A common thing I hear from college students is that they want to be happy with their career choice at the end of the day. They don’t want to graduate and end up stuck in some 9 to 5 job living paycheck to paycheck and never feeling really fulfilled. Happiness in what we do for a living is very important to us, especially nowadays when the economy is so bad. People are taking jobs not because they actually like the work, but because they just need to put food on the table in the house they have to pay rent on.
Normally when we picture those with the “happiest” careers, we picture those with a lot of money. Celebrities (Kim Kardashian, anyone?), pop singers, TV personalities, and models. Little did we know, however, that how much you’re paid can actually be a small factor in how happy you are at your job. This proves to be true with our first happiest career.
The clergy! According to simplyhired.com, the clergy (priests, pastors, and other religious professionals) only get paid an average of $37,000 per year. They’re the happiest because they handle mostly “happy” event, such as childbirth, baptism, and coming of age ceremonies. They are teachers and helpers and are therefore more valuable to those they help.
Firefighters are also ranked at the top of the list as having happy careers. Not only do they save lives, but with that comes the title: hero. Who doesn’t want to be one of those? Plus, firefighters have been portrayed in the media (i.e. Ladder 49) as admirable, and the man ends up with the girl at the end. It’s such a wonder to me, then, why so many firefighters are modest in real life? They are so unlike their movie personas, using it to their advantage and all. (P.S. It’s also not a necessity to have a college degree!)
It seems we have a theme here because next up are authors, who also help people. Their writing allows us all to live vicariously. If you have a creative mind and need an outlet, try your hand at pen and paper and see what happens! These days, everyone could use an escape from reality. The Hunger Games, anyone?
Despite what you might’ve guessed, clowns are not on the “happy” career list. They may dress up in a funny suit and wear a big red ball on their nose, but sometimes being around little kids with the pressure of entertaining their mind-wandering selves is just too much. It can all add up to a headache at the end of the work day.
What do you think the “happy” careers are? Are you happy with your job?
SJP 