Why Work Multiple Jobs?

COMFORT. BREADTH OF KNOWLEDGE. NETWORKING. JOB "SECURITY". CONSISTENCY.

Since 2010 I haven't worked less than two jobs at a time, give or take a few months. Some jobs have lasted a semester, others have lasted years, and all have been paying jobs. It didn't seem like a lot at first because the hours always seemed to be minimal...5 hrs / week job 1, 10 hrs / week job 2, school work, class. No big deal. That all changed in 2012 during my final undergrad year at the University of Virginia. I almost didn't graduate. I had taken on too much and let my studies slip as a result. I did end up graduating on time, but I vowed to never put myself in that situation again. I've sort of kept that vow...

While getting my second bachelor's degree at George Mason University I worked my govt job part-time, attended school full-time and transitioned to Personal Training at the university.  I was able to excel in my studies, work and even had time to have some fun, so when a professor proposed a paid research opportunity to me a semester into my degree, I said yes! That bumped my job count to 3 and there it remained through the duration of my second bachelor's degree.

After my second bachelor's, I started my graduate degree the following academic year. I was lucky enough to land a graduate assistantship position in a field that I loved, Fitness! I enjoyed working all of my jobs BUT I was no longer at the point of minimal hours. I was averaging 50-60 total hours of work / week along with graduate school classes. It was tough but because my grades were good and I was in good graces with all of my supervisors, I kept with it. That was the most mentally, emotionally, physically draining year of my life but I would do it again in a heartbeat...Why?!

1. Comfort - Aside from the financial comfort I gained from working multiple jobs, I gained a sense of comfort with the chaos that comes with it all. It was my normal. It is my normal. Sleeping 4-6 hours Monday - Friday, sometimes less. Weekends I can sleep 6-8 hours. It came easier the more I did it, the more I did it the more I realized I could do more! So I did.  I'm not saying it was/is smart, but it worked for me. The chaos of multiple jobs is comfortable for me. I also find that I'm comfortable with the people I work with. I actually wake up (most days) excited about going to work to see the people at my jobs, whether they be clients or coworkers. I thoroughly take pleasure in spending time with them and find comfort in the time that I am with them.  
2. Breadth of Knowledge - This is a big one. From each one of my jobs I've learned something new that has been applicable to ALL my other jobs. Whether it be how to better communicate with different personalities or how to craft technical documents, it has all been applicable to other jobs. That may seem odd considering each job is fairly different from the other but to me there's always a way to implement what I learned at one job to another. Sometimes it's harder to find the commonalities but I guarantee they're there. My knowledge for my technical job isn't only technical and my knowledge for my management position doesn't only span that skill set. I can do more because I've been exposed to more that's outside of the "norm" for each position. To me, that's valuable and something I hope to never lose.
3. Networking - "It's not WHAT you know. It's WHO you know." I used to hate that saying. I used to see it as a negative. But the more I've worked, the more I've seen it is very much so true. Many of the positions I've been offered I wouldn't have even known about had it not been for the right person seeing my grades or hearing my name through the grapevine. Networking and building a network is so valuable. Having multiple jobs has allowed me to build an extremely diverse network and I'm very much so appreciative of that.
4. Job "security" - I say "security" because it's not entirely secure, but having multiple jobs in different fields gives me the ability to change my job given the economic climate. A job in fitness vs. a job in engineering. Both are relatively different and are easier (or harder) to come by depending on the area and/or need. So when looking for future jobs, I won't feel as much pressure to pick a location based on job potential for one specific field because I'm not as worried that there won't be something I enjoy there.  
5.  Consistency - This coincides with comfort, but I'm used to working multiple jobs. It's my routine. I like consistency. I honestly would not know what to do with myself if I only had one job.

For me, the pros outweigh most of the cons. I'll share in another post the downside, but overall, working multiple jobs has been a blessing. It's not for everybody and eventually there will come a time in my life when a family of my own will take precedence over having multiple jobs. As for now I'm not sure it's something that I'll be looking to change anytime soon BUT who knows.