How to Hold Down 3 Jobs Without Going Insane

How to Hold Down 3 Jobs Without Going Insane Things are really chaotic in thejob market at the moment. The job-for-life is all but gone, and even the career-for-life idea is fading fast as organizations move from permanent, full-time workforces to contingent workforcescomposed of freelancers, casual staff, temps, and part-timers.For those of us who prefer the stability of traditional employment, this modern employment environment can be quite disorienting. For others, however, its a welcomedevelopment, thanks to the variety, flexibility, and freedom that come with this new model.But regardless of whether youre a willing or reluctant participant in the gig economy, you have a new employment challenge to confront In order to make enough money to untersttzung yourself, youll need to work multiple jobs. I call this the portfolio or slash career Instead of being an accountant, you now have to be a an accountant/musician/tree surgeon.The challenge is not in gettingthese jobs. There are plenty of gigs available in the temp and freelance marketplaces. No, the challenge is in juggling two, three, or even four jobs at once without going insane.To succeed in your portfolio career, you need to be an expert multitasker. Unfortunately,very few of us are programmed for that. That means we have to take extra steps to refine our multitasking skills and manage our careers carefully.Here are four tips to help you do just that1. Create a Portfolio out of Jobs ThatSuit All Aspects of Your PersonalityIf you have three jobs thatare pretty much in the same line of work e.g., barista, waiter, cashier thentheres a real chance that your flexible portfolio career will just turn out to be one monotonous and repetitive blur.By varying your gigs andtaking upa range ofjobsthat appeal to all aspects of your personality, you can build a much more satisfying portfolio career. For example, lets say you like to be social, but you also like some alone time, and you like working outside when the weathersnice.Your ideal portfolio career might be barista/delivery driver/gardener.2. Look for Synergies BetweenYour GigsEven if you build a portfolio of different jobs that suit your various needs, you can still find some beneficial overlap between your seemingly disparate roles.For example, if you are a barista/delivery driver/gardener, you could subtly inform some of your regular coffee customers at the coffee shop that you are a gardener. Before you know it, your customer kusine will be booming. Similarly, you could sell the vegetables you grow as a gardener to the coffee shop at which you work.If you look for and exploit these cross-selling opportunities,youll spend less time doing sales and marketing and your work will be more profitable.3.Favor Flexible GigsIt will be far easier to juggle multiple gigs if each one is flexible in terms of hours. That way, youll be able to ramp up and scale back according to what makes the most sense at any given time.If all your gigs are rigidly structured, youll find it much harder to strike a balance and youll be unduly stressed as a result.4. Seta Yearly Earnings TargetIf you dont have an earnings target, you may end up working more than you need to and thats a great way to mess up your work/life balance. Having an annual target gives you direction and tells you when you need to crank it up and when you have time to take a breather.If you want to have a successful portfolio career, youll need to knuckle down and become a master in managing and prioritizing your time. It may not always be easy, butifyou follow the tips set out above, you should find thatjuggling multiple careers isnt so bad after all.