What if you could find a job in the sleep industry today that desperately needed you? Well, there are openings in the sleep and sleep training industry that need filling. What are these sleep and sleep training jobs – and how do you find them?
There is a huge demand for quality employees in sleep-related industries. These jobs vary from self-starter sleep training consultants to working for big-name businesses as salespeople to working for a hospital as a sleep technician. Each of these jobs needs filling today.
So let’s talk about 9 of these jobs – just keep reading!
Be a Sleep Training Consultant
Want to help other families get better sleep? You may want to become a sleep coach or consultant. If that’s the case, there are two paths to take.
- Work with an existing company as a sleep training consultant.
- Set up your own shop as a sleep coach.
We’ll talk about the pros and cons of both paths – as well as which companies are looking for more sleep coaches.
First, let’s talk about working with an existing company.
Sleep Training Coach: Working with Established Brands
First, let’s talk about some of the pros and cons of working with an established sleep consultant brand.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| You get paid based on work and/or commission. | You get paid based on work and/or commission. |
| Work can be in person or by phone. | Work can be in person or by phone. |
| The methodology and process are already in place. | You’re required to use the existing process, even if you don’t love every step. |
| You won’t have to rely on building up your own website’s traffic. | You rely on the existing brand for work and referrals. |
| You set your own availability and hours. | Client work isn’t guaranteed during your availability. |
| You get training and updates on the field from your mentor and chosen brand. | The training often has an upfront fee and may require a regular (usually annual) membership fee. Other fees or brand certifications may be required. |
If working with an established sleep coach brand appeals to you, here are five such brands that are almost always hiring new consultants:
- Baby Sleep Site. You can check their listed requirements for sleep consultants or other available positions on their careers page.
- Sleep Sense Program. See what they require of potential sleep coaches on their site by clicking here.
- Gentle Sleep Coach program. The Sleep Lady (Kim West) is training and hiring more sleep coaches on her website here.
- Dream Team baby sleep consultants are hiring more coaches. Their process is more involved, but all the information is available right here – just be sure to look at the bottom of the page.
- Family Sleep Institute is hiring child sleep consultants via their certification process (click here to see it).
Some of these positions may be as full or part-time employees, but most will probably be as independent contractors who are associated with the brand. As such, here are some important questions to ask before signing on with an existing sleep consulting company.
- Is this position as an employee (full or part-time) or as an independent contractor?
- Will I be paid a regular salary or is the income on a per-job or commission-based?
- How often and how am I paid?
- Who is responsible for finding clients – and how does that process work?
- If I find my own clients, is there an extra commission paid?
- Am I required to do any marketing of myself or the brand?
- How should I present my relationship with the brand when talking with potential clients?
- What fees or dues will I be required to pay?
- What training is required to be associated with this sleep training consultant brand or company?
Make sure you have these answers before you sign any deals – that way, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting into as a sleep training consultant for a brand. And that way, it can be a coaching job you’ll love.
Sleep Training Consultant: Be your Own Boss
If you want to blaze your own trail as a sleep training consultant, here are some of the pros and cons of doing so.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| You get to keep all the money you make and you get to set your own prices. | You have to price your services to be competitive with other sleep consultants online or in your area. |
| You have the flexibility to adjust processes and locations (phone, online, in-person) as needed. | Flexibility can be both a blessing and a curse. |
| You get to build your own clientele through whatever means you want to (word of mouth, ads, website, whatever!). | You’re in charge of your own marketing, which can be a full-time job in itself. |
| You set your own availability and hours. | Client work still isn’t guaranteed during your availability. |
| You may be able to opt-out of year membership dues or extra training. | You may miss out on regular industry updates OR access to scholarly publications unless you choose to opt-in to those memberships. |
As you prepare to open your own sleep training business, you’ll want to decide on a few factors. Here are some of the most important ones to ask yourself.
- What kind of training or certifications do I want to get before I open up a business?
- Do I need to set up an official business with my city, state, and federal government agencies?
- How will I get updates or additional training in the future?
