The most comprehensive benefits are associated with permanent, full-time work, such as health & dental plans, disability and life insurance, pension plans, paid vacation leave, paid sick leave, travel and transportation allowances, and educational programs or training opportunities. These jobs also tend to be the most secure, with accompanying benefits such as favourable loan requests. However, employers exist who wish to employ workers in temporary, part-time, occasional, contract, or other types of situations, with variations in the benefits offered.
Some individuals may seek a day job which meets the above requirements, and aim to learn about a particular work environment or field of work, and build on it. Others may prefer to have a few part-time jobs, or to work occasional jobs only as necessary, so that they can pursue other more satisfying but less lucrative interests.
There can be a good balance in diversifying the work experience, or in mixing employment experiences. There is benefit to having the stability of a full-time office position, which does not demand overtime or excessive travel. You will then be able to seek out part-time work, either moonlighting, or on the weekend, which may fulfill a secondary career or other interest. Further to this, you can engage in other freelancing, or occasional work, if you have artistic inclinations, or an entrepreneurial spirit. A characteristic of the generation that has come of age with online auction sites enabling commercial transactions between strangers, and online shopping and services is an acceptance of generating various streams of income, and of experimenting with income-generating ideas, whether they be web-based or otherwise.
At the least, take some interest in how to invest your money, to the level of risk you are willing to take, so that you build on your savings. Contribute to TFSA and RRSP accounts. As you are probably aware, setting aside money while you are young will be of greater benefit than waiting until you have greater financial responsibilities and concerns. This is not to say that you should have a fixed retirement plan in your twenties, but it is likely that there will be a transition period into having a regular income, and this will outpace your needs for a few years. For a while you will be able to continue to live as a student, with some fiscal restraint in the interests of debt load management, some inadequacies or compromises in housing, and eating on the fly.
Having a few sources of income, however modest, will allow you to have more options towards an exit strategy, or to having a broader perspective on your options. It is best to nurture an interest alongside the primary job you have rather than plan for a time when you might resign full-time work in order to devote time to this other, cherished interest. Realistically, there may not be a time in which you are willing to take the risk of losing the full-time job, or to give up the lifestyle and security associated with the full-time work. Having a part-time job lends legitimacy to the interest you have, gives you a chance to stay connected to the community which supports it, gives you an experience which will allow you to learn more about the viability of this interest as a Plan B, and will complement your full-time work.
Having a part-time job also allows you to keep the full-time job in perspective, as you are able to better overcome setbacks or disappointments by moonlighting on the side. Supplementing your salary may also give you the patience not to accept another full-time position purely for monetary gain, which you may be more tempted by if you didn’t have separate streams of income. Maintaining some interests on the side will also keep you from tiring of the day to day routine of a full-time position, and each position can provide insight into the other.
Freelancing, consulting, or engaging in other work on an occasional basis is also recommended, as it is an opportunity to take on risk without threatening your financial independent and self-sufficiency. Like part-time work, it is a means of exploring an interest, aptitude, or talent, with the added freedom of being able to choose what you work on. You may collaborate with others, network or leverage on associations, or otherwise spend as much or as little time as you wish at different stages in the year or in your life, again without disturbing the secure foundation of full-time work.
If the part-time work or freelancing ends or comes to a resolution on its own, you can build on these experiences, and perhaps re-focus. You might seek to do the same work elsewhere, or you may seek a better position elsewhere, leveraging on the knowledge and skills you have gained.
In your part-time or freelancing work you will also build on contacts in other realms, and therefore gain greater breadth and flexibility as an employable individual. It is possible to pursue interests as a volunteer, but in some cases, volunteering is best in purely humanitarian interest. Volunteer positions in which you do similar work to employees, particularly for profit-based corporations, can be a means to exploit willing labour without commitment or investment. It is possible for an employer to provide a good experience, and there may be perks associating with volunteering, but perks ultimately do not enable you to pay your bills. Volunteers are also not managed by employers in the same way that they do employees, due to the ephemeral non-contractual nature of the relationship.
Exceptions to this are in competitive, unpaid or honorarium based internships, in realms in which these are traditionally done, such as the publishing industry, or sometimes in media, in which there is a structured, supervised experience over a period of a few months, intended to provide practical experience to be used as a stepping stone to a position in the industry.
Finally, there are grants, awards, intensive or immersion training courses, conferences, summer programs, educational work or volunteer opportunities abroad, and professional accreditation and membership activities that you could participate in, taking vacation leave, education leave, or unpaid leave from your permanent position to do so. These can also be worthwhile.
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