Coolest Dream Jobs in the World
Remember that job you thought you’d have when you grew up?
Since not too many of us turned out to be astronauts, ballerinas or rock stars, odds are your career took a different turn.
If your 9 to 5 has you dreaming for adventure, keep reading. Work is always, well, work, but these jobs are about as cool as they come.
50. Professional Mourner
Salary: Up to $120 a funeral
What you do: Attend funerals to flesh out the crowd
Requirements: Acting and research skills, understanding of different religions, ability to think on the fly
Bottom line: We start off on a dark note. Professional mourners are actors that visit funerals pretending to know and love the deceased. As a professional mourner, you have to thoroughly research the person who passed and their family, come up with a convincing character, and trick friends and family into thinking you’re one of them.
The idea behind the gig is to make it seem like the lost loved one was loved a little extra. Because what’s sadder than a funeral with a pathetic turnout? To pull it off, serious acting chops and social skills are essential. You also need a thick skin, since you’ll need to hang out at multiple funerals per week to make a career out of it.
If you can cry on command and have a flair for the dark and dramatic (think April Ludgate from "Parks and Recreation"), this might be the job for you.
49. Snake Milker
Salary: $30,000
What you do: Extract venom for medical purposes
Requirements: A degree in zoology with a focus on herpetology, aka snake science
Bottom line: This job isn’t for the faint of heart. Milking a snake sounds scary enough before you realize that snakes don’t have udders and you’re actually milking its fangs.
Snake milkers train to carefully extract venom from rare and potentially lethal snakes and other venomous reptiles. The extracted venom can be used for a multitude of medical purposes and has been used to create medication for blood clots, high blood pressure and other common conditions.
The more exciting reason for extracting venom? Extracted venom also is used to create antivenom to save snakebite victims that would otherwise be goners. Become a snake milker, become a hero.
48. Movie Stand-In
Salary: From $160-$335 a day
What you do: Act as a substitute for lead actors on set
Requirements: Acting skills, with athletic talents a big plus
Bottom line: As a movie stand-in, you’ll spend your days on set acting like an actor. You’ll take an actor’s place during screen tests and in scenes that don’t show the character’s face much.
In some cases, you don’t need many other skills besides being able to follow directions. If you have experience riding motorcycles, dancing, doing gymnastics, or other athletic skills, you’ll likely be able to make more money.
If you can pick up choreography quickly and would love life in costume, give this one a try.
47. Professional Mattress Jumper
Salary: $28,500
What you do: Jump on beds to break them in
Requirements: Having legs, basically
Bottom line: Surprisingly, this is a real job with a real purpose. Mattress jumpers usually work for small, independent mattress companies to even out the layers of the mattress before putting it out on the sales floor.
There’s also a technique to it. If you get a gig as a mattress jumper, don’t aim to hit the ceiling with every bounce. Instead of going for height, try to bounce evenly across the entire surface of the mattress, or about 100 bounces per side.
Each mattress takes about 10 minutes to "bounce-out," so you’ll be bouncing on dozens per day. Tigger just found the perfect day job.
46. Body Part Model
Salary: Up to $75,000 per year
What you do: Model-specific body parts for commercials and print ads
Requirements: Pretty body parts
Bottom line: If you love the idea of modeling but don’t have the 6-foot legs required for high fashion, try just showing off your hands. Or legs, feet, eyes, lips, teeth, heck, even earlobes.
Companies want to highlight their products being worn or used by someone with aesthetically pleasing curves, be it a bracelet on a dainty wrist or an earring on a perfectly shaped ear.
If you have a favorite feature, try modeling it. Hand, leg, and foot models are in the highest demand. If you can do all three, you can make a nice living barely lifting a finger. (Or toe, depending on the gig.)
45. Professional Wedding Guest
Salary: $20 a wedding, plus free food
What you do: Hang out at weddings and pretend to be a guest
Requirements: Acting skills and an affinity for dancing and free food
Bottom line: Some wealthy couples dream of a big, beautiful wedding. But they don’t have enough friends to fill the hall.
This is mostly a thing in South Korea and Japan, but if you live there, it’s a fun way to make a little extra money. During the wedding season, some professional wedding-goers attend three weddings a day, each of which includes amazing food and possibly an open bar.
