Jobs For Empaths | Top 10 Best Career Opportunities in 2024

When choosing a career path, it’s important to take your personality type into consideration as it can be a great way to develop a fulfilling and highly satisfying career. If you’re an empath, you might need to be more careful about what kind of jobs and career paths you choose due to your high sensitivity to emotions.

Personality types and traits vary from one individual to another, which means that not all careers are suitable for everyone. But don’t worry, if you’re an empath we’ve got you covered. There are several fulfilling jobs to choose from that match your personality.

Let’s explore what being an empath actually looks like and learn more about the 10 best jobs for empaths.

What is an empath and what kind of personality traits do they have?

Recent studies suggest that 1 to 2 percent of the population have difficulty differentiating between their own emotions and other people’s feelings. If you are able to feel the emotional, mental, or physical state of others, it’s highly likely that you’re an empath.

Being super sensitive toward other people’s emotions, and having high levels of empathy can leave you feeling drained out if you end up in the wrong working environment. However, if you are aware of these qualities within you, you can make better choices and benefit from finding a career that suits your personality.

Here are some of the most common personality traits found in empaths:

• Caring & Compassionate: empaths are super compassionate with other people and highly empathize with others. They are kind and care a lot for other people, and feel like they want to help others.
• Intuitive: empaths can tune in to people’s energy, feel their emotions, perceive their thoughts, desires and motivations even if not verbally expressed.
• Giving: empaths usually enjoy being of service to others and enjoy giving gifts more than receiving them.
• Sensitive: empaths are highly receptive to other people’s feelings. If they don’t learn how to differentiate other people’s emotions from theirs, they can end up feeling emotionally drained out.

Knowledge is power, so being aware of these qualities within you will help you identify which career path and job is best for you. Most often empaths thrive in jobs that involve helping others. So if the job that you’re looking at doesn’t provide a meaningful service to other people, you might not find it fulfilling. This might be the case with some jobs, so have a look at the worst jobs for empaths to avoid choosing the wrong career path.

We invite you to have a look at our list of jobs for people with disabilities to find and apply to jobs for empaths that might interest you.

Let’s have a look at the 10 best careers for empaths:

1. Veterinarian / Vet Technician

Average Salary:  $73,580 – $122,180

Empaths love nature and apart from caring for human beings, they also care a lot about animals. You can choose to either work as a veterinarian assistant, nurse or doctor.

Being a vet can be a fulfilling career where you take care of animals, provide medical assistance, and heal animals. Empaths are very good at comforting others, and this applies to both animal pets and their owners.

Qualifications required vary depending on the position which you are aiming for. If you want to work as a veterinarian doctor, you would need a Bachelor of Veterinary Science, Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine or Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery

2. Teacher

Average Salary: $63,645

Empaths do very well as teachers as they dedicate their entire life to assisting students in achieving their goals and building up their future. An ideal teacher is someone who is always ready to help.

The career path of a teacher is like a vocation as teachers need to be truly dedicated and invested in their students. They must be able to motivate and inspire their students while being able to perceive and interpret students’ emotions. These qualities are key to fostering an effective learning environment while ensuring that you keep your students engaged.

If you’re an introverted empath, keep in mind that you will need to manage your emotions when it comes to standing in front of a group of people or dealing with parents. Initially, this might seem overwhelming. However, with the right mindset and set of skills, you will be able to manage yourself successfully and thrive as a teacher.

3. Nurse

Average Salary: $81, 574

Empaths are nurturing and natural caregivers. So a career as a nurse is an attractive and popular job for empaths. As a nurse, you would be dedicating your life to serving and helping others.

As an empath, you can find this job to be meaningful and fulfilling.

As a nurse, you can be responsible for different kinds of patient-related tasks. Your tasks might include administering medications, reviewing treatment plans, or assisting doctors in medical procedures and surgeries.

When a patient is sick in the hospital, a comforting and nurturing nurse can be very soothing for both patients and their loved ones. You can also have the opportunity to work with children in pediatrics or specialize in midwifery to assist with childbirth.

Just keep in mind that sometimes you might have to be the bearer of bad news. So it might not be the best job for every empath as some might find it too emotional.

4. Psychologist

Average Salary:  $51,960 – $85,340

Working as a psychologist is a good job for empaths as empaths do make good therapists. Psychologist is the kind of job that requires compassion.

Just as a nurse assists with physical needs, a psychologist assists people with mental health issues or psychological difficulties which they might be facing.

The fact that empaths have the ability to connect and empathize with other people makes them a perfect fit for the job. It’s easier for empaths to listen actively, and perceive another person’s position without judgment as they are highly compassionate.

Empaths are also good observers and as a psychologist, you observe and access human behavior. After finishing your studies and the necessary training, you can decide to work independently or join a health organization. You can also specialize in different fields, for example, family counseling, couple’s therapy, relationship issues, among other areas.

