Learning, Sharing, and Teaching > Ask a Mustachian
Balancing paid vs. volunteer work: I want to do ALL THE THINGS.
startingsmall:
I've had this on my mind for a while, so I figured I'd put it to the smartest group of people I know. Any thoughts/insights would be much appreciated!
A few months ago, I left my full-time job as a veterinarian. I went to a part-time job, working just 2 days/wk from 9-5:30. Sweet. I was burned out on the profession, had a pretty successful side hustle going with freelance writing, and just wanted a chance to reset. I also wanted more time for my family (husband & 5 year old daughter) and volunteer work. I was fine with the fact that my downshift may slow progress towards FIRE... though, honestly, I seem to be making a good bit MORE with the current arrangement (even factoring in the cost of COBRA) than I was with my FT job.
In my mind, though, I think I thought that going to PT would give me time for everything. I envisioned getting to do all of the volunteer work I wanted, spending tons of time with my kid, keeping a clean house, etc. In reality, though, it doesn't seem to be working out that way. I have a lot of things that I'm into, and I'm kind of a workaholic, and there just aren't enough hours in the week.
Current paid endeavors:
- Two days per week as a part-time employee at a veterinary practice. $50k/yr.
- Occasional relief work for a friend's veterinary practice. $650 for a 10-hr day. I'm doing 3 days there this month, with a strong likelihood of being offered more days in the future. I've also had a couple of requests from other clinics, so I need to decide whether I want to do more of this or just stick with my friend's clinic (which is a great environment - may not find that elsewhere!).
- Freelance writing. Pay ranges from $50-80/hr, depending on the project, working an average of 5-20 hrs/wk over the last couple of years. I'm currently working on a big project that will bring in about $4000 over the next month, so that has me busier than usual. This particular big project is likely to become a recurring thing - I'm writing a course for an online degree program that needs to add a bunch of classes within the next year or two.
Current volunteer endeavors:
- Lead my daughter's Girl Scout troop. We aren't doing any activities over the summer, but this will start up again in September.
- Serve on my county board of health. This is a minimal required commitment (a few hours every 2 months) but I'm working on becoming more involved by serving on a drug abuse prevention task force and attending a national public health conference next month. I like public health.
- Sing in church choir and occasionally play the violin at church. Not a big time commitment, but it is something that has to fit into my schedule.
So.... I'm fine with all that, but here's the thing. I initially became a veterinarian because I wanted to work with wildlife. Now that I'm only working part-time, maybe it's time to explore volunteer opportunities in that realm? Realistically, though, I don't see any way that I can add that on top of what I'm already doing... and I don't know what I'd want to give up.
I'm kind of leaning towards waiting ~5 years until we're nearly FIRE, then ditching the steady PT job or the relief work for wildlife volunteering. Or, if my daughter decides to quit GS before that point, I could always swap in wildlife for Girl Scouts. But maybe that's wrong and I should find a way to fit it in now.
Thoughts? I realize this post is pretty incoherent, but so are my thoughts on the issue. I need more hours in the day!! Any input, even if only marginally related, will be much appreciated.
Hargrove:
I think we would need to know more about what you want with wildlife endeavors. Could it be another profession, or volunteer-only? Geography-specific or portable?
Can you figure out a priority chart?
Which is higher priority: working with wildlife, or having the house together?
Which is higher priority: having the house together, or being a workaholic (can you slow down one for another)?
Which is higher priority: FIRE or job satisfaction?
Some people find a perspective shock can make being a workaholic less of an issue, others just... will be workaholics. However, if you want to keep working, good news - you won't stop bringing in money after you FIRE either, so maybe you could feel just as you will in FIRE today by quitting the regular PT job and doing just the writing right now.
The simple math of relief days may be some comfort. Relief days, assuming no benefits at the part-time job and 8-hour days there, pay 8% more money than the regular job.
startingsmall:
--- Quote from: Hargrove on July 17, 2018, 07:47:47 PM ---I think we would need to know more about what you want with wildlife endeavors. Could it be another profession, or volunteer-only? Geography-specific or portable?
