Six Career Tips for Job Jugglers

During this great employment drought, many professionals have been making ends meet through a variety of freelance gigs and part-time jobs. And the shift to temporary and contingent work is here to stay: A 2011 McKinsey Global Institute US jobs survey reveals that 58 percent of employers expect their workforces to have more part-time, temporary or contract workers over the next five years.

Some people enjoy the freedom and flexibility of working two, three, four or more jobs -- after all, if you lose one gig, you won’t lose all your income. Others find job juggling to be a hamster wheel: There’s pay, but the work isn’t necessarily leading anywhere.

Whether you’re working multiple jobs by choice or necessity, career experts have advice for turning your multiplicity of part-time work into the career you want.

Maintain Your Long-Term Vision

It’s easy to lose sight of your target career when you’ve been scrambling to take any job to pay the bills. “If you have income from a variety of sources, you need to constantly reevaluate what you’re doing to make sure you’re making progress on your five-year-plan,” says Kirk Snyder, assistant professor of clinical management communication at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business and an expert on the contemporary workplace.

Build a Job Portfolio

Connect the dots between your vision and your jobs, recommends Darcy Eikenberg, founder of Red Cape Revolution, an HR consultancy. “Ask yourself how all of your income sources might relate to your overall career path and how [you might] create a narrative that says you’re a professional with a wide range of useful experience,” she tells Monster.com.

Snyder agrees, saying the best part-time jobs -- even if they don’t pay much -- will give you some skill or opening that will help open other doors. “Build a job portfolio by focusing on places that can take you somewhere and try to find a job there first,” he says.

Make Time for a Job Search

Even if you need the income, don’t take that fourth or fifth job if it will detract you from pursuing your career, advises Caroline Ceniza-Levine, career expert and founder of the career coaching firm SixFigureStart.

“Some people are tempted to work 70-hour weeks, thinking they’ll earn as much as they can, [and then] get around to their real career when their time frees up,” she says. “But it’s best not to do a job search in spurts. You should do it in a steady way.”

Ceniza-Levine also recommends doing pro bono internships in your industry, but only for a limited time. “If you’re going to work for free you should know exactly for how long and know what you’re going to get from it,” she tells Monster.com.

Stay Current in Your Industry

Ceniza-Levine urges job jugglers to join industry associations and network at every opportunity. “You’ll need to demonstrate your interest in and knowledge of your industry when you find a job you really want,” she says. “It would also help to get additional training, to stay up on innovations and to show an employer you’ll be ready to go on Day 1 when you’re hired.”

Protect Yourself from Getting Stiffed

Perhaps the biggest upside to a full-time job is the regular paycheck. To make sure you’re paid in a reasonable time frame as a freelance worker, have some kind of contract, says Sara Horowitz, founder and executive director of the Freelancers Union.

“If a contract is not possible, have evidence of an agreement,” she says. “Send an email saying, ‘I’m looking forward to working with you, and here is what we agreed to.’ That’s documentation you might need if you have to seek a remedy in small-claims court.”

Put Your Finances in Order

When you’re self-employed, financial discipline is crucial. If your employers are not reporting your taxes on a W-2 form, where taxes are taken out automatically, you’ll have to do some accounting and saving. “A rule of thumb is for every dollar you take in, 60 cents goes into your checking and 40 cents goes into savings to pay your taxes,” Horowitz tells Monster.com. “You should also look into low-cost group health insurance plans in your state,” she adds.

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