fbpx

Have you been considering a part-time job, aside from your nine-to-five? That weekend dog-walking task sure does looks tempting, doesn’t it?

Living in Singapore is expensive.

In today’s economy, with everything at their sky-high prices, it surely wouldn’t hurt to have that supplemental income.

Money is powerful. It establishes kingdoms and breaks them down; it realizes dreams and shatters them; it gives happiness and takes them away.

Although money is great and can pay all the bills and buy all the nice things, no amount of it can buy you worthy time. Like what we believed, time is always our most valuable asset.

If you’re lucky enough (since it’d usually mean you’re not absolutely cash-strapped) to be weighing the advantages and disadvantages of having a part-time job, here are some pointers to help decide whether having a part-time gig is worth your time (and also effort).

The Pros Of Having A Part-time Job

In this generation, almost everyone is doing some kind of part-time jobs, whether it’s being a driver, doing freelance design jobs, etc.

Here are some of the advantages of why you should get yourself a side hustle.

More money

The Pros And Cons Of Having A Part-time Job (While Having A Full-time Job)
Money, money, money $$$

One of the most obvious perks of balancing more than one job would be getting more money. And of course, if time and energy allow, you can even dial up the amount of work you’re doing.

Download iTask to find interesting, low-commitment tasks.  

Valuable work experience

Having more related work experiences is always favorable. Thinking of a career switch or taking more responsibilities at work?

great way to transition into a new field can be started off with some part-time project work in that field; you’d be tackling a variety of projects and gaining hands-on experience, which is nothing but useful.

A chance to pursue your passion projects

Maybe you’ve been thinking about learning how to brew that perfect cuppa, or learning how you can paint the perfect oil painting. Wouldn’t it be great if you can pursue that interest of yours while garnering in money?

We’d be lying if we say things are going to be easy if you hold more than one job; it’s not.

Singapore’s culture is defined by one word: workaholics. And we’re always working long hours. Working beyond 8 hours 5 days a week could be miserable, and shouldn’t be the way you live life.

If you’re free to choose your side gigs based on interest level over how much they pay, go right ahead and opt for what makes you happy instead of wasting it working on something you hate.

Better time management

The Pros And Cons Of Having A Part-time Job (While Having A Full-time Job)
Uh oh, time to go for my Pilates class

Although this may sound counter-intuitive, working part-time can sometimes allow you to have seemingly more time. Why is that so?

Paradoxically, when you’ve less time, you tend to plan out how you should spend your minutes. It’s similar to budget planning; you’ll usually conform your time/money to what you have.

The Cons Of Having A Part-time Job

No benefits

When you’re working side jobs, it’s nada for health insurance, sick leave, holiday pay, vacations, etc. Imagine you’re working part-time as pet-walker, and you accidentally fell and hurt yourself. Other than paying for medical bills out of your own pocket, there’s really nothing much you can do.

Hustling 24/7

Many companies continue to see long hours as a badge of honor, as a physical representation of your commitment to your work and your company.

And when you’re doing two (or three) jobs, you need to make use of all the time you have to complete your jobs.

So on top of that 1 to 2 hours overtime for your full-time job, it’d also translate into the lack of time for your leisure past-time, such as Sunday brunch with your pals, weekday happy hour or just binging on Netflix.

Not getting paid enough

We mentioned that more money comes with more jobs. But sometimes, it could quite be the opposite too. You’ll still inevitably get the money, but the amount you get may not be aligned with the work you do.

Moreover, there’s a common misconception that all part-time jobs are entry-level or unprofessional, and you may realize that you’re earning lesser for each hour.

Also, gauge the time you’ve to use to travel back and forth your job, and that if it’s worth the money that you’re earning per hour.

Of course, the logical and smarter choice would be to find a job that’s near to your home or office, which cuts down traveling time. Or even better, find assignments that you can do online!

Discover jobs you can do online on iTask.

In Conclusion

We work our finger to the bones, yet at the same time undervalue ourselves; we seldom unplug, yet complain about the little time that we leave for ourselves. Consequently, we feel wrung out.

Finding a balance is crucial—you need to find be happy doing what you do and still contribute to our pension pot.

Regardless of why you’re thinking of moonlighting, the only person you should seek permission from is yourself.

Take everyone’s opinion with a grain of salt and decide on your own, but don’t forget to take the pros and cons of having part-time jobs we’ve sorted out into consideration.