What I Learned This Week – 10/13/13

Yes, sir.

What I learned this week was how the PROs and CONs of my job really add up.

I had been out of work for almost 2 years. My husband had found a job, but it didn’t work out. He left like, literally, the same week I got offered this retail customer service job. I had no idea what he would find next or what I would do about childcare for M. I literally took the job and worked as many hours as I could the first week, because I really didn’t know if I would be able to keep it beyond that. (I, of course, never told my boss that.)

And since she was short-staffed, I kept working a lot of hours. My husband went through two more jobs before settling on the one he has now. Since he has been there, he has worked on two different shifts. Luckily, to her enormous credit, my mom stepped up to take up most of the babysitting duties required. But I can’t help but feel as though the novelty of seeing her grandson more often has worn off. She is a 69 year old woman who uses a cane trying to keep up with an almost 3 year old.

I have had this job almost six months now. And I am still very uncertain about if I will be there next week, next month, or next year. I am a planner, so I am always PLANNING to be there. But if something happened to my car or my mom, those plans could change in an instant. They are beyond my control (for the most part).

Since I first applied to the job posting (and never expected to get a call for an interview, let alone the job), I have had the same positives and negatives bouncing around in my head. I finally put them into writing to see how they stacked up.

PROs
1. I like the job and the people.
2. Looks good on my resume.
3. I am building good references.
4. Extra $ for a new car.
5. Helps with my anxiety.
6. If my husband loses his job, one of us is still employed.
7. My boss is a nice boss.
8. My boss is flexible with scheduling.
9. Has helped me get closer to achieving a personal goal.

CONs
1. I am burdening my mom with babysitting.
2. Wear & tear on my car.
3. I spend more impulse shopping than I make.
4. M being shuffled around.
5. Doesn’t pay well for the schedule hassle.
6. Feel like family/house is suffering.

Well, there you have it. With a score of 9-6, the PROs have it. But that is quantity. Does quality count? And how would one ever begin to calculate that?

I implied to my boss this week that I would be open to less hours. Which stinks, because I already am a very part-time employee. But working less hours would only eliminate #4 from the PROs list and it would lesson most of the items on the CON list.

What does the future hold?

Who the hell knows.