Where do I sign up?
44. Netflix Tagger
Salary: Likely around $65,000
What you do: Watch movies on Netflix and add relevant tags
Requirements: A passion for TV and movies, and a degree in film studies doesn’t hurt
Bottom line: Movie lovers who can handle watching hours (days, really) on end of Netflix shows can actually get paid to do just that. As they watch each episode or movie, they tag it with metadata to help the content become easier to discover.
While some of the tags are straightforward, like length, age-rating, and how much violence and adult content it contains, others are more subjective. The romance category, for example, includes a broad range of nuanced topics, like first love, affairs, divorce, unconventional relationships, and so on and so forth.
This job is best for those who like to watch their movies and analyze them, too.
43. Zombie
Salary: At least $64 for up to 8 hours of work
What you do: Pretend to have a thirst for brains on the set of "The Walking Dead"
Requirements: Be at least 18 and very slim. Having big eyes, a thin face and a slender neck get you bonus points.
Bottom line: It’s not the highest-paying gig, but if you’re skinny and would like to check a weird box off your bucket list, start practicing your zombie groans.
Professional zombies are just extras on the set of the biggest zombie franchise to date: "The Walking Dead." Zombies spend full days in costume, menacingly chasing the cast.
If you don’t mind doing stunts, you can make a little more per day. If that’s still not enough, stand-ins for the cast get up to $300 a day.
42. Mermaid
Salary: About $250 an hour
What you do: Wear a mermaid costume and perform routines
Requirements: Strong swimming and acting skills
Bottom line: With the invention of realistic-looking mermaid costumes came the dawn of a new career option: a professional mermaid. Professional mermaids work as performers in high-end clubs, bars, hotels, aquariums and at children’s events.
Wearing an expertly crafted silicone tail, mermaids hop into a massive tank and perform elaborate shows for a live audience. Regardless of the venue, the shows are rarely scandalous.
Most mermaids focus on grace, beauty, and magic, all while swimming in a heavy tail, possibly surrounded by live fish.
41. Unexploded Ordnance Technician
Salary: $60,000
What you do: Detonate unexploded objects safely
Requirements: UXO training and certification
Bottom line: Adrenaline junkies, rejoice! A UXO tech is paid to set off bombs. Yes, your job is to blow stuff up.
Usually, the job is connected with the military. In this type of position, a UXO tech identifies an explosive device and uses their expertise to safely transport and detonate the unexploded weapon. Alternatively, UXO techs can take on jobs demolishing buildings, carving out paths and roads with dynamite, and working to expand mines.
This is definitely a job you need a burning passion for.
40. Professional Pusher
Salary: It’s a mystery
What you do: Squeeze people into crowded trains
Requirements: Complete disregard for personal space
Bottom line: If you’ve ever been called pushy, we have the job for you.
Japan has hired a select number of "people pushers" who (gently) shove people into crowded trains to maximize the capacity.
It’s probably not up to our usual safety standards, but it gets people to work on time.
39. Ostrich Babysitter
Salary: Up to $20 an hour
What you do: Make sure baby ostriches behave themselves
Requirements: Appreciation of ostriches
Bottom line: Believe it or not, this is a real job. Ostrich farming is a surprisingly important industry, and farmers need someone to tend to young ostriches.
Typical job duties include feeding them, supervising free time outside, and making sure they don’t peck each other too much.
But watch out. Ostriches are territorial (and big), so you might get pecked a few times yourself.
38. Professional Boyfriend
Salary: It depends on the gig, but up to $70,000
What you do: Pretend to be someone’s boyfriend
Requirements: Acting skills, good looks, charm
Bottom line: Ever want to show off your hot boyfriend at a big event when you are, in fact, quite single? Hire a boyfriend.
Professional boyfriends attend events on the arm of their clients and are paid to be whoever the client wants them to be. The job requirements vary (*ahem*) and the farther you’re willing to go, the larger the paycheck.
At the end of the day, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do and get paid to take women on fancy dates.
