There are all kinds of reasons to choose to get a second job, and it’s not often the first thing that people think about when they’re looking for more money.Trying to power your time into one job is hard enough, but doing it to two? That’s not easy.
It’s not an easy decision to work an extra 15 to 20 hours a week to supplement your income, because your income should be enough as it is. Unfortunately, the cost of living crisis that we’re in right now has dictated that many of us should be looking for second jobs. Whether you choose to bake cakes and sell them or you choose to sell educational laboratory resources, a second job has to align with your skills so that you can make the most of it. If you’re not sure about why you should say yes to adding a few more hours of work to your plate, then let’s take a look at some of the top reasons that you should say yes to it, even if it is only temporarily.
- You’ve got debt that you need to get out of. If you are looking to start digging yourself out of a debt hole, then getting a second job is the fastest way you can do it. The problem always occurs though where the second job is going to take a lot more time than you think to build up the money. However, you do not need to pay off each debt in full. You can snowball them by paying off the right amounts at the right time and then building on those amounts so that you can pay them down. Capitalizing on shortening those debts is important and a second job can help.
- You have a chance to travel. If you’ve been stuck in a rut with your expenses going up and never being able to save anything, then a second job can change that for you. If you love to take vacations and travel all over the world, then a second job could be the move that you need to make. Even an extra $1000 a month could see a lot of different places for you, and you’ll be able to do a lot of different things as a result. Working two jobs means that you would have to get time off from both employers in order to do so, and that can be very difficult, but taking the time to travel and knowing that you can fund that time is so much more important.
- You could become financially stable. As we said, we’re at a cost of living crisis right now, so the more people you have in your families to support you, the harder things can be. A second job, even if it only means working a couple of extra hours a week, can help you to bridge those financial gaps. During the most uncertain times, you’ll be able to see where you’re going to be going and it’s going to help you and it will be well worth it to do so.
- You can add more to your retirement fund. If you’re worrying about where your pension is currently sitting, a second job can help you to stop worrying about that. Funding your future retirement is always going to be a smart way to spend your money, and if you feel like you’re falling behind or you just want to beef up the contributions you’re currently making, then a second job is exactly what you need. You could choose to either put half of your second job money into your retirement or funnel all of those funds in one direction.
- You could gain financial freedom. It’s a broad idea and it really does depend on what that means for you. But for some people, financial freedom means not having a mortgage, or it means being able to get fully out of debt. For others, it just means that they don’t have to rely on living paycheck to paycheck. If a second job can save you from that, then why wouldn’t you want to get one? No matter what your idea of financial freedom may be, getting a second job and earning more income is going to help you to find that.
- You could study again. If you’ve been wondering about getting your masters degree or improving on the degree that you currently got, or maybe getting any degree in the 1st place, then that second income could pay for it for you. There’s no doubt about it that getting a college education is expensive. So having a second job could pay for that income for you. Student debts are not easy to cover, but with a second job you have the additional income to make it so.
- Maybe you want to get married?If you have dreams of a big wedding and you want to be able to pay for the wedding you want, not the wedding that your budget dictates, then a second job can help you to do that. Weddings are expensive. Between the rings, the dress, the venue, the catering, the flowers, the honeymoon, the videographer, the DJ, there are so many things you’re going to want to pay for. Getting a second job is going to help you to pay off your dream wedding and stop you from getting into debt for a party, which is really what that part is. The most expensive part of a wedding is the bit that you give to your guests rather than the bit that you give to yourself.It’s important that if both of you could get a second job, you’ll be able to pay for the wedding that you’d love.
- You’re preparing for a baby. Babies are exciting, but they’re also expensive. The outlay that you need for health insurance, extras for all the paraphernalia that your baby has, and everything else, is going to take some time. A second job could help you to meet those expenses with ease. The last thing you want is a bunch of debt and financial worries weighing down on your shoulders when a baby comes into the world. It should be a time of great joy and great celebration, not times of struggling and panicking about how you’re going to manage to buy formulas. If you spend the nine months leading up to the birth of your child, working a second job, or creating a side house, all that brings in an income, you could save up enough money to pay for everything that you need.
- You want to buy a house. Most people put down a deposit of between 10 and 20%. If you want to buy a house then you’re going to need to have a decent amount of income, no debt, and you need to have a deposit behind you. Beyond that down payment, you also need to be prepared for other expenses such as landscaping and upgrades and repairs. Homes are expensive to buy and to maintain, which is more than enough reason to get a second job and have it running alongside your current one.
Don’t be afraid to dive into the world of part time work around your full time job. There are plenty of remote jobs online that you can use to do this for you. You don’t have to make it a permanent fixture, but it could just be there to cover what you need when you need it.