Quick Career Personality Test
based on Hand Types

If you are looking for a quick career personality test, the general shape of your hand is something you may want to consider. While it is not extremely precise, your hand type can give you some insights on the kind of life and occupation that would make you happy. Moreover, it is a lot of fun, and you may want to use this knowledge to read the hands of your friends and family members.

Look at your hands!

I have categorized hands into four distinct types: Practical, Action, Inner Process, and Curious.

In order to identify your hand type, look at your palm shape (rectangular or square) and your finger length (long or short). The palm can be longer than it is wide (Action and Inner Process types) and I refer to it as 'rectangular'. Or the palm length is more or less equal its width (Practical and Curious types) while not necessarily being square, but I still call it 'square'!

The length of the fingers is based on the length of the middle finger compared to the width of the palm. If the finger is longer, the fingers are considered long, and if it is shorter, the fingers are short. If length and width are equal, the fingers are usually considered short, for the purpose of this test.

Practical and Action types have short fingers, while Curious and Inner Process types have long fingers.

If your hands are mixed, they rarely fall under more than two categories. Read both descriptions and see what applies to you.

The “Practical” Type - Short fingers, square palm

Practical Type - Hard skin

Practical type people are down to earth and stable. To them, loyalty, security, familiarity, conformity and reliability are very important. They tend to be family-oriented. They hate artifice and pretension. They enjoy nature, animals and natural materials. They like to feel the earth beneath their feet. They are usually more focused on the the past than on the future. They are not good with details, unless they are making something.
The Practical type hands can be split into two categories: Hard Skin (often very few, clear-cut lines) and Soft Skin (often many thin lines).

Practical hands with Hard Skin have a lot of vitality and they usually don’t like working in an office or living in a big city. Their work is frequently focused on the home, the body or the garden. Change, innovation and technology are not for them.

They work well with their hands. Any skill they develop has to be useful. They often prefer working outdoors, doing something practical and they don’t mind repetitive work. They are attracted to occupations based on the outdoors, as well as rules, systems and structures. While their occupations are vital to our society, they often are unappreciated and unseen. This type of hand is often found on agricultural workers, builders, cooks, people in charge of cleaning, checking, maintaining and repairing, as well as those enforcing rules.

Practical Type - Soft skin

Practical hands with Soft Skin are not as robust as hard skinned hands, but their thinking patterns are more developed and they are often witty. They are very quick to think, to act and to react. Many of their actions and decisions are based on intuition. They can be found in any work environment as long as things go fast enough for them.

The “Action” Type - Short fingers, rectangular palm

Action Type

The short fingers mean a dislike for detail, the long palm adds intuition, and therefore people with this type of hands like to look at the overall picture.

Action type people are outgoing, enthusiastic, creative and goal-oriented. They are full of wonderful ideas, often impulsive and eager to start projects but not as good at finishing them. They have a need for variety and may lack patience. They are happy when they are busy and like activities that are useful. They use intuition to make quick decisions. They need change and variety.

Action Type

They tend to be individualistic and often make good leaders. They like to express themselves. They would be good at sales or any other career where they are left to get on with it. They are often seen on entrepreneurs and participants in risky sports. Action type people like skilled work and are best suited for occupations that give them the chance to use their own initiative, such as management, innovative business, sports, and motivating others.

The “Inner Process” Type - Long fingers, rectangular palm

Inner Process Type Bony Hand

Hands of the Inner Process type often give a (false) outward appearance of calm, as they consider thinking more important than action. Therefore, they always avoid conflict and competition. They are usually tall and don’t possess a very robust constitution.

The Inner Process type hands are split into two categories: the Bony hands (often prominent knuckles) and the Fleshy hands (often pointed fingertips).

People with Bony hands are deep, serious, analytical and methodical, and they love studying. They are prudent and cautious, like to take their time and don’t mind solitude. They make great researchers, philosophers, teachers, chemists, laboratory scientists, musicians, horticulturists, botanists, and would enjoy any occupation that requires making use of the mind.

Inner Process Type Fleshy Hand

People with Fleshy hands are primarily motivated by feelings and emotions. They have a rich inner life and they are not always practical. They are highly receptive to outside influences, which makes them emotional and changeable. Because of their strong aesthetic sense, they are often found in interior design, fashion and theatre. Relationships are very important to them and, being subtle and emotionally acute, they make natural counselors, therapists and healers.

The “Curious” Type - Long fingers, square palm

Curious Type

The Curious type hands combine the long fingers of the world of thought, with the wide hand of the world of action. Therefore they are both pensive and practical. They use logic more than intuition and tend to intellectualize their feelings. Simple or shallow work bores them, and they can be very patient. They tend to be non-conformist. They need a lot of space. Their nervous system is often overworked.

Curious Type

They are quick-witted and express themselves clearly. They strive to impose order on the world by understanding it. They enjoy travel and communication and are often good at working with the public. Many curious type hands enjoy “writing the scripts of life,” be it programming, psychotherapy, town planning, music, research or the media. They are natural instructors and advice givers. Their career choices could include radio broadcasting, television announcing, teaching and sales.

What about your hands?

Whether your hands fall in the Practical, Action, Inner Process or Curious categories, remember this career personality test is based on very general tendencies.

If you would like to find more about what you would be good at, based on your hands, you may be interested in a personal session, which will provide accurate information about your own hands.

To get more specific information about occupations based on different types of hands, read this e-book:

What should I do with my Life?
It's in Your Hands!


Your hands offer a visual representation of your potential and reveal the best path to take. In this abundantly-illustrated handbook with step-by-step instructions, you will learn basic palmistry concepts and you will apply them to your own handprints. For instance, you will be able to find out whether your occupation is right for you, or what your special talents are. Unveil your path to success!

To order "What should I do with my life?", click on this button:

$12.95 USD