37. Legal Bank Robber
Salary: It’s a mystery
What you do: Attempt to break into banks to find security weak points
Requirements: The job requirements are as mysterious as its description, but it’s safe to say most professional bank robbers probably have a past in government agencies like the CIA
Bottom line: Gone are the days when bank robbers charge in with a gun and a ski mask and command the trembling clerk to put the money in the bag.
Now, banks are hiring masters of disguise to break in and steal, just to find out if it’s possible. Rarely do professional robbers steal cold, hard cash.
Today, all the money is stolen digitally, so being a massive computer geek will come in handy in this line of work.
36. Teddy Bear Technician
Salary: Around $20,000
What you do: Fix damaged stuffed animals
Requirements: Basic sewing skills and a love of stuffies
Bottom line: Teddy bear techs are childhood heroes. Low-paid ones, but still heroes.
They work to diagnose and treat sick and injured teddy bears, restoring perfect vision, glittering plastic eyes, and clean, fluffy fur.
Teddy bear techs are amazing with kids, preserving the wonder and love surrounding their special stuffed friends.
35. Movie Animal Trainer
Salary: $32,000
What you do: Care for and train animals on movie sets
Requirements: Either a degree in animal behavior or science or practical experience from relevant internships
Bottom line: The goal of an animal trainer is to teach animal movie stars to play their role as directed using positive reinforcement. Trainers also ensure the animals in their care are kept in ideal conditions, have enough physical exercise, and are kept healthy and happy.
They also keep detailed records of their health and behavior and may play a role in administering medication and scheduling vet care.
This is a perfect job for anyone who loves movies, and loves the animals in them even more.
34. Pet Psychic
Salary: Varies, but up to $400 per in-home consultation
What you do: Connect with people’s pets to understand their emotions and detect pain or discomfort
Requirements: A deep connection with animals, veterinary qualifications a plus
Bottom line: Whether or not telepathy and psychic superpowers are real is up for debate, but there are plenty of people earning money with these purported skills.
Pet psychics work to understand your pet on an emotional level, reading their thoughts and feelings to explain their past before adoption, the cause of behavior issues, and their feelings about any changes in the household.
They also help guide end-of-life choices to give pets the most peaceful passing and strive to improve the bond between pets and their people.
33. Energy Healer
Salary: Up to $100 an hour
What you do: Relieve pain using energy manipulation
Requirements: Training in reiki or similar disciplines
Bottom line: Energy healing is a type of holistic medicine in which the practitioner explores their client’s energy field and repairs areas that are blocked to relieve pain.
While the practice isn’t proven by science, there’s plenty of anecdotal evidence that claims it’s an effective way to manage pain.
Reiki masters train at dedicated schools. Though often paired with massage therapy schools, reiki practitioners don’t touch their patients. It’s all about energy.
32. Professional Sleeper
Salary: Around $15,000
What you do: Sleep. That’s it.
Requirements: As long as you don’t have insomnia, you’re probably good to go.
Bottom line: If getting paid to sleep sounds like a dream, that’s because it is. Most sleeping gigs center around sleep studies, where researchers evaluate sleeping and dreaming patterns.
That said, there are also sleeping gigs where sleepers get to test out new mattresses or perform as part of living art exhibits.
People watching you sleep is pretty creepy, but getting paid to lay down on the job is a pretty sweet deal.
31. Professional Cuddler
Salary: Around $80 an hour
What you do: Huggle and snuggle the day away
Requirements: Enjoying physical affection, even with strangers
Bottom line: Most of us love a good snuggle. Some people don’t have anyone close enough to offer frequent hugs and cuddles, so they hire a professional to get the job done.
Professional snugglers engage is completely platonic physical relationships with their clients, holding, spooning, and hugging them to bring peace of mind and comfort. Snuggling is a perfect treatment for anxiety and depression, so the job does have some scientific backing.
While it might seem odd at first, the hugger gets paid to provide comfort, and the huggee leaves feeling soothed. It’s a win-win.
30. Fortune Cookie Writer
Salary: Up to $80,000 a year
What you do: Write concise, clever fortune cookie blurbs
Requirements: Creativity, writing skills, and a sense of humor
Bottom line: Who hasn’t cracked open a fortune cookie at their favorite Chinese takeout place? Those funny and sometimes poignant fortunes are written by someone, and that someone could be you.
