Recognizing What Additional Work Can Mean for You
Extra work can be both a blessing and a curse. Extra income can help you pay off nagging debts that you just can't seem to get anywhere with any other way. Working a second job can also help you build new skills that could lead to a different full-time job or a new business of your own.
And nearly anyone can put up with a crazy schedule for a few weeks or even a couple of months, especially if you know exactly when the long hours will end and can count down the days — and add up your extra income.
But managing a heavy workload isn't easy. You have to juggle your responsibilities at home, your relationships with the people who are important to you, and your need for rest and relaxation with your new requirements on the job.
Before trading in your time for money, be sure you can't cut back on your expenses enough to gain the extra money you need. Consider adding income only as a last resort.
The following sections help you define the pluses and minuses of additional work, and give you some tips for smoothing the rough road ahead.
New Skills That May Lead to Different Work
One approach to choosing your second job is to look for one that builds your skills in a way that will help further your career. Suppose, for example, that you don't have any computer skills at all. You see an advertisement for a job that requires 15 hours of work each week at your local library reshelving books.
But you also know that the library's checkout system is completely computerized, so at your interview, you ask whether you would be able to spend a few hours a week learning the system and, at some point, helping patrons use the system, too.
Within just a few months, you may develop enough computer skills to be able to update your resume and apply for a completely different day job — one that requires a basic knowledge of computers — with your current employer or with a new one.
A Foundation for Starting Your Own Company
If you're hoping to go into business for yourself and want extra income to pay off debts before you start the company, or as a cushion against uncertain income, you can start your business on a very part-time basis — perhaps on evenings and weekends — and build both a client base and a reputation before you go into the business full time.
Suppose, for example, you're thinking of starting a landscaping company. Using the additional evening daylight hours in the summer months, you could begin your landscaping business during evenings and weekends. Let your coworkers, friends, and neighbors know about your new business, and let word spread about your great product or service. As your business picks up, you can begin to cut down your hours at your other job or quit that job altogether.
If your new business will compete with the company you work for, take extra care. Don't advertise at work and be sure never to use your company's equipment or ideas for your own business. And never work for yourself when you're on company time.
Besides landscaping, some business ideas that might lend themselves to evenings and weekends include catering, photography, graphic design, Web site design, furniture refinishing and repair, selling antiques, home remodeling and repair, closet and room organizing, dog training, tutoring, selling cosmetics, and so on.
Far Less Available Time
The hours you spend working more will have to come from somewhere. Unless you have hours and hours of unfilled free time right now, your additional work is probably going to keep you from spending time with your family, running errands, exercising, futzing with your house or car, visiting friends and extended family, taking a vacation, working on your hobby, reading, playing with your pets, and so on.
This isn't trivial — remember the saying, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”? Working too much can dull your senses, making life seem as though it revolves around work, when, in fact, a healthy life revolves around the people and events that make you happy.
Always include your family in your plans to work additional hours. Not only will they miss spending time with you, they'll probably also be asked to pick up some of your chores around the house, so they deserve to be included from the start.
If you're planning to add extra income for a short time — say, until your $6,500 credit card debt is paid off — you can plan ahead with friends and family, agreeing, perhaps, that they'll help you by running some of your errands while you're working to pay off this debt. You may also be able to agree that as soon as the debt is paid off, you'll quit earning the extra income and immediately spend more time with them, maybe even by taking a well-deserved vacation.
Although the thought of extending your extra income indefinitely may seem like a wise financial choice, keep in mind that life isn't all about work — if you do nothing but work and make money, you'll be likely to either lose the valuable parts of your life or burn out on your existing jobs and begin to dread them.
If you're planning to add extra income for a longer time — perhaps taking on a higher-paying job that requires far more working hours — try to find ways to gain back some of your free time. Move closer to work, hire someone to help with errands and chores, exercise or meet with friends before work or during your lunch hour, listen to books on tape while you drive, take fun vacations, and so on. Then when you are home, be fully in the moment, not working, thinking about work, or preparing for the next day of work.
If you're adding work temporarily — for a few weeks or months — you can probably survive this additional stress without damaging your health or relationships. But if you plan to continue to work a lot, find ways to reduce stress and continue to connect with those around you.
Added Stress
Working too much taxes you physically and emotionally, and that can make you fatigued, subject to illness and injury, and irritable, none of which makes you a very good companion, parent, or friend.
In addition, if your work is highly mental in nature, you may suffer mental stress that can rob you of your ability to converse intelligently and work on detailed hobbies or other projects during your down time.
Higher Taxes
Ben Franklin said that “a penny saved is a penny earned.” Technically, though, he should have said that a penny saved is about 1.20 cents earned, because taxes can eat up that much (or more) of your earnings. If, on your current income, you can find a way to cut $10 from your expenses, you'll have $10 more to put toward paying off debt, into savings, into your retirement account, and so on. But if you work more, you'll have to earn between $12.50 and $13.25, which will get you about $10 after taxes, to pay off $10 from your debt or add it to your savings account.
Because of taxes, it's always more efficient to make the same income — or even to make less income — and cut your expenses than it is to add more income. Using a tax calculator, fill out WORKSHEET 11-1 to see just how taxes take a bite out of your extra income.
Income |
Total Taxes Due |
Current |
$ |
+ $500 |
$ |
+ $1,000 |
$ |
+ $2,000 |
$ |
+ $3,000 |
$ |
+ $5,000 |
$ |
+ $10,000 |
$ |
+ $15,000 |
$ |
+ $20,000 |
$ |
+ $25,000 |
$ |
+ $30,000 |
$ |
