If my strengths include being a conversationalist and being polite then what types of careers might best fit me?

If by "conversationalist" you mean "I am great at putting people at ease and exploring ideas with them," then consulting with one of the big consulting firms could be a good career (assuming you also have a good analytical mind and aren't afraid of numbers). "Being polite" is obviously key to success in any field - even the most works-alone introverted engineer will be more effective if she can be gracious about giving and receiving feedback. If by "being polite" you mean "shying away from disagreement," then I'd recommend working on getting over that. See Kim Scott's wonderful book Radical Candor for tips, as well as Amy Edmondson's recently published The Fearless Organization.

Those are great strengths to have. I find that they are very helpful in a number of careers. Sales for example is all about building relationships, it is often a high pressure high reward career (a career that I never had the nerve to do). Customer Success (a fairly new focus for companies and something I've been loving for the last few years) is another role based on building relationships, getting to know your customers, and finding ways to help them. If you also have any technical skills there is a side of Sales called Presales, those are typically the demo people. The ones that listen to a prospects problems and then using software applications works out solutions to those problems. A great job if problem solving is also something you enjoy. Different industries have different versions of these roles but I think they all benefit greatly by being able to relate to people, and a degree of honesty.

I also identify these two areas as being personal strengths, and I've found a lot of success in jobs that directly affect other people, require patience and being detail oriented. A few examples of such are: Researcher, Librarian, Journalist, IT Support, Executive Assistant, Front Desk intake for a healthcare facility or another place that helps people feel at ease during tough times.

You can be a Recruiter!! Being a conversationalist, polite are two of the skills you need. Others include being an active listener, being curious, liking people, wanting to help people. Enjoying seeing other people succeed and helping them to get there. Recruitment really is a very satisfying career!