Fortune cookie companies use freelancers or in-house writers to come up with inventive fortunes that pack a punch.
People with booming Twitter accounts are a great fit for the job since they know how to say what needs to be said in a single line.
29. Swan Warden
Salary: Unknown
What you do: Take care of the Queen of England’s swans
Requirements: Historically, the position has been held by a biologist
Bottom line: The warden of the swans is one of several unique jobs offered by the royal family.
The warden of the swans and the marker of the swans are mostly honorific titles, but the two do get together to conduct an annual swan census.
It’s called the swan upping, and it’s a tradition that’s not likely to end anytime soon since the queen actually owns all of the United Kingdom’s mute swans.
28. Scuba Diving Pizza Delivery Man
Salary: Unknown
What you do: Deliver pizza underwater
Requirements: Scuba diving training
Bottom line: Jules’ Undersea Lodge, a unique hotel in Florida, is quite the experience. Guests can spend a night over 20 feet under the sea, without ever getting wet. Ordering pizza, however, gets a little tricky.
The hotel hired a specialist to deliver underwater pizza in a water-tight container straight to the underwater airlock beneath each hotel room.
It’s just like delivering pizza on land, except way cooler.
27. Car Tester
Salary: Around $50,000
What you do: Test cars from tip to tailpipe
Requirements: Exceptional driving skills and coursework in automotive design and manufacturing. A mechanical engineering degree is a big plus.
Bottom line: A car tester sounds like every little boy’s dream job, but it’s not as wild as it sounds. Car testers often pull crazy stunts like driving cars as fast as they can go, but they’re also responsible for a lot of scientific assessments.
Each test is for a reason, and testers are often assessing prototypes to evaluate performance, safety, and comfort.
Picky testers equate to better cars, so this is a perfect gig for type-A personalities with a need for speed.
26. Food Stylist
Salary: About $60,000
What you do: Prepare food for photo ads or television
Requirements: Photography skills and a love of food. It helps to have a degree in culinary arts, but it’s not required.
Bottom line: This is a perfect job for a jack of all trades. To be a food stylist, you have to appreciate both art and science.
In addition to having a knack for designing beautiful spreads, food stylists need to understand how to prepare food and time the shoot to create the most aesthetically pleasing result.
Food stylists must have piercing attention to detail, superb time management and great people skills.
25. Movie Makeup Artist
Salary: $88,000
What you do: Apply makeup and effects to actors
Requirements: Cosmetology certification, experience in the industry
Bottom line: The movies wouldn’t look like the movies without makeup artists. Movie makeup artists work behind the scenes to bring characters to life. It’s not just about beautifying the actors, but about understanding the storyline and choosing looks to match.
Usually, makeup artists work as a team with hairstylists, but sometimes those roles are held by a single person. Regardless, this job is ideal for someone with attention to detail, a high level of creativity and dedication to authenticity.
After all, a period piece won’t work too well if the actors are wearing 21st-century hair and makeup.
24. Disney Character Actor
Salary: Around $11 an hour
What you do: Parade around the park as a princess or cartoon character
Requirements: Stringent height, weight, and age requirements, plus an audition and five days of training
Bottom line: At 5-foot-1, you're officially too short to be a Disney princess. If you meet all of Disney’s requirements to be one of their cast members, love the park, and have a knack for improv, try auditioning.
Cast members need to be able to think fast, responding to surprising (or even inappropriate) questions without breaking character. Disney character actors don’t make much, but they do get to parade around the park talking with enamored kids (and adults) all day.
Telling your kids you used to be Mickey Mouse or Princess Anna would be pretty fun, too.
23. Secret Agent
Salary: Around $40,000
What you do: Investigate crimes on a federal level, protecting high-profile government officials
Requirements: A degree in criminal justice or something similar, no visible tattoos or piercings, pass a long list of tests
Bottom line: Being a secret agent is a vague title, so we’re going to narrow it down to being a Secret Service agent.
These elite agents are responsible for protecting the president, vice president, and their families, plus former presidents, their wives, and their children up until their 16th birthday. Secret Service agents plan for the protection needs of their subjects, particularly during travel.
If you’re more interested in detective work, agents in the Investigative Support Division are less focused on protection and more focused on solving crimes.
