pays well and enables me to afford material rewards | - |
| FLEXIBILITY | Work that requires me to be highly adaptable to ever changing work requirements | - |
| HELPING OTHERS | Work that is involved in directly helping others: physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually | - |
| INTELLECTUAL STIMULATION | Work at which I'm acknowledged as an expert, recognized as having intellectual command of a body of knowledge | - |
| KNOWLEDGE | Work which challenges me to be always learning new things | - |
| PHYSICAL CHALLENGE | Work that makes physical demands on my body, requiring me to be in top shape, and active much of the time | - |
| PRECISION | Work that requires me to be very precise, accurate and careful about details, where there is no room for miscalculation | - |
| POWER | Work that allows you to play a significant role in deciding the progress and/or outcome of other people's lives | - |
| PRESTIGE | Work which gives me standing in the eyes of others, generates respect, being looked up to, because of my position on the job | - |
| SECURITY | Work that assures me of having a job even in difficult economic times | - |
| SELF-DETERMINATION | Work which permits opportunity for independent thinking, being able to work in my own way, as quickly or slowly as I decide is necessary, without direct supervision from others | - |
| SOCIABILITY | Work which brings me into contact with co-workers whom I like and through my work, I form lasting relationships with others | - |
| WAY OF LIFE | Work that gives me the time and freedom to live the lifestyle I choose, and does not take over my leisure time | - |
| WORKING ALONE | Work that permits me to spend a good deal of time by myself | - |
| WORKING UNDER PRESSURE | Work that forces me to be on the alert all the time, never knowing what will happen next, in unpredictable and possible life and death/emergency situations. | - |
| INTEGRITY | Work where it's important that I'm performing with honesty and decency, doing a good job, being fair in my dealings with others. | - |
