You can work hard without chasing a promotion. You can also have a big goal and put little time into it. This test asks about your effort, so the score may differ from how ambitious you think you are.
What the score asks about
The test uses the Big Five, a research model with five broad personality traits. Achievement-Striving is a smaller part, or facet, of Conscientiousness. Conscientiousness covers habits such as planning, staying organized and following through.
Four questions ask about working hard, doing more than expected, putting little effort into work and doing only what is needed. The last two count in the opposite direction when the score is calculated.
Your answers describe how you see your work habits. They do not measure the quality of your work, the size of your goals or the reasons behind your effort. A lower score is not enough to call someone lazy.
| Part of the test | What it asks about |
|---|---|
| Achievement-Striving | Effort you put into work |
| Orderliness | Preference for order and routines |
| Self-Discipline | Starting tasks and keeping going |
These are three of the six parts of Conscientiousness. A low score on one is different from a low score on the whole trait.
Ambition and worry about mistakes
Wanting to do well and worrying about flaws can happen together. Researchers studying perfectionism distinguish high personal standards from concern about mistakes and other people's judgment 1. This test's effort score does not measure perfectionism.
Think about a recent task. Were you trying to reach a demanding goal, avoid a mistake, or both? That question may help you understand the situation better than adding another label.
What the research supports
A review found a link between Conscientiousness and job performance in five groups of jobs 2. Three studies that followed people over time also linked this broad trait with job satisfaction, income and job status 3.
Those findings concern groups of people and the whole trait. They do not show that this smaller effort score causes success or predicts your career. Skills, health and opportunity matter too. Read more about Conscientiousness and income or working hard and burnout.
If you keep raising the target, try writing down what “done” means before you start. After the task, check whether that stopping point helped. Treat it as a small experiment with your work habits.
Explore your own patterns
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References
Footnotes
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Stoeber, J., & Otto, K. (2006). Positive conceptions of perfectionism: Approaches, evidence, challenges. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 10(4), 295–319. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327957pspr1004_2 ↩
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Barrick, M. R., & Mount, M. K. (1991). The Big Five personality dimensions and job performance: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 44(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1991.tb00688.x ↩
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Judge, T. A., Higgins, C. A., Thoresen, C. J., & Barrick, M. R. (1999). The big five personality traits, general mental ability, and career success across the life span. Personnel Psychology, 52(3), 621–652. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1999.tb00174.x ↩