22. Panda Nanny
Salary: About $32,500
What you do: Babysit massive balls of fluff
Requirements: Be at least 22 years old with a basic knowledge of pandas, and preferably solid writing and photography skills
Bottom line: OK, this job is one that almost no one will be able to land. Not because it’s difficult to do, but because so many people want to do it.
In China, the elusive panda nanny position involves spending day after day playing with pandas. Caretakers are responsible for feeding pandas, building them ladders to climb on, and (ew) weighing panda poop, plus documenting their daily life.
For their "trouble," these panda ambassadors also get free meals, accommodations, and a company SUV. Unsurprisingly, when the job was originally posted, over 60,000 people applied, crashing the website.
21. Waterslide Tester
Salary: $34,000
What you do: Try out new waterslides before they open in summer
Requirements: A love of fun and a willingness to sign a massive waiver
Bottom line: When the weather starts to warm up, families flock to waterparks. Before they open up for the season, however, someone needs to take them for a spin.
Waterslide testers travel from park to park testing slides for both safety and fun.
If you love a rush and don’t mind being perpetually damp, grab your swim trunks and your resume, and give it a shot.
20. Personal Shopper
Salary: Around $45,000
What you do: Provide clients with expert shopping advice and personalized product choices
Requirements: Sales experience and a love of shopping
Bottom line: Some wealthy shoppers love to look good, but haven’t a clue how to do it. Personal shoppers bridge the gap by guiding them to styles that would flatter their figure, complement their skin tone, and match their taste.
Those working in retail stores need to have a strong background in sales because a large part of your income will come from the commission.
It’s also possible to go your own way and service high-end clients without working under an employer.
19. Tea Taster
Salary: Around $36,000
What you do: Sample and assess tea from around the world
Requirements: 5 years of taste training
Bottom line: That smooth, spicy-sweet chai tea latte at Starbucks didn’t happen by accident. It was the end result of an experienced tea taster.
Tea tasters must be able to detect tiny differences in color, texture, aroma, and flavor, to help tea companies choose the best tea leaves available. Tea tasting isn’t a work from home job by a long shot. They actually travel the world, sampling and purchasing tea at auctions.
The price tag on some of the teas are startling, so confidence is essential. People skills are important, too, so you don’t get taken advantage of and pay too much. Tea tasters also need to understand the market to predict what will sell and what future prices will look like.
Who knew tea tasting was so complicated?
18. Gum Expert
Salary: Up to $107,000
What you do: Taste gum and advise gumologists on how to improve the flavor
Requirements: A highly developed palate, and preferably a food science degree
Bottom line: The covetable job of gum tester is exciting and tasty, but also serious.
Gum tasters are responsible for evaluating every nuance of a stick of gum, from the flavor longevity and consistency to the size of the bubbles.
Gum experts must maintain neutral facial expressions, calibrate their tongues (what?), and cleanse their palates frequently to give accurate assessments.
17. Chocolatier
Salary: Around $32,000
What you do: Make chocolate that’s both delicious and beautiful
Requirements: A degree in bakery and pastry arts, plus an internship or training program
Bottom line: Candy lovers, this one’s for you.
Chocolatiers spend their days crafting sweet, gooey chocolate into scrumptious, artistic confections. Chocolatiers don’t just dream up mouthwatering combinations of chocolate, nuts and fruit.
They also spend long hours on their feet, working hard to make enough fine chocolates to distribute to shops and sell online.
16. Greensman
Salary: Up to $39,000
What you do: Handle all of the plants and scenery props on movie sets
Requirements: Horticultural knowledge, understanding of filmmaking, physical stamina
Bottom line: Before you become a set designer, you might start out as a greensman.
A greensman is responsible for all of the plants and on-set greenery, both live and fake. They make backdrops, create realistic effects, and choose plants that are authentic to the setting.
Don’t sign up if you aren’t willing to get your hands dirty.
15. Race Engineer
Salary: Up to $152,000
What you do: Analyze data to maximize the performance of both vehicle and driver
Requirements: An engineering degree
Bottom line: A racing driver can’t race without his (or her) right-hand man: a race engineer.
