Feature Article: Moonlighting in America: Strategies for Managing Working Multiple Jobs
Special feature: Life Balance and How to Attain It
Quintessential Site: Featured Career Web Site of this Issue
The Career Doctor: Answering Your Questions
Q TIPS: Quick and Quintessential Tips to Guide Your Job Search
Notes from the Editor: About this Issue...
We try to produce an issue periodically that addresses the balance between
work and personal life. This issue's feature looks at moonlighting -- working
in two or more jobs -- a growing trend that certainly presents special challenges
to achieving work-life balance.
If you're looking for a second job -- or any job -- check out our
job-search
portal.
Also in this issue, new contributor Bill Dueease addresses work-life balance in his article
offering six steps for creating balance.
--Katharine Hansen, Credentialed Career Master, Certified Electronic Career Coach,
and editor at
kathy@quintcareers.com
Feature Article: Managing Working Multiple Jobs
Moonlighting in America: Strategies for Managing Working Multiple Jobs
by Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D.
Are you one of us? Are you thinking of joining us? By us, I am referring to the one in 17 Americans
who are working more than one job. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, about 7 to 8 million
of us -- about 5+ percent of all workers -- work multiple jobs (which is often referred to as moonlighting
and dual or multiple jobholding). Interestingly,
after years of decline (1996-2001), the number of workers holding multiple jobs again appears on the
rise. And as we listen to various workplace futurists, there is a sense that we will become more increasingly
a workforce of independent contractors working for multiple employers.
Who are we? Why do we do it? What are some strategies for finding and surviving a second job -- or a third?
You'll find the answers to these questions in
our article on moonlighting in America.
We all face decisions that involve competing priorities. We all have three different lives or worlds that compete
for our attention, energy, and activity. These are our personal lives, our work-related lives, and our family
lives. Our personal lives consist of our health, our inner private likes and dislikes, our inner beliefs,
and our spiritual feelings. Our work-related lives consist of what we do to earn an income to provide
resources to live and prosper. Our family lives consist of our relatives and friends and our
relationships with each member.
As you can imagine, each of these worlds will attract our interests and can create various
demands on our time, resources, and energy. When these worlds create demands that compete with
the other, such that we must continuously choose one world at the expense of the other, we get
out of balance.
How do you know when you have achieved life balance? People achieve balance in their lives when they can
consciously and subconsciously align their thoughts and activities with who they are and what they want
to do, without conflict or guilt. People who are in balance, experience "being in the zone" of life.
Life is good! In this
article we explore the steps to attaining life balance.
A site offering free and fee-based information and resources
related to all issues related to developing a supportive and effective
workplace. A fantastic resource for both employers and employees.
The site's goal is to help employers create an effective workforce of human beings --
people with important personal responsibilities.
Offerings include Work & Family Newsbrief, The Trend Report, and 7,000 pages of archives
on the Work & Family Web site. The site's service has been voted "the best resource in the country"
by the Boston College Center for Work & Family Roundtable.
Work & Family has developed Web-based work-life courses. "Managing the 21st Century Workforce"
helps managers understand how flexible work arrangements can create a more effective, productive
workforce. "Guides to Successful Telecommuting" ensures a smooth transition to remote work for
both managers and staff.
Lindsey writes: "I am considering the idea of taking a second job on top of my regular full-time job. I see it
as a chance to pay off some debt and get back on my feet, while helping my family. I have excellent skills, so I am
not so worried about difficulty in finding a job, but I am worried about the effects of so much work on me and
on my family life. Any thoughts?"
Gigi writes: I am in a job that is unfulfilling, and I see no growth or development opportunities for me.
For the last two years I have been searching for another position. I have had a few interviews, but no job offers.
I do not know why I am not getting any job offers. I interview well and my qualifications are very good. I
am so unhappy in my present job that I am ready to resign! I have voiced my concerns to management only to have them
negated and ignored. More importantly, I am concerned that I am not getting any offers, especially because
my qualifications are very good. Can you please give me some suggestions on what I can do to increase my
likelihood of getting a job offer?"
Heidi writes: "My husband and I are at odds about our four college students, 20, 22, 23, and 24 years old,
none of whom have ever really been gainfully employed for long. We have made the mistake of paying for
everything for them, college, books,
cars, insurance, spending cash, and on and on.
I believe they should have that resume compete now! They should be making at the very least, two contacts
minimum per day via email or phone or in person and a minimum of 60 contacts per month until they have at
least one job offer and then maybe look for a backup plan. Not to mention out on the street pounding the pavement,
visiting their college career office and on and on.
My husband believes I am being an extremist and far too aggressive with my requests of them. I believe finding
a job is a job, especially today."
Anthony writes: "I have a 17-year-old daughter who is trying to figure out what she wants to major in.
She has no overwhelming interest in anything but is a good student with an ambition to continue her education.
What are some helpful means of career information gathering and self-awareness that you would suggest
to help her focus in on a few options?"
We've recently launched the Quint Careers Weblog (Blog).
It consists of career and job-search news, trends,
and scoops for job-seekers, compiled by the staff
of Quintessential Careers.
The blog is a great way to stay posted on the most
recent events occurring in the career and employment fields.
