What do you people who work part time do?

[redfox]

The 40+ hour work week is dependent upon the age-old sexist & classicist role of "the wife". And it is SO out of date!!!

[fidgiegirl]

The 40+ hour work week is dependent upon the age-old sexist & classicist role of "the wife". And it is SO out of date!!!

My DH and I have mused about this often. Really to keep expenses down enough to run the home on one income one person's "job," if there are even two adults in the home, has to be running the day-to-day of the household.

This thread is making me drool, BTW. Time to get arrangin'.

[herisf]

I work 4 days a week as an RN in the operating room. Since I also take call, my work hours can go up drastically if I get called in. I would like to go down to 3 days a week, but my boss won't let any of us go less than 4. She says it's because it makes scheduling too difficult (well, and it's also hard to find skilled & qualified nurses to do this job). I know I have job security - I just wish I didn't have so much!

[ApatheticNoMore]

The 40+ hour work week is dependent upon the age-old sexist & classicist role of "the wife". And it is SO out of date!!!

Hear, hear!! I would so support a shorter work week, more vacation time etc.. I've actually reread the books "Take Back Your Time" and "Work To Live" recently (the former was affiliated with the simplicity movement by the way - to the extent that simplicity means anything). The "Take Back Your Time" dreams of social change (via more leisure) from a decade ago seem so obsolete in an economy that is not even functioning barely at all at this point (although if there's ONE THING all this high unemployment has proved it is that society can function with much less WORK!). It's truly sad to reflect how far what is even possible has fallen in a decade. But anyway I didn't mean to make this a political thread (if someone wants to start one they can go to public policy ).

Really I did just want advice on if there are moves I can make that are likely to get me REAL work life balance (career moves or whatever). I'm in a position financially where it seems I should be able to achieve what I want out of life (but no I can't retire entirely yet) and yet it's so rare.

By the way even the time off in unemployment has given me such a better focus on my life, a whole bunch of things I was ignoring (too caught up in the grind) just popped out at me.

[kally]

I work in literacy. I match adults with literacy needs up with volunteer tutors. I also do some consulting in developing curriculum resource materials from time to time.

But I basically work 15 hours a week in literacy. I used to be a teacher, then a workshop leader, then a speaker, then a facilitator, etc.

Oh and I get July and August off, but don't get any money. Works for me.

[mira]

I work 28 hours per week as a library assistant in a college and I'm on a temporary contract. Up until recently, I was working the same hours between the college library AND a separate school library. I also do sporadic freelance work as a translator.

In the last year, I've read so many books and articles about allowing life to slow down, reassessing values, changing perspective and being thrifty (none of them from the library I work in, btw! hehe)... they've made me reconsider the entire concept of work and how it intertwines with the rest of our lives, to the point where the idea of working 40 hours per week in the same place makes me feel a little sick. Why should I have to essentially dedicate my entire life to ONE thing when there are so many other things that interest me and that I value above the work that I do? I want balance.

[Merski]

I work 25 hours a week in a public library. My hours were cut back from 31 hrs and the cut back has hurt our bottom line so to speak as we still have a mortgage to pay. I supplement my earnings with genealogical research, finding things to bring to the local consignment store and selling books on amazon and of course by being as frugal as I can be!

[madgeylou]

i'm working 25-30 hours a week hostessing at a fabulous restaurant ... to pay the bills while i work another 50-60 hours a week getting my business off the ground.

[Stella]

Coffee shop. Other part-time jobs I've had have been daycare, nannying, payroll and bookkeeping for a small business, administrative assistant and freelance technical writing. Coffee shops are my favourite though. It doesn't really feel like work. Where else do you get paid to hang out with friends and neighbors, play cards and read books?

[Sad Eyed Lady]

After 20+ years working in legal and accounting work I took a year off. At the end of that year I knew I wanted to do something completely different and part-time, so I went to work for a small printing company a couple of miles from my home. I learned on the job, graphic design, and found I really enjoyed it. I work three days a week and after 5 years there I am preparing to leave later this summer. I will turn 60 (!) in October and my goal is not to be working at 60. So..............maybe still go in one day a week? (My employee has told me I am welcome to work whenever I want). Or, again something completely different? Volunteer? Nothing/do want I want each day? Maybe a mixture? I just know I NEVER want to go back to full time work again!