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Perform therapeutic massages of soft tissues and joints. May assist in the assessment of range of motion and muscle strength, or propose client therapy plans.
Communication skills. Massage therapists must listen carefully and convey information clearly in order to ensure that clients achieve desired results through massage sessions.
Decision-making skills. Massage therapists must evaluate each client’s needs and recommend the best treatment based on that person’s needs.
Empathy. Massage therapists often treat clients who are in pain. They must be compassionate and sympathetic to their clients' problems and needs.
Integrity. Massage therapists often have access to clients’ medical histories and other privacy information. Therefore, they must be trustworthy and protect client confidentiality.
Interpersonal skills. Massage therapists must give clients a positive experience. Building trust and making clients feel comfortable are necessary for therapists to expand their client base.
Physical stamina. Massage therapists may give several treatments during a workday and must be able to stand throughout massage appointments.
Physical strength and dexterity. Massage therapists must be strong and able to exert pressure through a variety of movements when manipulating a client’s muscles.
Time-management skills. Massage therapists must be effective in using the time allocated for appointments to help each client accomplish his or her goals.
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Characteristics of this Career |
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97% | Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job. | |
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95% | Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. | |
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94% | Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical. | |
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90% | Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. | |
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83% | Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. | |
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82% | Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. | |
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81% | Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. | |
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75% | Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. | |
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74% | Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. | |
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70% | Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks. | |
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70% | Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations. | |
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69% | Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job. | |
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69% | Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems. | |
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66% | Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Strengths |
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89% | Social - Work involves helping, teaching, advising, assisting, or providing service to others. Social occupations are often associated with social, health care, personal service, teaching/education, or religious activities. | |
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78% | Realistic - Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Values of the Work Environment |
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72% | Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service. | |
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61% | Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality |
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69% | Dynamic Strength - The ability to exert muscle force repeatedly or continuously over time. This involves muscular endurance and resistance to muscle fatigue. | |
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69% | Trunk Strength - The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing. | |
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66% | Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. | |
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66% | Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent |
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94% | Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? | |
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92% | Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? | |
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91% | Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? | |
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90% | Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals? | |
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89% | Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer? | |
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84% | Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions - How much does this job require making repetitive motions? | |
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83% | Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization? | |
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83% | Physical Proximity - To what extent does this job require the worker to perform job tasks in close physical proximity to other people? | |
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81% | Spend Time Standing - How much does this job require standing? | |
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81% | Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? | |
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79% | Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job? | |
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74% | Spend Time Bending or Twisting the Body - How much does this job require bending or twisting your body? | |
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68% | Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer? | |
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66% | Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job? |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Tasks & Values |
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90% | Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients. | |
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88% | Performing for or Working Directly with the Public - Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests. | |
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81% | Performing General Physical Activities - Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials. | |
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80% | Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. | |
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80% | Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. | |
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72% | Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. | |
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70% | Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form. | |
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70% | Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards. | |
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66% | Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events. |
Massage therapists treat clients by applying pressure to manipulate the body's soft tissues and joints. This treatment may help to relieve pain, heal injuries, relieve stress, and aid in the general wellness of clients.
Massage therapists typically do the following:
Massage therapists manipulate clients’ soft tissues and joints to treat injuries and promote general wellness. They may use their hands, fingers, forearms, elbows, and feet as tools during the session.
Massage therapists may use lotions and oils and massage tables or chairs when treating a client. The length of a session varies based on type of massage. For example, a chair massage may be as short as 5 to 10 minutes, whereas a table massage typically lasts between 30 and 90 minutes.
Massage therapists talk with clients about what the desired outcome of massage. They may suggest personalized treatment plans for the client, including information about additional relaxation techniques to practice between sessions.
Massage therapists may specialize in different massage modalities, or specialties, such as Swedish massage, deep-tissue massage, and sports massage. Massage therapists may specialize in several modalities.
The type of massage given typically depends on the client’s needs and physical condition. Different populations, such as athletes or pregnant women, require different techniques for their massages.