Ad: Electronic Versions of Documents Included Free
Electronic versions now included with all resume and cover
letter products at Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters at
no extra cost!
An electronic version of your resume for sending via e-mail and posting to Internet job boards
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Q TIPS: Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips
If you're unemployed, you might want to consider an internship -- even if it means working for no pay, writes Amy Lindgren in an
article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that suggests that internships aren't only for college students.
"An internship is a cross between volunteer work and apprenticeships," Lindgren writes. "Like the former,
it is usually unpaid and the commitment is short term. Like the latter, it provides a structured work experience
centered on goals for skill development."
Lindgren points out that an internship can provide an opportunity to apply for permanent positions from inside
the company. "Even if no job offer results from the experience, an intern who does well usually earns new contacts, generous
letters of reference and substantial work experience, Lindgren notes, observing that "internships are an especially good tool
for mid-life career changers who need to quickly learn new skills while also building a network in the new field."
Lindgren says structured internships can be found in a directory, such as Peterson's Internships, an annual
guide available at libraries and bookstores.
"To create your own internship," Lindgren writes, "you will need to know which skills you are trying to develop and which
companies can help you build those skills in exchange for your labor. This process of information gathering can take several
weeks or months, depending on your familiarity with the field."
Lindgren also suggests attending meetings of the professional associations serving your target industry to meet employers
with whom you can create an internship.
Try to avoid the words/phrases "Duties included," "Responsibilities included," or "Responsible for" on your resume. That's job-description
language, not accomplishments-oriented resume language that sells. Verbiage like that is "taking up valuable space where a
compelling competency could be included," notes Susan Eckert of Career & Professional Development, Brightwaters, NY, as quoted in
CareerBuilder. After all, if you were an employer and wanted to run a successful organization, would you be looking for candidates
who can perform only their basic job functions, or would you want employees who can make real contributions?
And in these days in which most resumes are placed into keyword-searchable databases, you won't find employers
searching resumes for words like "responsibilities," "duties," or "responsible for."
A recent study reported in the National Post has found that women who decide to have children
early in their Ph.D. careers are less likely to be promoted to tenured positions. And the study also found that women in
academia are putting off having a family for fear of harming their chances of promotions.
No. 9: Have you found some job leads? I hope so. Apply for what you have found whether it is a
job you want or not. I am not advocating lying to yourself or to an employer. I am suggesting
this exercise as practice. You might get the job you want in a practice mode. It can happen!
You are still exploring with more action steps! .... to be continued ...
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If your school, organization, business or other
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If you already have a link from your site, we want you to know we
appreciate it. If you don't have a link to us, please
send a request to your site's Webmaster to establish a
link to Quintessential Careers. Thanks so much!
For more details (including sample HTML copy), see our
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QuintZine: Topics in Upcoming Issues
WATCH FOR feature articles on these topics in upcoming
issues of QuintZine:
* Dining etiquette
* Career Focus Quiz
* Overcoming a Lack of Qualifications/Credentials
* Fighting the Overqualified Label
* Surviving and Moving Beyond Low-Wage Jobs
* Pre-Employment Testing
* 10 Things for High-School Students to Remember
* First in a Series Tracking College Plans of a High School Student
* Importance of Junior Year of High School
* How to Make a Temp Job Permanent
* Temping Your Way to Career Change
* Mastering Second (and Subsequent) Interviews
* Interview Damage Control
* 10 Interview Mistakes
* Exude Confidence in Interviews
* Job Satisfaction Quiz
* Job-search Time-Management Skills
* Reinvent Your Career at Midlife
* Working Beyond Retirement
* Workaholic Quiz
* Building Your Brand
* Pros and Cons of Nontraditional Careers
* Nontraditional Career Paths for Men and Women
* Make Your College Application Shine
* Changing Landscape of College Admissions
* College Admissions Annual Report/Panel Discussion
* Internet Jobhunting Annual Report
* Top 5 Networking Strategies
* Quintessential Career Profiles of YOU, our readers
* Q&As with well-known career experts
* Book reviews
. . . and much, much more!
Don't ever want to miss another issue of QuintZine? Get a free subscription to
the email version of QuintZine by completing our
subscription form.
Quintessential Careers Announces Career Coaching
We now offer two types of career-coaching services!
Are you...
feeling stuck in an unsatisfying job?
facing a major change in career or job status?
searching for your ideal career or job?
seeking help in developing a job-search plan?
looking for a solution to job-search obstacles?
desiring to bounce ideas off of a career expert?
trying to discover the keys to career success?
Let Dr. Randall S. Hansen, The Career Doctor, help you work through all your college, career, and job-search concerns,
issues, and problems. He has helped hundreds of teens, college students, and experienced job-seekers identify obstacles, develop
action plans, and achieve success -- and he can help you!
And for an economical online-only career-coaching alternative,
visit The Career Clinic.
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If you're unemployed, you might want to consider an internship -- even if it means working for no pay, writes Amy Lindgren in an
article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that suggests that internships aren't only for college students.
"An internship is a cross between volunteer work and apprenticeships," Lindgren writes. "Like the former,
it is usually unpaid and the commitment is short term. Like the latter, it provides a structured work experience
centered on goals for skill development."
