Back in college, I had a workstudy job as a “Peer Advisor” in the theatre department. The job was actually less advising and more administrative tasks, and I took it all very seriously. Too seriously. Every week, I ended up putting in WAY more hours than I was being paid for.
One day, a professor stopped in while I was working on the department newsletter, and on his way out, he made the observation: “Billie Jo, if you put as much work into your acting as you do into this job, you’d be great.”
OUCH.
He wasn’t wrong, though. So many times, I have fallen into the trap of serving my Survival Job rather than allowing it to serve me. It’s an easy habit to fall into, especially if you are a perfectionist or a people-pleaser. No one likes to let other people down, but in the long run, consistently letting yourself down is worse.
Are you letting your Survival Job run your life?
Answer the questions below, and be honest with yourself about whether your Survival Job is helping or hindering your progress toward your goals.
Questions to ask yourself:
Does your Survival Job pay you enough, or are you accepting a lower paid SJ just because it’s “fun?”
Does your SJ give you enough flexibility to attend auditions, networking events, classes, to do shows, or to attend to the other things necessary to your career?
Are my employers and coworkers supportive of my career, or do they believe that my SJ should take priority all of the time?
Does your SJ take up mental space or emotional energy when you aren’t on the clock? Do you take your SJ more seriously than you take your career?
By saying yes to your SJ, what do you have to say NO to?
Conversely, if you said NO to your SJ, what kind of resources (mental, emotional, financial, temporal) would be freed for you to take advantage of?
If you answer these questions and feel in your heart that your Survival Job is depleting you and negatively affecting your career, then you might want to begin looking for a new SJ immediately. Time is a precious commodity, and opportunities are passing you by!
If you answer these questions, and your SJ is generally serving your ultimate goals, BUT you find you have a terrible attitude toward the job, then changing your attitude toward your SJ is key. Letting yourself indulge in negativity toward your SJ actually sucks up a lot of energy that you could be putting to use in your career.
Your Survival Job might not be your ultimate goal, but if it’s giving you resources that allow you to pursue your goals and it’s not actively impeding your progress, then maybe try to stop hating on it.
Let go of that day job shame and be grateful to your job for everything it allows you to accomplish in your career!
Reassess as often as you need to. Goals change, and as your needs change, your Survival Job might have to change as well.
Hope this helps!