Balancing Business With Pleasure
Money isn’t everything. Even cash-strapped millennials, a generation with a record level of student loan debt, rank flexibility as a high priority when it comes to assessing career options. Many young professionals are looking to create and maintain work-life balance, not just bring home big paychecks.
To figure out what jobs would be most appealing to millennials, U.S. News asked more than 1,000 people ages 20 through 34 about their career priorities. They identified salary, good work-life balance and low stress as the factors most important to them.
Using that information, plus data about unemployment rates and advancement potential, U.S. News determined which jobs provide young workers the best work-life balance.
To see the 10 best jobs that offer millennials work-life balance, read on. Then, check out the U.S. News list of Best Jobs for Millennials and Best-Paying Jobs for Millennials.
Web Developer
Median salary: $64,970
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: below average
Some jobs define their eras. During the Age of Discovery, explorers and cartographers reshaped the way their contemporaries understood the world. During the Industrial Revolution, factory workers transformed the global economy. Today, web developers are society’s key players, thanks to the constant changes they make to the digital landscape.
When it comes to websites, form is just as important as function, so web developers need graphic design knowledge and an artistic eye. Coding and math skills are also important to this career, as is the ability to clearly communicate with teammates and clients. Some web developers work independently, and those who work for corporations or other organizations may be able to work remotely.
The television show “Silicon Valley” offers a comic look at life as a web developer. The career is also featured in movies including “WarGames,” “The Social Network” and “Antitrust,” plus the television show “Wisdom of the Crowd.”
Forty-seven percent of people with this career are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for web developers are California, New York, Texas, Florida and Illinois, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The combination of decent salary, good work-life balance and below average stress level makes this career one of the U.S. News Best Jobs for Millennials.
Dental Hygienist
Median salary: $72,330
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: average
On the style-substance continuum, dental hygienist falls squarely on the side of substance. But what the job lacks in glamour it makes up for in importance. After all, clean teeth are essential to good health. And who among us doesn’t appreciate the shinier smile we flash after an hour with a dental hygienist?
These health care professionals interact with patients all day, every day, so good communication skills are essential. Dental hygienists listen to people’s concerns, recommend teeth-cleaning products and teach proper techniques for brushing and flossing. They clean teeth, take X-rays and screen patients for cavities and oral cancers. Dental hygienists must keep careful medical records. Because many of these professionals work part time, they may be able to create the kind of work-life balance they desire.
Movies that feature this career include “A Little Help” and “Horrible Bosses.”
Thirty-two percent of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for dental hygienists are California, Texas, Florida, New York and Michigan.
The combination of decent salary, good work-life balance and average stress level made this career one of the U.S. News Best Jobs for Millennials.
Interpreter and Translator
Median salary: $44,190
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: average
The ability to forge connections through language is something of a superpower. Interpreters and translators break through the international barriers that separate speakers of different tongues and create channels of communication for people who cannot hear or see.
This profession requires practitioners to be fluent in at least two languages and able to discern and convey the subtleties of each. Interpreters should have strong listening and speaking skills, while translators need writing talent and advanced reading comprehension. A fifth of interpreters and translators are self-employed, which means they have control over their work hours and locations and must market their services to potential clients. Others work in schools, hospitals, courtrooms or private agencies.
Movies that highlight the work of interpreters and translators include “Charade,” “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Lost in Translation” and “Dances with Wolves.”
A third of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for interpreters and translators are California, Texas, Florida, New York and Virginia.
The combination of decent salary, high work-life balance and average stress level made this career one of the U.S. News Best Jobs for Millennials.
Insurance Sales Agent
Median salary: $48,200
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: average
Life is unpredictable. One day, you’re healthy, your house is in great shape and your drive to work is uneventful. Tomorrow, though, you may get a grim diagnosis from your doctor. A tree could crush your roof. And poor weather conditions could make your tires slip right off the road.
That’s where insurance sales agents come in. These workers sell policies designed to cover all kinds of events so that clients are prepared to face any problem that arises: health insurance to cover chronic and acute medical conditions; home insurance to cover floods, fires and other property damage; and car insurance to cover accidents and theft. In case the worst occurs, life insurance ensures your family will not be financially ruined by your death. Insurance sales agents should be confident pitchers, good communicators and detail-oriented analysts.
Media depictions of insurance sales agents take place in “The Incredibles,” “Groundhog Day,” “Along Came Polly” and “The Truman Show.”
Twenty-eight percent of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for insurance sales agents are California, Texas, Florida, New York and Ohio.
The combination of decent salary, high work-life balance and average stress level made this career one of the U.S. News Best Jobs for Millennials.
Maintenance and Repair Worker
Median salary: $36,630
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: average
The year is 2805. Having created so much garbage that Earth is uninhabitable, humans have abandoned the planet to live instead on a giant spaceship. The only sentient specimen left is WALL-E, a little robot whose job is to clean up the enormous mess and repair the pieces of countless broken things.
The premise of the hit 2008 Disney-Pixar movie paints a grim picture, but it also reveals the importance of the work performed by maintenance and repair workers. These professionals tackle the inconvenient truth that people are generally quite good at breaking stuff and rather bad at fixing it. Maintenance and repair workers use blueprints, diagrams and personal experience to fix machines, electrical circuits, buildings and equipment of all kinds. They should be good at communicating with customers, have nimble hands and enjoy problem-solving.