- How will I market my business?
- Will I use a website? If so, what will my strategy be for making it work?
- Will I use social media to find potential clients? What will my strategy be?
- How will I set my prices and take payment? Do I need a banking institution or will a business PayPal account be sufficient?
- Will I offer refunds or not?
- What kinds of guarantees will I make to clients – and how will I fulfill them?
- How will I serve clients? Will I offer remote coaching or will I offer in-person/in-home sleep training services?
Having the answers to each of these questions will help you set up your business on the path to success.
As far as training, there are some online and in-person courses available to help you get the training and/or certification that you may want before starting your own company.
Keep in mind, though, that there is no government-approved certification or accreditation process for sleep training coaches. To read more about why that is, read my article on it here.
Even so, it may be useful to go through a coaching program as you set up your business. Some of the more expensive programs will coach you through the whole business-setting-up process, while others will only focus on what you need to know as a sleep training coach.
| Source | Course Cost | Course Location | Notes | Membership Dues |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gentle Sleep Coach | $5,995 | Online | Includes the first year of the Advanced Program, which advertises helping you set up your own business. | $1,000/year |
| International Maternity & Parenting Institute | $4,300 | Online | Requires 2 courses to graduate, the price reflects both halves. | None |
| Family Sleep Institute | $4,200 | Online Live Lecture | 4 Months’ Coaching after graduation. | $250/year |
| Institute of Pediatric Sleep & Parenting | $2,700 | Online | Lifetime Updates Included. | None |
| Baby Sleep Consultant Training | $2,200 | Online | Ongoing Support & 6 Months’ Coaching. | None |
| Certified Sleep Science Coach | $197 | Online | Learning units are more adult-oriented than child based. | None |
| Newborn Care Specialist Association for Certification | $250 | Online or In-Person | This is an additional certification on top of an approved sleep training course. Must supply family testimonials to graduate. | Recertification Required Every 2 Years |
Now, if you don’t want to be a coach or sleep training specialist, that’s okay. There are other jobs in the sleep industry that need filling today – and offer on-the-job training.
Sleep Technician or Technologist Wanted
Many hospitals and sleep clinics are looking for sleep technicians – and are willing to provide you with the training you need – and pay you while doing that training. Each of the postings lists these as the requirements to apply:
- Have a High School Diploma or GED
- Be already certified as a Certified Medical Assistant or Certified Nurse’s Assistant (CMA/CNA)
There are several levels of sleep technicians, but this is the most basic one. This usually involves running sleep studies or tests and may involve a basic analysis of the related data.
This could be a great job if you live close to a hospital, sleep clinic, or metropolitan area – or live close enough that you don’t mind commuting.
Polysomnographic Technologist Jobs Now Recruiting (and training!)
There are several levels of sleep technicians, and this is usually the higher level. Sometimes, this is listed as a “Sleep Technologist II” in job listings. These jobs sometimes require that you already have basic sleep technologist training (and prerequisites of a diploma or GED and being a CNA/CMA) – and sometimes not.
This job also usually provides on-the-job training.
This level is a higher one because it usually involves teaching in addition to running sleep studies and analyzing data. From the research I’ve done, it appears to be the teaching of patients, classes, and workshops to new employees.
Working as a sleep technician (level I or level II) could be a great and secure job as long as you live close enough to the clinic or hospital. If not, it may not be a viable option.
Sales Jobs Available in the Sleep Industry
After extensive research on sleep-related jobs, there are several big-name businesses that are actively recruiting more sales employees.
One of the big-name companies that came up in multiple searches was Sleep Number – the mattress company. They are really looking for quality salespeople to promote their products.
The immediate perks that come to mind are working for an established and recognizable company are job security and benefits in addition to the base pay. Plus, it’s sales, so there’s likely to be commissions involved. The requirements to apply can be seen in their job listings or on their website.
The downside to applying for sales is that most positions are going to be in-person and at a store. Even so, there may be phone or remote positions available, so it’s still worth looking at what’s available.
