Can You Juggle Multiple Jobs? 5 Ways To Decide

By Allie Mitchell on August 31, 2016

While in school, many students decide to have jobs and work to make more money.

In college, there are plenty of ways to have/get a job. There are on-campus jobs, online jobs, paid internships or even off-campus jobs. You have to always find what is best for you and what you find interesting to do.

Most of the money that students have or get (I mean this in terms of refunds) goes straight towards textbooks or other supplies needed for school, which is why sometimes students choose to get certain jobs so that they can have money for themselves to do other things. Unfortunately, only having one job may not suffice when it comes to college, especially if you are living in your own apartment and choose to have pets. On the other hand, having more than one job can hinder you when you are in college.

I have seen that trying to have more than one job can cause you to lose focus in school and cause your grades to lack. Or you are forced to change your schedule because of your jobs. Having extra money is always a good thing, but don’t compromise your education for it.

This article is meant to help you decide whether or not you can handle multiple jobs. Everyone should understand that it isn’t for everyone; there are plenty of people that don’t work at all in college because they make the executive decision not to and to instead focus on school. It was their decision, and you can make the same decision.

Here is a list of things that can help you make the decision of whether or not having multiple jobs is what you should be doing.

unsplash.com

1. If your course schedule is overloaded, don’t get multiple jobs. You won’t have time for either one honestly — either your schoolwork will start lacking or you will do less than presentable at your job. You want to be able to give both parts of your life equal amounts of your time. If you are going to get multiple jobs during a hectic schedule at least try to get jobs on campus, so that you can have a flexible work schedule and your job will be right near your classes.

2. Find jobs that work for you. You want bosses that understand you are in school and need flexible work schedules. You want your work relationships to run smoothly and for them to see that you can juggle more than one thing. Bosses love versatile multi-taskers. Be sure that you can do just that before taking on more than you can handle.

3. Be sure you are in the right mindset to work multiple jobs. If your heart isn’t in it or if you aren’t focused enough, you will fail at either job. You want to make sure you give your all to each job entirely. If your mind is everywhere you could possibly lose track of what job you are working and mix up your work schedules.

Believe me, I’ve known people who have accidentally gone to the wrong job because they just lost track of time and their mind was everywhere except for where it needed to be.

4. Make sure you are able to transform yourself into a good planner. You should plan out every week so you don’t get lost throughout. It is a good idea to plan so that if anyone asks you what you are going to be doing at this time of day you are able to tell people and inform them immediately.

Yes, it sounds boring to have almost your entire day planned out every single week, but it’s the price you pay to have more than one job. When your days are planned, you can always make smart decisions about anything that pops up throughout the week.

5. Even if you have to work multiple jobs make sure you keep the end goal in sight. Remember what you are doing this all for. Don’t let your jobs drain you of all your energy. Remember that you are getting closer to whatever your goal is, such as maybe a down payment on a house or paying off your student loans; just don’t let the jobs, no matter whether they are fun or boring, keep you from realizing your end goal and what all this money is going towards, even if the days are long and unbearable.

To stay motivated, keep a realistic time frame in mind.

unsplash.com

Working multiple jobs isn’t for everyone, so if you don’t want to do it or think that you can’t do it, then don’t. Don’t go into something with a lack of interest. You want to do something because it’s what you want.

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format