Can you figure out a priority chart?
Which is higher priority: working with wildlife, or having the house together?
Which is higher priority: having the house together, or being a workaholic (can you slow down one for another)?
Which is higher priority: FIRE or job satisfaction?
Some people find a perspective shock can make being a workaholic less of an issue, others just... will be workaholics. However, if you want to keep working, good news - you won't stop bringing in money after you FIRE either, so maybe you could feel just as you will in FIRE today by quitting the regular PT job and doing just the writing right now.
The simple math of relief days may be some comfort. Relief days, assuming no benefits at the part-time job and 8-hour days there, pay 8% more money than the regular job.
--- End quote ---
Thanks for responding!!
The wildlife thing is unlikely to ever be a paying job, because paid wildlife vet jobs are few and far between. (That's why I never ended up in wildlife work.) Also, we are tied to our current geographic area... so that decreases my already-low chances to zero. There is a nearby rehab center that I could volunteer with, or I could volunteer for the state doing wildlife population/disease surveys. I attempted to volunteer with the state at one point in the past, but them changed jobs and had to give it up because I didn't have the availability anymore.
Having the house together is definitely a low priority. Current priorities, I would say, are making at least a sustainable income (I'm the breadwinner in our family) > Girl Scouts (partially because I love it, partially because it's quality time with daughter) > wildlife = public health > writing > relief > PT job. I don't enjoy the church choir stuff, but I'm a pastor's wife so I'd need to find another volunteer role in the church if I quit choir... which wouldn't really help.
I really feel like I could cut back some on paid work, but I need to stay in the PT job for at least a year and a half because I received a signing bonus. And, realistically, I like the stability of having that PT job... versus the completely unpredictable relief/writing work. I worry that the relief/writing work could go away very quickly if the economy took a downturn.
Maybe I should plan to maintain the status quo for the next 1.5 years, then leave the PT job for wildlife volunteer work at that point if things are still going as they are now? Because you're right... the only thing that PT job is really offering me is stability. (They do pay for my professional licensing, too, but that's only a few hundred per year most years.)
Hargrove:
sustainable income > Girl Scouts > wildlife = public health > writing > relief > PT job
Great! So since you didn't even list having the house together, can I recommend forgiving yourself for not having the house together? Is it not reasonable to ask for SO's help keeping the house together?
All your money-making SPECIFICS are lower priority than your money-making GENERAL. So, your goal for the sign-on-bonus' duration does in fact sound like it should be focusing on making the work pay that you enjoy more (and which demands less)
Choir is a necessary volunteer pursuit that you don't enjoy...? Is it personal (as in, you're not considering being primary breadwinner so your SO can be a pastor is already a boon for the church) or social (appearance upkept or a big concern for SO)?
startingsmall:
--- Quote from: Hargrove on July 17, 2018, 08:42:51 PM ---sustainable income > Girl Scouts > wildlife = public health > writing > relief > PT job
Great! So since you didn't even list having the house together, can I recommend forgiving yourself for not having the house together? Is it not reasonable to ask for SO's help keeping the house together?
All your money-making SPECIFICS are lower priority than your money-making GENERAL. So, your goal for the sign-on-bonus' duration does in fact sound like it should be focusing on making the work pay that you enjoy more (and which demands less)
Choir is a necessary volunteer pursuit that you don't enjoy...? Is it personal (as in, you're not considering being primary breadwinner so your SO can be a pastor is already a boon for the church) or social (appearance upkept or a big concern for SO)?
--- End quote ---
Not sure I'm following your last comments. If I didn't have a volunteer role in the church, it could potentially jeopardize husband's job. In previous annual reviews, the fact that I sometimes miss church social events has been repeatedly brought up as a strike against him. (Yes, it's insane.) His job doesn't contribute a huge amount to our household finances, but it's important to him as he derives much of his self-worth from his job... so doing something with the church is something that I do for him so that he can have a job that he enjoys.
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