Circus performers are one of the happiest careers in the United States.
At CareerExplorer, we conduct an ongoing survey with millions of people and ask them how satisfied they are with their careers. As it turns out, circus performers rate their career happiness 4.0 out of 5 stars which puts them in the top 10% of careers.
To put this into perspective, we compared how happy circus performers are to similar careers in the industry. Take a look at the results below:
Salaries and satisfaction ratings in similar careers
| Career | Satisfaction | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Choreographer | 4.2 | $43k |
| Dancer | 4.0 | $39k |
| Announcer | 3.9 | $38k |
| Dog walker | 3.7 | $26k |
| Casting director | 3.6 | $79k |
| Conductor | 3.5 | $49k |
So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:
- Salary: Are circus performers happy with their salary?
- Meaning: Do circus performers find their jobs meaningful?
- Personality fit: How well suited are people’s personalities to their everyday tasks as circus performers?
- Work environment: How enjoyable are circus performer’s work environments?
- Skills utilization: Are circus performers making the best use of their abilities?
Are circus performers happy with their salary?
Circus performers rated their satisfaction with their salaries 2.8/5. Circus performers tend to be quite unhappy with their salary, with very few reporting satisfaction with their pay.
We asked circus performers how fairly compensated they are for their work.
Their response was:
2.8 out of 5 stars
56 circus performers
14% of circus performers rated their compensation 5 stars
21% of circus performers rated their compensation 4 stars
18% of circus performers rated their compensation 3 stars
27% of circus performers rated their compensation 2 stars
20% of circus performers rated their compensation 1 stars
Do circus performers find their jobs meaningful?
On average, circus performers rate the meaningfulness of their work a 3.5/5. Unlike many careers, circus performers have little difficulty finding meaning in their work, and it likely constitutes one of the main reasons people become circus performers.
We asked circus performers how meaningful they found their work.
Their response was:
3.5 out of 5 stars
60 circus performers
37% of circus performers rated how meaningful they found their career 5 stars
22% of circus performers rated how meaningful they found their career 4 stars
13% of circus performers rated how meaningful they found their career 3 stars
15% of circus performers rated how meaningful they found their career 2 stars
13% of circus performers rated how meaningful they found their career 1 stars
How well are people’s personalities suited to everyday tasks as circus performers?
Circus performers rated their personality fit with their work an average of 4.2/5. The majority of circus performers find their personalities quite well suited to their work, with relatively few having complaints about their fit.
We asked circus performers how well their personalities fit into their careers.
Their response was:
4.2 out of 5 stars
64 circus performers
48% of circus performers rated their career fit 5 stars
30% of circus performers rated their career fit 4 stars
16% of circus performers rated their career fit 3 stars
3% of circus performers rated their career fit 2 stars
3% of circus performers rated their career fit 1 stars
How enjoyable is a circus performer’s work environment?
As a whole, circus performers rated their enjoyment of their work environment 3.8/5. A solid majority of circus performers enjoy their work environment, probably contributing to overall higher satisfaction with working as a circus performer.
We asked circus performers how much they enjoyed their work environment.
Their response was:
3.8 out of 5 stars
63 circus performers
35% of circus performers rated their work environment 5 stars
30% of circus performers rated their work environment 4 stars
24% of circus performers rated their work environment 3 stars
6% of circus performers rated their work environment 2 stars
5% of circus performers rated their work environment 1 stars
Are circus performers making the best use of their abilities?
Former circus performers on CareerExplorer have rated their skills utilization 3.3/5. Most circus performers surveyed find that they manage to use their abilities to their fullest as a circus performer, which helps contribute to higher career satisfaction in the long term.
We asked circus performers how well their abilities were used in their careers.
Their response was:
3.3 out of 5 stars
65 circus performers
18% of circus performers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 5 stars
34% of circus performers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 4 stars
18% of circus performers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 3 stars
22% of circus performers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 2 stars
8% of circus performers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 1 stars