Working as a psychologist can be highly rewarding as you can connect with people and help make a difference in their life by improving their mental health. It’s important to learn how to protect yourself from other people’s energy so you don’t feel overwhelmed by other people’s difficult emotions and life situations.

5. Life Coach

Average Salary: $51,000

A career in life coaching is a fulfilling career path for empaths. Working as a life coach involves helping others, motivating them, teaching them life skills, and inspiring them to move forward in their lives.

Empaths feel good when people become better versions of themselves, which is one of the main reasons why life coaching is a good job for empaths and can be considered a high-paying career for empathics.

There are various niches that you can specialize in as a life coach. Some of the most popular niches are health and wellness, mindset coaching, relationship coaching, career coaching, and executive coaching.

The Life coaching industry is continuously growing and so far it hasn’t been regulated. Therefore, you don’t need a particular degree to work as a life coach. However, you might still need to get certified through a course and an organization that will teach you the required set of skills to help people thrive in their life.

6. Social Worker

Average Salary:  $49,470

Social worker is a quite popular job with empathetic. The job requires dedication and a great sense of compassion. As a social worker, your purpose is to help and make a difference in every person you work with.

Working as a social worker comes with its challenges as sometimes you might feel disappointed or demotivated when you see that some people are reluctant to change. So it’s important to practice good emotional hygiene and remind yourself that all you can do is give it your best shot. However, it’s entirely up to the individual to change and work on improving his or her own life.

If you’re empathic and choose to work as a social worker, you will mostly work with people who are less fortunate in society and have difficult life situations which might also involve drug abuse. So social work is a good job for empaths as it can be fulfilling, but you need tough skin and the ability to stay calm and focused in emotionally challenging situations.

7. Yoga Instructor

Average Salary – $41,000 -100,000

The practice of yoga continues to grow and become more popular in our society. As an empathic, working as a yoga teacher is a good career path to choose as you would be helping people work on their body, mind and soul. 

You can also choose to specialize in one kind of yoga, and you can either work on your own or join an organization, studio or gym. Yoga classes are also now being held in hospitals and medical centers so you can organize classes to help people improve their health.

As an empathetic, you find it easier to tune to people’s energy which means that you are skilled and intuitively able to help them and guide them as they get into the practice of yoga. You can also organize retreats in a serene space which have become very popular.

8. Artist

Average Salary: $63,254

Empaths can be overwhelmed with emotions. So being an artist can be a good outlet for self-expression and authenticity. This gives empaths the ability to create beautiful artworks as they put their passion and emotions into their creations.

Artists do not especially need to take specific courses if they have a natural talent. However, there are courses, degrees, and techniques which help you master your skills and thrive as an artist.

There are several areas where you can grow as an artist and you can start involving yourself in art galleries and organizations to help you network and make good connections. Salaries and incomes vary widely as it depends on the kind of artwork you create.

9. Human Resources (HR) Manager

Average Salary: $68,715

Human resources manager or assistant is a good job for empaths and career path. Working in the human resources department involves dealing with all the people-related tasks within the company.

Your role can involve organizing team-building events, being responsible for onboarding new employees, managing benefits and implementing people management policies and procedures.

Working as an HR manager you also connect and build relationships with employees throughout the company which makes it a satisfying job for empaths. You would also be responsible for the tougher parts of people management, so you might have to take disciplinary measures if employees fail to follow procedures or engage in unethical behavior.

10. Writer

Average Salary: $67,120

Working as a writer is a good job for an empathetic as you have the opportunity to put your emotions, perceptions and passion into writing. It’s a way to express yourself and let your creative energy flow.

You can choose to write your own books, or you can also write as a journalist or a content writer. In our digital modern society, the opportunities are endless. Video scripts are also a good option which you can choose from as an empathic writer.

As an empathic, you’ll find it easier to use the right words and connect with the readers as you have the ability to think like your audience. So if you find other jobs and career paths emotionally draining,  working as a writer might be the best option for you. This job definitely answers the question “how to make money as an empath”.

Final thoughts on best jobs for empaths

Utilizing your gift as an empathic can help you find a thriving and fulfilling career where you can use your skills for the betterment of society.

Before choosing a company, a job, or career path, it’s always good to spend some time doing some self-reflection. If you choose to work with a company, ask yourself whether your values are aligned as this might affect you as an empath. This is to avoid having your emotions depleted.

A good tip is to also reflect on whether you would be able to cope and handle the challenges or emotional challenges the job brings with it. If you feel in your heart that your duties and services will bring you joy and fulfillment, it means that the pros outweigh the cons. Here’s a list of the worst jobs for empathetic to give you a better idea of what to avoid. We hope that you found this article helpful!