Race engineers set up the car and tell the driver what to do to perform his very best. The engineer plays a key role in every race.
While many of the details, like how much fuel is put in and what tires are used, are planned ahead of time, the engineer also communicates with the driver mid-race to give him tips on how to cross the finish line first.
14. Ethical Hacker
Salary: Up to $111,000
What you do: Find computer vulnerabilities and fix them
Requirements: A degree in information technology or network security
Bottom line: An ethical hacker is like the secret agent of the internet. They break into online systems legally to detect weak spots and repair them before someone else with more malicious intentions does it first.
They’re security experts that know how to dig deep to find sensitive information, open ports and problem areas.
If an ethical hacker can’t break into your data, your search history is as safe as it gets.
13. Crossword Puzzle Writer
Salary: Around $200-300 a puzzle
What you do: Make challenging crossword puzzles for newspapers
Requirements: Boredom and a love of big words
Bottom line: Disclaimer: You’re not going to make a living out of writing crossword puzzles, but you might make a few extra bucks and get to see your work in The New York Times.
It takes at least a week to make a good crossword puzzle, but some wordsmiths have made it into a fun side hustle.
Aim for the coveted Sunday spot for a few hundred dollars more.
12. Hollywood Stunt Person
Salary: Up to $250,000
What you do: Perform death-defying stunts on camera
Requirements: Become a member of the Screen Actors Guild or the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, plus attending a stunt school
Bottom line: Stuntmen and stuntwomen are performers at the scariest level.
While formal education isn’t required, you need a solid grasp of martial arts, falling techniques, combat techniques, weaponry and more. Every stunt is choreographed in detail, but make no mistake, even the safest of stunts can go wrong resulting in serious injury.
You’ll also have to be ready to pack up and travel to wherever the set takes you. Do you have what it takes?
11. Blimp Pilot
Salary: Around $100,000
What you do: Float around in a big ol’ blimp
Requirements: A commercial pilot license, plus on-the-job training and 1,200 flight hours
Bottom line: Blimp pilots get the best seat in the house to major events and gorgeous views. They switch between giving passenger tours high up in the air to covering sporting and entertainment events from an aerial perspective.
Landing and takeoff is tricky, so blimp pilots have a team of 15 people helping out.
The fun part? Blimps can climb at a much steeper angle than airplanes, so blimp operators can scare and delight their passengers by giving them the adventure of a lifetime.
10. Movie Critic
Salary: Up to $80,000 (or more)
What you do: Write and edit reviews of movies
Requirements: Journalism experience is a plus, as is membership in a regional film critics association
Bottom line: You know those people who notice every tiny detail about a movie, from the foreshadowing in a particular scene to a costume that doesn’t perfectly match the time period?
While the rest of us are scarfing down hot, buttered popcorn, those people should consider a career as a film critic.
Film critics analyze new movies and connect with newspapers and online publishers to tell the public everything they need to know about the latest featured films.
9. Food Critic
Salary: Up to $88,000
What you do: Evaluate the food and dining experience in fine and mid-scale restaurants
Requirements: A refined palate and solid writing skills
Bottom line: There’s some truth to the ominous persona of the looming food critic in "Ratatouille."
A food critic visits restaurants to assess the quality and flavor of their food, the ambiance of the restaurant, and the warmth and responsiveness of the servers. They share their reports in papers, magazines, and even on TV, and what they write can make or break a restaurant.
Food critics need to have discerning taste and tell it like it is, hopefully helping some up-and-coming businesses gain some attention along the way.
8. Sommelier
Salary: Around $50,000
What you do: Advise patrons on different wines and serve it
Requirements: Getting a job in the industry, even just working in the cellar
Bottom line: A sommelier is more than someone who downs a glass of red every evening.
A real sommelier, also known as a wine steward, is a fine wine expert. He or she knows everything from what type of grapes were used and where they were grown to the best option to pair with a fine Italian dinner.
Sommeliers usually work in fine restaurants, where they explain to patrons the different flavors and recommended pairings.
7. Ice Cream Taster
Salary: $60,000
What you do: Sample ice cream and brainstorm new flavors
Requirements: Imagination, healthy taste buds, and a refined palate. Food science degree a plus
Bottom line: Ice cream tasters are the masterminds behind every scoop of Jamoca Almond Fudge and Rocky Road.
