The Most Satisfying Jobs in the World (And How to Get Them)

Recently, we did a post on the highest paying jobs in the world, and how to get them. But let’s face it: work isn’t all about money.

Work is about purpose. Most of us spend most of our adult years working; so what we choose as a career is a big part of the imprint we leave on this earth.

Along those lines, we wanted to uncover the most satisfying jobs in the world. So we surveyed professionals from all walks of life and asked them how satisfied they are with their job, to determined the jobs with the highest satisfaction ratings.

Based off that data, here are four of the most satisfying jobs in the world, coupled with playbooks on how to get them.

1. Business owner

Satisfaction rate: 85%

Related Learning Paths: Become a Small Business Owner, Become a Craft Business Owner

Commentary: The people most satisfied with their work are business owners, particularly business founders (founders have an even higher satisfaction rate of 91%). That’s interesting, considering all the stress that comes with running a business.

Clearly, that stress is offset by the passion business owners have for the work that they do and the literal ownership they have over their jobs.  

2. Executive Director

Satisfaction rate: 83%

Related Learning Paths: Become a Leader, Become a Manager

Commentary: Like a business owner, an executive director’s job often comes with long hours and stress (the only difference is that a business owner is obviously the owner of the business, whereas an executive director usually reports to a board). But, again that stress is easily offset by the influence an executive director has over an organization.

3. IT System Administrator

Satisfaction rate: 81%

Related Learning Paths: Become an IT Technician, Become a Certified Azure Infrastructure Professional, Become a Windows System Administrator (Server 2012 R2)

Commentary: A surprise! Who knew IT workers were so satisfied with their job?

Overall, system administrators are a well-paid bunch, with an average salary of $68,000 a year in the United States. And clearly, there’s satisfaction to be had from mastering the latest technologies and ensuring all systems run smoothly.

4. Construction Engineer

Satisfaction rate: 77%

Related Learning Paths: Become a Civil Engineering CAD Technician, Become a Certified CAD Designer with SOLIDWORKS

Commentary: There’s something incredibly satisfying about building something. And while they aren’t putting hammer to nail, that’s exactly what construction engineers do each day.

Imagine walking through a building you designed? It can’t get much more satisfying than that. Plus, the $76,000 average salary in the United States doesn’t hurt, either.

The takeaway

These are four jobs that people tend to find highly satisfying. Based off the top two on the list, influence clearly matters – business owners and executive directors have a tremendous amount of influence over their work and how they choose to spend their time.

That said, running a business might not be for you. As you see with IT system administrator and construction engineer, there are many jobs in the world that aren’t leadership positions that are still very satisfying. It just comes down to matching your skills with the career that’s right for you.

Looking to land one of these jobs? These LinkedIn Learning courses can help:

• J.T. O'Donnell on Making Recruiters Come to You
• Professional Networking
• Job Search Strategies
• Acing Your Interview
• Turning an Internship into a Job