©2006 by Fiona Broome and the Hollow Hill Staff
Can you earn a living as a ghost hunter? Yes... and no.
In general, few ghost hunters can support themselves without charging for some aspect of what they
do. Here are some options.
Professional ghost investigations
Some ghost groups and individuals charge a fee to investigate private homes and businesses. They may charge per-hour, or
a flat fee for a certain number of hours plus a printed, illustrated report.
The problem with this is that many ghost clubs do this kind of work, free of charge. And, while some (but not
all) professionals
may do a much better job, ghost research is fairly intangible. It's difficult to compare your work with others',
especially to people outside this field.
However, there are few careers that provide the kind of satisfaction you'll feel
when a frantic client is finally able to rest comfortably in his
or her home, thanks to your help.
Teach ghost-related classes
Some groups and individuals teach classes in ghost-related subjects. They may teach privately, through an adult ed
or community group, or at a college.
This can be rewarding on a personal level, in addition to providing much-needed income. But, not everyone
is comfortable speaking to groups, or dealing with highly individual students.
The fact is, paranormal studies often attracts independent-minded people. As a teacher, flexibility and a sense of boundaries
are
essential.
If you can handle that, it's a fine career choice, and you'll meet fascinating, intelligent people. Everyone has a story to tell,
and every day--and class--is more interesting than the previous one.
Work as a media consultant
Movies and TV shows often rely upon professionals for insights, script corrections, and advice on realistic special effects.
However, these jobs are few and far between. Even people who've worked with Hollywood often, still need another source
of income if their sole focus is ghost-related productions.
One of the best avenues into this field is to write a story, book, or script that is chosen for production. From there,
you may network your way to a full-time career, or at least regular part-time paychecks.
We've done this kind of work on a small scale, and enjoy it.
Do space clearing
Whether the house or business is plagued by ghosts, poltergeists, or some other negative energy, space clearing can be
a fulfilling and interesting field. And, since many states' laws require disclosure of ghosts when a house is sold, realtors
can be a fine source of work. If you can banish a house's ghosts, it's likely to sell for a much better price... and faster.
As you get results, you'll also get referrals to homes and offices that aren't on the market, but need help with negative
energy, and perhaps hauntings.
This is a field that covers far more than ghosts and hauntings. For more information, we recommend reading books such as
For our own work, we use Lillian Too's Feng Shui Space Clearing Kit
.
Debunk 'hauntings' (false anomalies)
There are many opportunities in this field. As we've already mentioned, realtors are dismayed when they have to
tell a buyer that a property is haunted. If you can prove that it's not haunted, you can provide a valuable service to
the real estate community.
Obviously, we believe that some hauntings are genuine. We've researched and confirmed many of them. However, more than half the reports
that we receive turn out to be something odd that can be explained in normal--not paranormal--terms.
Have a membership-supported website
Several people support their full-time ghost research with members-only websites, or members-only sections of their sites. The
difficult side of this is defending your fees when so many websites--including Hollow Hill--don't charge for the photos and
information that they make available.
But, we're very aware of the expense of running a graphic-intensive website, whether you charge a membership fee or not.
Your research has to be supported somehow, and if this is your best choice, go for it. It's probably better than taking a day job
that you don't enjoy in an unrelated field, leaving you free for research (and sharing your findings) just a few hours each week.
Share your research via the media
Whether you have your own TV or radio show, or write for print media (books and magazines), you can support yourself by sharing
what you've learned with others. This isn't an easy choice, and you need to be skilled in your chosen medium, but this line of
work can allow you the time that you need for research... with few compromises.
This is how some of our Hollow Hill researchers earn a living. We write books and articles for magazines.
There can be challenges, however. First of all, you need to be comfortable with the world knowing that you're a ghost hunter.
You will be called names, and your sanity questioned. If your children find this embarrassing, a pseudonym (pen name)
is a good idea.
If you're self-employed--and many people in the media are--you'll constantly need to look ahead to your next income opportunity. However,
if you have an agent or a business manager, that can free you to focus on the actual work.
Qualifications
Recently, someone wrote to us saying, "there are no 100% set guidelines in this field, no certification, no degree, etc."
That's an unfortunate misunderstanding. While most professional ghost hunters rely on their track records for
credibility, you can earn a degree related to ghost hunting from an accredited college or university.
For example, the University of Virginia's program is called the Division of Perceptual Studies.
Princeton calls it, Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research. At
the University of Edinburgh, studies are in the Koestler Parapsychology Unit.
Not every college or university offers a full-time program in parapsychology, but
you can certainly achieve a degree based on studies that will take you to the forefront in the field of ghost hunting.
Summary
No matter how you choose to support your full-time research in ghost-related studies, there are difficult decisions to make.
There will always be critics, too. Many people expect you to do research and share your results with no income to show
for it.
The clergy have faced this same dilemma for years: Unless you have an income from some aspect of your work,
how can you support yourself and still be 'on call' to help people,
24 hours a day?
The income has to come from somewhere, unless you're independently wealthy or supported by a philanthropy.
No two ghost hunting professionals will make the same income choices, or agree with each other on acceptable
compromises.
In general, we can't pretend that everyone can succeed with a career in ghost hunting. However, by diversifying your
income sources among areas such as those described above, you can definitely earn a living in this field. More importantly,
you will find the paranormal field tremendously rewarding on a personal level.