Beyond “WALL-E,” media depictions of maintenance and repair workers occur on “Sesame Street” and “Home Improvement” and in the movie “Once.”
Twenty-six percent of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for maintenance and repair workers are California, Texas, New York, Florida and Illinois.
Recreation and Fitness Worker
Median salary: $36,160
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: below average
Are you happiest while working up a sweat? You may find fulfillment through a career as a recreation and fitness worker, especially if your appreciation for physical activity is enhanced by opportunities to help others enjoy it, too. Many positions in this field are based outdoors, which is another bonus for people hoping to avoid hours laboring under office fluorescent lighting.
This category covers a range of career tracks, including: lifeguards who ensure guests enjoy swimming pools safely; instructors who teach people how to ski or snowboard; gym employees who lead classes in yoga, aerobics, Pilates, kickboxing, cycling and other exercise routines; wilderness guides who lead trips via kayaking, horseback riding and hiking; rangers who maintain and help people navigate parks; and trainers who provide personal fitness coaching.
The television show “Parks and Recreation” offers a comic take on the careers of people who work in recreation, while many movies feature fitness instructors, including “Burn After Reading” and “Perfect.”
Thirty-nine percent of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for recreation and fitness workers are California, New York, Illinois, Florida and Texas.
Nail Technician
Median salary: $20,820
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: average
Some folks don’t consider themselves fully dressed without a fresh coat of paint on their fingers and toes. They could decorate their own nails, of course, but not everyone’s fine motor skills are up to the challenge. Thankfully, there are experts who can help: Nail technicians.
These salon stars clean, trim and polish customers’ fingernails and toenails. They must be experts at providing friendly customer service, since their relationships with the people they serve affect the tips they take home. They also must be sticklers for cleanliness in order to operate their businesses hygienically.
Nail technicians need to keep abreast of the latest beauty trends. That means paying attention to the changing popularity of various colors and designs. It also means learning about new technology to provide modern options for nail services, such as artificial nails made of acrylic, silk or gel.
Popular media depictions of nail technicians include the television show “Claws” and the movies “The Women,” “Sisters” and “Touch.”
Thirty-two percent of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for nail technicians are California, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
Executive Assistant
Median salary: $53,370
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: average
If you’re extremely organized and would rather work the spotlight than stand directly in it, you could find yourself in the executive suite very early in your career. No, not as the CEO (although sometimes that happens, too), but as his or her executive assistant.
People who serve in this role function as both brains and bodyguard. On the brains side fall responsibilities such as managing the boss’s calendar, organizing meetings, taking messages and conducting research to provide important background information to the chief executive. On the bodyguard side falls the task of discerning who can speak or meet with the boss, at what days and times, and for how long.
Depictions of executive assistants in popular media include Andy Sachs in “The Devil Wears Prada,” Jonathan in “30 Rock,” Sue Wilson in “Veep” and Peggy Olson in “Mad Men.”
Job openings for executive assistants are predicted to fall, due in part to technological solutions that make it easier for executives to manage their own schedules. Twenty-two percent of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for executive assistants are California, New York, Texas, Illinois and Florida.
Hairdresser
Median salary: $23,660
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: average
Hairdressing offers a tantalizing escape from the sometimes-sterile office environment, where computer screens and emails reign. The opposite of a desk job, this profession involves constant interpersonal interaction and hours on one’s feet. There’s an art to cutting and styling hair to the taste of each individual client and a science to using dyes to create different hair colors. Unlike many fields, the work hairdressers do leads to tangible, immediate results.
Hairdressers must complete state-approved programs and earn licenses before they can professionally cut, dye and style hair. Listening and time-management skills are important for this job, because both affect customer satisfaction. Hairdressers who run their own salons also need marketing savvy and business acumen.
You may have seen the profession depicted in movies such as “You Don’t Mess with the Zohan,” “Steel Magnolias,” “Good Hair” and “Blow Dry.”
Employment for hairdressers is expected to grow faster than the labor market as a whole. Thirty-seven percent of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for hairdressers are California, New York, Florida, Pennsylvania and Texas.
Glazier
Median salary: $39,440
Work-life balance: high
Stress level: above average
There’s only one career on this list with Biblical origins, and that’s glazier. After all, it’s only three lines into Genesis that God commands, “Let there be light.”
Corny jokes aside, glaziers do bring light into our lives. That’s because their work is all about glass. Glaziers measure, cut and install glass into window frames and skylight openings, tables and display cases, shower doors and mirrors. Although it sounds simple, there’s a lot to the job. Glaziers figure out what types of glass are appropriate for each setting, choosing between laminates and treatments that provide various colors and different levels of insulation, security and safety. As members of construction crews, glaziers do a lot of physical labor. They often enter the profession after apprenticeships.
It’s not clear that glaziers have ever received the Hollywood treatment, which means the time is right for a television show or movie to shed some light on this career path.
A third of people with this job are millennials. The states with the highest levels of employment for glaziers are California, Texas, Florida, New York and Washington.
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10 Jobs That Offer Millennials Good Work-Life Balance originally appeared on usnews.com
