Career Advice & News Center

For wealthy Americans, managing personal money can often feel like running a business. While that statement may not draw much pity from the 10 percent of American workers who find themselves unemployed, it has nonetheless been the basis for a growing industry: wealth counseling.

Though lawyers had typically handled the assets of the ultra-rich in the past, an emphasis on billable hours and the emergence of professionals with applicable training gave way to a new field of wealth management, the Wall Street Journal reports.

According to a study by Wise Counsel Research (WCR), a Massachusetts-based nonprofit agency that investigates wealth management, there are currently up to 500 wealth counselors practicing in the U.S., trained in areas ranging from psychology to family governance and law.

Rather than focusing on investments and cash flow, these professionals tend to advise their clients on the impact of their financial decisions on family members and values, the study's lead author, Keith Whitaker, told the news source.

"When you're not wealthy, you look for parents or siblings or friends for this kind of advice," Whitaker commented.

He added, "When you're wealthy, you have those same needs but you have the resources and opportunity to find that advice in a thoughtful manner."

The WCR report revealed that the most common issues addressed by wealth counselors were instructing children on how to live with money and manage wealth, and infusing philanthropy with a targeted sense of purpose.

Job prospects in the field may have actually improved in light of last year's financial crisis, as increasingly more banks are adopting the work of wealth counselors to suit their clients.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median earnings of personal financial advisors were $69,050 in May 2008.