The World’s 25 Oddest Jobs (with Inspirational, Hilarious, Stupid Insights Included at No Extra Charge)
Have you read The World's Oddest Jobs and Hardest Jobs & My Life as a Carrot Juice Technician Part I and the conclusion in Part II yet? That’s where I covered one of the most unusual and difficult jobs I ever held -- making carrot juice by hand for a chain of Chicago health food stores and staining my hands deep-orange in the process.
You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll get to feel superior to me because you never had to do that, and you’ll also discover why odd jobs and hard jobs can actually end up being the most rewarding.
Now for your amusement and future career consideration, here are 25 of the oddest jobs out there – with my inspirational and stupid insights about each included. This list is by no means all-inclusive. For instance, neighbors of mine here in the Chicago suburbs – a husband and wife team – make a (darn good) living with their dog poop scooping company. And they have stiff competition from another dog poop scooping firm in the area. So why didn't the poop scooper job make the list? Because I wanted to call this "The 25 Oddest," not "The 26" etc.
Nonetheless, if you know of other odd jobs that ought to be included – or to include the oddest or hardest job you’ve ever done – feel free to leave a comment!
And now in no particular order the very odd jobs…
Dog Food Tester
Yes, these are humans who do dog food taste-tasting for dog food companies … at age six we all wondered what the doggie’s food must taste like; they just took that curiosity and made a career of it.
Drawbridge Tender
Who every six months are required to take the official “Up vs. Down” test to ensure they’re still fit for the job.
Lifeguard at Nude Beach
"Shark! Shark! ... Hey wait a minute ... that's no shark."
Note Taker for College Students
Particularly prevalent in medical school. Comforting thought the next time you have a medical appointment, no?
Gum Buster
Through special steaming tools, they remove the gum stuck to sidewalks, street benches and elsewhere that you stuck there back in 1976.
From a profile of a gum buster in the Washington Post:
“You'd be surprised how much gum is everywhere. Generally, amusement parks and parking garages are the worst. But there are some hot spots in the District. The trees outside Ford's Theatre are covered in gum -- it's really amazing where people will put gum. My favorite brands of gum are Eclipse and Big Red. Since starting the business I've been more aware of dropping gum -- I try to find a trash can or at least something to wrap it in. And if I absolutely have to spit it out? Well, I make sure no one is looking.”
Phone Psychic
I bet they get tired of people thinking they’re funny and asking, “Did you know I was going to call?”
Chicken Sexer
Get the thought of chickens in lingerie out of your head. The job simply consists of sorting through baby chicks to determine if they are male or female, and then segregating them.
Brain Picker
Nope, this is not someone who asks others a lot of questions. It’s way more literal than that. This is someone who places animal heads on a table or on hooks in a slaughterhouse, splits open the skull and extracts the brains (which are a delicacy in many culture’s cooking.)
Ant Catcher
Remember that ant farm you or your brother had as kids? Some of those ants come from much bigger ant ranches, but it’s someone’s job to go out into the wild and dig up ants to populate those ranches. And here I thought they caught them frozen, the way they’re shipped!
Jelly Doughnut Filler
You have to have a steady hand and nerves of steel for this production line job, because just a little too much jelly and – BOOM! – those things can explode like a hand-grenade.
Stand-in Bridesmaid
Yes, women actually get paid for this for weddings where the bride doesn't know enough people. But for the opportunity alone of getting to do The Chicken Dance yet again in life at the reception, aren’t there enough people out there who’d do this job for free?
Golf Ball Diver
Also known as a Golf Ball Marshall. They search ponds, lakes and other water bodies on and near golf courses to find lost balls to refinish and resell.
“How many golf balls did you find today, Harry?”
“Fore.”
(Actually, at least one golf ball diver collects 3000 golf balls per day.)
Telemarketer for a Cemetery
A sales pitch for siding and gutters or another magazine subscription is bad enough as I’m about to sit down to eat, but for a burial plot? Thing is, for a job to be a job there needs to be customers, so between bites of their Kraft macaroni someone out there is saying “Yes, sign me up for plot B-9 today!”
Odor Judges
They work in various industries. For instance, some odor judges work for underarm deodorant manufacturers and are required to smell armpits with different deodorants applied. Others work for mouthwash manufacturers and get to smell people’s breath. I’d hate to think of the pranks their peers at work have pulled on them.
Potato Chip Inspector
Scans for defective potato chips on the assembly line at potato chip factories. But for being fried, fatty and oh so unhealthy (not to mention delicious), aren’t all potato chips technically defective?
Urinalysis Observer
In the job interviews, when asked why they think they’re qualified for the job, I wonder how many applicants have answered, "Well, I’ve always enjoyed watching people pee."
Egg Inspector
Examine eggs for cracks and other irregularities before they are graded and stamped for approval. If you like drinking lots of coffee, you are bound for failure in this career.
Egg Breaker
Breaks eggs by striking them against a bar and then pours contents into a device that separates the yolks from the whites.
Imagine the tension if an Egg Inspector and an Egg Breaker were to ever meet.
Citrus Fruit Colorer
Aided by chemicals and steam, they give citrus fruit that is typically picked before it is fully ripe a natural-looking color. Or, as the citrus fruit colorer job is officially defined in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles:
Tends equipment to subject citrus fruits to ethylene gas to destroy chlorophyll and produce fruit of natural appearance: Ascertains from supervisor time, humidity, and amount of gas to be used for each lot of fruit stored in coloring room. Observes gauges and dials and manipulates controls to steam-heat room, to pump gas throughout room, and to keep specified humidity.
YUM!! Just makes you crave an orange or grapefruit right now, doesn’t it?
Foley Artist
They use a wide variety of items – any they can find that work – to make the sound effects in 
movies. For example, they may create the sound of someone getting punched by thumping watermelons, or the sound of silence by being quiet.
Dice Inspector
They inspect for lopsidedness, blemishes, seven-sidedness and any other dice imperfections for casinos.
Skyscraper Window Washer
Imagine all the bottles of Windex they must go through up there.
Christmas Tree/Holiday Decorator
Come the holidays, I wish many of my do-it-yourselfer neighbors who have festive gobs of lights clumped in their windows would employ them.
Wrinkle Chaser
Nope, not an elderly bachelor. This person irons wrinkles from shoes as they are made to ensure they’re smooth when you see them in the shoe stores.
Zoo Artificial Inseminator
But hey, it’s not nearly as tough of a job as the one who has to do the initial extracting.
Sooooo … what is the oddest job you’ve ever done?
What strange jobs that really exist do you think belong on this list?
Which of these jobs above MOST interests you if you’re considering a career switch? (I think I'd make a fine Brain Picker, fyi.)
Leave a comment by signing up or in below. And if you haven't already, check out The World's Oddest Jobs and Hardest Jobs & My Life as a Carrot Juice Technician Part I and the conclusion in Part II (where a few others have already comments on the oddest jobs they ever held, including a chimney sweep, big money courier and a noodle-maker!)