Become an ice cream taster, and you’ll get to try out any crazy combination you can come up with. Some might be flops ("popcorn and coke" was one that never made it to the shelves), but Coldstone’s Jell-o Pudding was a big hit. Instead of melting into ice cream, it melts into pudding!
It’s not quite as carefree as it might sound, however. Master tasters don’t eat any spicy food within 24 hours of sampling, and they assess everything from the aroma, top note, and bouquet to the presentation.
Ugly ice cream isn’t as tasty.
6. National Geographic Travel Photographer
Salary: $500 a day plus travel expenses
What you do: Travel the world taking incomprehensible nature photos
Requirements: Photography obsession and a large portfolio of compelling pictures
Bottom line: National Geographic photographers are bold, adventurous and crazy about photography. Enjoying snapping nature pics during a family camping trip doesn’t quite make the cut.
If you eat, sleep, and breathe photography (and have for some time), National Geographic might hire you as a freelancer. At that point, you’ll receive travel assignments ranging from a few days to a few weeks.
Some of the assignments might be dangerous, so don’t send a pitch if you’re not ready to jump into the unknown.
5. Adventure Blogger
Salary: Up to $200,000 or more
What you do: Go on adventures and write about them online
Requirements: Creativity, travel money, and excellent photography and writing skills. Being photogenic doesn’t hurt either.
Bottom line: Adventure bloggers do just that. Go on adventures and write all about their experiences. The theme is up to the blogger, but popular topics are hiking, best things to do in different destinations, and traveling on a budget.
These bloggers earn money from a variety of sources, including advertisements, affiliate commissions, brand sponsorships, influencer marketing and other similar channels.
It’s not a predictable income, but it’s an exciting one to build.
4. Video Game Player
Salary: Up to $5,000 a month, not including prizes
What you do: Play games day in and day out
Requirements: Pick a game and play it until you’re better than anyone else
Bottom line: More often than not, a video game obsession costs money instead of earning it. Get extra obsessed, however, and you just might go the distance.
A pro gamer spends hours (well, years) honing their gaming skills, choosing a handful of games to master.
Some gamers earn money by streaming for subscribers on Twitch, while others get sponsored by gaming companies.
3. Voice-Over Artist
Salary: Around $60,000
What you do: Read a script for films, often in character
Requirements: Acting skills, a strong voice, and flexibility as a performer. Singing abilities are a plus.
Bottom line: Every Disney character you’ve seen up on the big screen is, surprise surprise, voiced by an actual person.
While many of them are voiced by big-name actors or other celebs, some have more humble beginnings. Other voice-over artists go a different route, acting as a narrator for TV shows or advertisements.
It’s more than just reading a script, however. If you land a gig as a voice-over artist, expect to be asked to read your lines in multiple tones and styles before the director decides it’s perfect.
2. Disney Imagineer
Salary: $89,000
What you do: The list of titles is long, but all positions are related to dreaming up new ideas for the Walt Disney Company
Requirements: A passion for everything Disney and a degree in whatever niche you’re most interested
Bottom line: Behind the scenes of the "Happiest Place on Earth" lies a network of creative professionals who make the magic happen.
The Disney Imagineer title is an umbrella term for a large team responsible for designing and building everything you see at a Disney park, hotel, or cruise ship, plus all the games and merchandise.
There is an incredible number of creative positions available, so choose a related craft and perfect it until you’re ready to shoot for the Disney stars.
1. Island Caretaker
Salary: $150,000 for six months
What you do: Swim, snorkel, meet the locals, and document your epic good time
Requirements: Strong swimmer, adventurous spirit, English writing and speaking skills, and a willingness to try new things
Bottom line: Tourism Queensland, in Australia, came up with a marketing campaign to draw attention to the islands of the Great Barrier Reef. Candidates needed to be skilled bloggers, likable and adventurous.
The winner would get to chill out in a three-bedroom house with a view on Hamilton Island, complete with a plunge pool and golf buggy.
Their only job responsibilities? Give media interviews, keep the place clean, enjoy the sand, sea, and sun, and write about it all on the internet.