<p>Hello there, </p>
<p>I've been thinking about this quite a lot lately, and I'm honestly starting to question it. My family is of the opinion that everyone needs to work at every stage of their life, but I don't know if I agree. </p>
<p>I'm working about 20 hours a week now between 2 jobs while taking 16 units, and while one job is in connection to a potential major and will look great on r</p>
<p>Does your family know the strain you’re under from working two jobs and keeping up with 16 units? </p>
<p>If you need to explain this to them, do. And tell them just what you told us here. They should understand that dropping one of these jobs will not affect you dramatically one way or another. </p>
<p>I bet they’ll understand. And if they don’t, well, you’ll just have to agree to disagree, and do what you feel is best for you.</p>
<p>PS You’re in college. You’re entitled to some fun, too.</p>
<p>Stop working. It’s obvious. At least regarding the job that is just for money. Indeed, why are you doing this?</p>
<p>I also think that focusing on short term gain (the money job) interferes with long term gain (jobs later based on your grades, involvement on campus, internships, research and so on).</p>
<p>Focus on education and self-development if you can afford to. Working a job for money when you don’t need to only interferes with more important things. Including sleep, rest, good health and energy.</p>
<p>Are you able to fully fund your education without any help from your family? Then you can do whatever you want.</p>
<p>Does your family rely on the income that you bring in to cover some expenses? Then maybe you need to work through this with them, and determine how much you need to bring home.</p>
<p>I don’t currently (and hopefully in the future) need any financial help from them. I’ve got generous scholarships and grants, and I haven’t had the need to tap into the government loans I was offered. </p>
<p>Extra money is always a good thing, I guess. I’ve been known to foot the bill at dinners out and to treat my mom to a tank of gas or take my younger relatives out for a movie and lunch. However, it’s not essential to everyone’s financial operations, and I feel like I’ve become stuck in a cycle of “make money for something” when I don’t even know what that something is. </p>
<p>How do you know what your “something” is? All my friends work hard to pay down their college debt, and I feel guilty for just making money for the sake of it. Is it flighty to not have an eventual goal?</p>
<p>Why not just keep the job that looks good on the resume? There’s no need for you to work so many hours and go to school when you don’t need the money.</p>
<p>You are dealing from a position of strength. Your job at this time is to try to get the most out of your educational opportunities. If you are able to do this without economic encumbrances, good for you. I’ll tell you a little story. My mother at age 88, clear mind, living at her own home, doing whatever she wanted, no mortgage, no debt, 0 economic worries, was feeling bad because, after being able to pay for a full time aide from her social security/savings, wasn’t able to save any money every month! When asked why, she said that it was the first time in her life she wasn’t able to save. Culture and family traditions weigh heavily on decisions and are good, but times and circumstances change. And no, you don’t have to feel guilty that you were doing your homework when others weren’t, you are not incurring any debt and that you EARNED your scholarships and grants. Congratulations.</p>
<p>Will your parents even know if you quit one of your jobs? If you aren’t living at home, why even tell them? Keep the job that is good for your career and quit the other one.</p>
<p>Well, you have the CC Parent permission to quick the “money only” job. Hopefully you can convince yourself as well.</p>
<p>“How do you know what your “something” is?”</p>
<p>Would any of these work for you?
Car
Grad school applications
Spring Break in XYZ
Travel in ABC after finishing up a semester/year abroad in DEF
Nicer digs next summer when you do that unpaid internship for LMNOP
Money to cover your moving costs when you graduate and go to seek your fortune in GHIJK</p>
<p>Lots of possibilities out there. Identify one worth saving for if you feel the need to keep working. Or stop working that second job, and concentrate on your school work. It really, truly is OK to do that!</p>
<p>I think you framed your question wrong. You have 2 jobs but only want to keep 1. </p>
<p>If you had written instead, “Do I need to have two jobs right now?” perhaps the answer would be more clear. (Of course not… drop the job that you don’t like in favor of the one that you think is more enjoyable/ lucrative / career-advancing or whatever. )</p>
<p>I liked having one job in college. It made me more focused. But I could never have worked more than 10 hours a week. If one of your jobs will make you more employable when you graduate, keep that job, but drop the other. My kids didn’t work during the school year, but did have jobs in the summer - older son’s job led directly to his permanent job.</p>