In addition to giving massages, therapists, especially those who are self-employed, may spend time recording notes on clients, marketing, booking clients, and conducting other business tasks.
Massage therapists held about 134,300 jobs in 2022. The largest employers of massage therapists were as follows:
| Self-employed workers | 35% |
| Personal care services | 33 |
| Offices of all other health practitioners | 12 |
| Offices of chiropractors | 7 |
| Accommodation | 6 |
Some massage therapists travel to local events, clients’ homes or other sites. Others work out of their own homes. Massage therapists, especially those who are self-employed, may provide their own table or chair, sheets, pillows, and body lotions or oils.
Massage therapists’ working conditions vary. For example, some therapists provide relaxing massages in dimly lit settings and use candles, incense, and soothing music. Others offer rehabilitative massages in brightly lit clinical settings or at outdoor events.
Because giving massages is physically demanding, massage therapists may injure themselves if they do not use proper technique. Repetitive-motion problems and fatigue from standing for extended periods are most common.
Therapists can limit these risks by using good body mechanics, spacing sessions properly, exercising, and receiving a massage regularly themselves.
Part-time work is common for massage therapists. Because therapists usually work by appointment, their schedules and the number of hours worked each week vary considerably. Moreover, because of the strength and endurance needed to give a massage, many therapists cannot perform massage services 8 hours per day, 5 days per week.
Massage therapists typically complete a postsecondary education program that combines study and experience, although standards and requirements vary by state. Most states regulate massage therapy and require massage therapists to have a license or certification.
Massage therapy education programs are typically in private, independent schools or in community colleges or other public postsecondary institutions. Depending on the program, earning a diploma or certificate requires several months or years to complete.
Applicants to massage therapy programs typically need at least a high school diploma or equivalent. The curriculum generally includes both classroom study and hands-on practice of massage techniques. Required coursework includes sciences, such as anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, and pathology, as well as subjects such as business and ethics.
Some programs concentrate on certain modalities, or specialties, such as sports, rehabilitative, or oncology massage.
Massage therapists typically need a state-issued license or must register with the state. Requirements vary but typically include graduation from an approved massage therapy program and passing an exam. The Massage and Bodywork Licensing Examination (MBLEx) licensing exam is administered by the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards.
Other requirements for massage therapists may include passing a background check, having liability insurance, and being certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Many states require massage therapists to complete continuing education credits and to renew their license periodically. For more information, contact the licensing board for the state in which you intend to practice.
Employment of massage therapists is projected to grow 18 percent from 2022 to 2032, much faster than the average for all occupations.
About 22,000 openings for massage therapists are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
Continued growth in the demand for massage services will lead to new jobs for massage therapists. Not only does massage help relieve stress and increase relaxation, but it is also becoming more accepted as a natural and safe treatment method for managing pain. Demand for massage therapists is expected to increase as more people look to massage to maintain overall health and well-being.
For more information about careers in massage therapy, visit
Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals
American Massage Therapy Association
National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork
For more information about national testing and national certification, visit
Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards
For more information about accredited massage therapy programs, visit
Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation
This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of massage therapists.
| Occupation | Job Duties | Entry-Level Education | Median Annual Pay, May 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Athletic Trainers |
Athletic trainers specialize in preventing, diagnosing, and treating muscle and bone injuries and illnesses. |
Master's degree | $53,840 |
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Exercise Physiologists |
Exercise physiologists develop fitness and exercise programs that help injured or sick patients recover. |
Bachelor's degree | $51,350 |
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Physical Therapist Assistants and Aides |
Physical therapist assistants and aides are supervised by physical therapists to help patients regain movement and manage pain after injuries and illnesses. |
See How to Become One | $57,240 |
|
Physical Therapists |
Physical therapists help injured or ill people improve movement and manage pain. |
Doctoral or professional degree | $97,720 |