by Marcella Wolf, for AOL Find a Job

Today's workplace makes us all lifelong learners. Knowing how you best grasp information and put it into action can help drive your career success. Each of us learns differently. Some learn best by hearing, others by seeing. Some need to involve themselves in a hands-on way to "get it." Most of us learn using a combination approach, but we usually favor one way.

Companies today are seeking to maximize the results they achieve for the training investments they make. Knowing your learning style can help you more easily access, organize, store and retrieve new information-all the processes that go into learning. And better learners are better employees and find greater fulfillment at work. What's your learning style? Take our short quiz and find out. Use the results to increase your potential for success throughout your lifetime of workplace learning.

Select A, B or C to choose the answer that best describes you.

The quiz is adapted from the book Accelerated Learning by Colin Rose.

1. By Friday, I need to learn my company's new electronic system for submitting my time and expense report to get paid.

A. I like to see demonstrations, diagrams or slides.

B. I need to attend a session where an instructor shows me how to use it.

C. "Out of my way!" I'll jump in and do it myself. I'll let you know if I have questions.

2. I'm hooking up my new flat screen television.

A. First, I'll look at the directions. This is all new territory and it's pretty high-tech stuff after all.

B. I'll jump right in and start. American Idol's on tonight!

C. I'd rather see if there's an interactive online Web site for directions. Maybe I'll go for a walk first.

3. My new boss has a tricky name. Spelling it correctly is important.

A. After I see it in print enough times, it will sink in.

B. By sounding it out, I'll learn how to spell it correctly.

C. I need to write it down a few times. Once I understand how it "feels" by my hand, I'll spell it with no problem.

4. I'm performing a task where I need to concentrate.

A. A messy desk or cluttered room drives me to distraction.

B. My colleague's voice over the cubicle wall disturbs me.

C. All those people walking outside my office distract me.

5. I need to contact a colleague to discuss our teaming effort for a new project.

A. I need a face-to-face meeting.

B. I pick up the phone.

C. I like to talk while walking, having lunch together or participating in some other activity. Golf anyone?

6. Last week I had many different sales meeting. On the street, a week later, one of the prospects I met with comes up to me, re-introduces himself and says he's considering my company's offer.

A. I forget his name but I remember his face.

B. I remember his name and exactly what we talked about, but I can't place the face.

C. I remember what we were doing when we met.

7. When I make a presentation I:

A. Dislike speaking or listening for too long. Use words such as "picture" and "imagine."

B. Enjoy speaking, but also listening. Use words such as "hear" and "think" a lot.

C. Gesture and use many expressive movements.

8. HELP!!! It's Friday at 5:00. I need to submit my timecard to get paid. The new system is not accepting the hours I enter.

A. Having a decent picture or single-shot diagram that quickly explains things would help.

B. I'll call the help desk or asking my neighbor while I'm growling at the computer.

C. I'll keep trying or go to a different computer down the hall.

9. Tonight, I'm going to relax and catch up on my reading:

A. I like descriptive scenes and take my time to pause to imagine the actions.

B. I enjoy dialog and conversation or "hearing" the characters talk in my mind.

C. I'm not a keen reader. If I must, I prefer action stories.

Tally up your answers:

Mostly "A's": You're a Visual Learner

The Reader, The Observer

Visual learners learn best by seeing. If you are a visual learner, below are some characteristics you possess. Understanding them will help you better know how to grasp and retain information at work.

• You prefer to learn by reading, not listening, and prefer to see new information in print.
• You scan everything; want to see things; enjoy visual stimuli.
• You easily remember information presented in pictures, charts or diagrams.
• You notice details.
• You often pay close attention to the body language of others (facial expressions, eyes, stance, etc.)
• You have a keen awareness of the aesthetics, the beauty of the physical environment, visual media, or art.
• You may dream in color.
• You like colors and fashion.
• You have strong visual-spatial skills such as being able to represent sizes, shapes, textures, angles, and three-dimensional depths.
• You have strong visualization skills and may even make vivid and detailed "movies in your mind" of information you are reading.



Helpful hints for visual learners:

Use visual aids, diagrams, charts or other visual forms for outlining a process. Sit close to the instructor during presentations. Being visually attuned means that you are a prime candidate for accessing the wide range of online learning increasingly available.

Visual learners have certain advantages in today's fast-paced, technology-driven-world. Communication is becoming more visual in nature; increasingly, graphics are being used to convey ideas. Think "more pictures; fewer words." Being able to capture the essence of any message and convey it in a single frame is highly marketable.




Mostly "B's": You're an Auditory Learner

The Listener, The Talker


Auditory learners learn best by hearing. They remember information more accurately when it has been explained orally. Do the following characteristics sound like you? Understanding them will help you better understand your learning style:

• You can accurately remember details of information you hear during conversations or presentations, including oral instructions.
• You have strong language skills, which include a well-developed vocabulary and an appreciation for words; you are a conversationalist and articulate your ideas clearly.
• You solve problems by talking them through.
• You like attending plays and musical events.
• You have a good ear for music and often have musical talents. When listening, you are attuned to tones, rhythms and individual notes.
• Your finely tuned ear makes learning a foreign language relatively easy.
• You might use phrases such as "sounds good to me" or "I hear you; that clicks."
• You like to discuss ideas and concepts in the workplace.
• You may remember information such as phone numbers by saying them aloud.
• You are a good storyteller.
  

  Helpful hints for auditory learners:

  If possible, record training sessions you may have at work. You're a likely candidate for plugging into the world of online college and university lectures, recorded ebooks, and other study resources-some of which are even free. Many of these tools can be downloaded for use on your IPod allowing you to have an entire university in your pocket-even when you're not near a computer.

  Being an auditory learner means you have the verbal skills to make effective workplace presentations and articulate the arguments that can sell just about anything, including yourself as an employee. Your listening skills make you a good manager.

  
  

  Mostly "C's": You're a Kinesthetic Learner

  The Toucher, The Doer
  

  Kinesthetic learners learn by doing. You prefer using your body, hands and sense of touch to learn. If the following characteristics feel familiar to you, you are a kinesthetic learner.

• You have good hand-eye coordination, are well-coordinated and have a strong sense of timing and body movement.
• Full of energy, you may tap your feet or move your legs when you sit; you talk with your hands and your whole body.
• You may be a non-desk type.
• You may use phrases such as "I can see myself doing that" and "It's starting to come alive."
• You are a toucher, a hugger and are in touch with your own feelings.
• It is common for you to focus on two different things at once.
• You work well with your hands. You may be good at carpentry, repair work, sculpting, art and expertly handling various tools.
• You're good at drawing designs.
• You like computers, especially interactive programs.



Helpful hints for kinesthetic learners:

In onsite workplace training, check out options for participatory group exercises or "labs" that involve you in hands-on learning. In terms of computers, you're not one for passive reading and get the most from highly interactive sites. The world of online education is for you, especially when courses involve interactive software and learning games.

As a doer, you may be the one looked to for results when it comes to getting the job done. You are good at mechanical endeavors. Also known as "tactile learners," many kinesthetic types are naturals for jobs in massage therapy. You are naturally adept at knowing how the human body moves-and how to keep in balance. You excel at sports, dance and acting.




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