Career Coach: How to juggle multiple jobs?
If you find and take a second job, there will be extra income, of course, but more money also will go out the door to cover costs like extra child care, commuting, etc.
Obviously, going to work for a competitor of your main employer could easily lead to you getting fired, so think about the big picture. Your main employer might still frown on moonlighting, so find out what would be considered acceptable. In many cases, there may be additional work at your job now that you weren’t aware of.
Before saying yes to a second gig with another employer, thoroughly consider these other issues:
MAKE IT DIFFERENT
If your primary job is physical in nature, you may want to find a second job that’s sedentary. After all that activity, it may be far easier to work a second job in which you can sit down.
Also be careful about taking a second job that requires significant brainpower if your main job requires a great deal of thought and analysis. Two retail jobs would likely be exhausting for anyone, but a desk job followed by one at a restaurant, for example, might make it easier to plow through your second shift of the day.
DON’T FORGET TO SCHEDULE LIFE
If at all possible, try to focus on jobs that allow for a schedule that’s workable not just with your primary job, but also with your life. Try to arrange your schedule so there’s at least one day a week in which you’re off from both jobs. Recharging is critical to maintaining your life balance, family connections — and sanity.
KEEP IT SEPARATE
However tempting it may be to check your work e-mail or make a quick phone call for one employer while on the clock of the other, avoid blurring the lines. Be honest with both employers about the fact that you’re working more than one job and may not be home in your off hours. And make sure each boss knows that, when you’re on their schedule, you’re fully present with your head in the game — their game.
TRY FOR TEMPORARY
Even if your second job is not a temp job, do your best to make it temporary. Ideally, your goal should be to regain lost financial ground or save for a specific goal so working two jobs is not a permanent commitment. The most industrious among us would still likely agree that being on the job so many hours will eventually wear down any hard worker.
Cristina Madeira, Certified Executive and Team Coach by ICF
Cristina Madeira Certified Executive and Team Coach by
