Job Network
Sponsored by

How to balance dual careers?

2,274 Views | 13 Replies | Last: 7 yr ago by HollywoodBQ
largelili
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
How do you guys balance dual careers?

We moved up to Kansas for his job this past August, and I was super lucky and started my own job quickly after. His job hasn't worked out and his brother-in-law offered him a great job in San Antonio. We are both super excited about coming back to Texas and being with family. However, I don't know what to do about my job!

I don't love it, but I love working. I've contacted my company's office in San Antonio and they don't have a need for someone in my position until summer. So how do I explain a 3 month job in an application and cover letter? I don't want to appear flaky.

For those that balance two professional careers... do you both have office jobs? Do you own your own business? Do you or your partner sacrifice a traditional career for flexibility? I've been thinking of creating my own business just so I can control my time, hours and income, but it's a huge commitment and high risk. Any ideas on how to successfully balance two careers or funny stories would be appreciated.

TL;DR I get to come back to Texas!
txaggie_08
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
If you were able to live on the income of one partner, "the breadwinner", I'd think you would end up chasing that person's career path. Would it be the worst thing if you took the 3 month leave while you guys moved and prepared/organized everything at home? Would you get a guarantee that your job would be there in March?

I'm just spit balling here. Don't have to worry about that myself at the moment.
largelili
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
I've been thinking about doing unpaid leave until the San Antonio office is ready to hire someone. Or just quitting in a manner that ensures I'm eligible for rehire in summer. We can definitely live on one income. Maybe I should relax and take the time to develop some skills in a new area.
tlh3842
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
We haven't had this happen, but down the road we may have to leave Houston for her and I'm liable to be stuck in something similar to your shoes. I'd take the time off. Unpaid leave, quitting, etc. If you can basically guarantee your position in the summer, I'd take the time off. Get everything straight with the new house and just unwind.
Chipotlemonger
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Can you offer to do some side project work for them in the meantime? I'd almost rather do that if I knew that I'd be coming back so soon.
PlanoAg98
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
I don't think it makes you look flaky if your next job is in a different state. It appears that you had to move for some reason or another. Now if your next job is in the same area, maybe flaky.
texancanuck11
How long do you want to ignore this user?
To sort of piggy-back on OP's question, how do you know when/if you should move for a job? I'm in a situation where I'm looking for a new job, and my wife and my current location is not an ideal location for the type of job I'm looking for. We can't live off one income right now, and she has a good job.

At what point do you look at relocating? When both have good jobs lined up in the new place? Or is one person always going to "get the shaft" in this situation?
HollywoodBQ
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
texancanuck11 said:

To sort of piggy-back on OP's question, how do you know when/if you should move for a job? I'm in a situation where I'm looking for a new job, and my wife and my current location is not an ideal location for the type of job I'm looking for. We can't live off one income right now, and she has a good job.

At what point do you look at relocating? When both have good jobs lined up in the new place? Or is one person always going to "get the shaft" in this situation?
Unfortunately, one person is always going to get the shaft if you're in a highly specialized field. The best situation for you and the OP is if one of you has a high paying specialized job and the other has a more generic job that is in demand everywhere.

Another factor that comes in to play is how frequent are you going to move? In a military spouse situation, you don't really want to go looking for 18 jobs in 22 years. In a construction project spouse role, you don't want to look for a new job every 3 to 4 years but, that's a slightly better situation.

So, don't just think about the next job but, think also, what's the job after that? Do they want you to move to the regional HQ in San Bernardino, California but if you do well there, they'll want move you to the corporate HQ in Temple, Texas?

Some good spouse professions have historically been teacher or nurse. Especially if you're a specialized teacher like bi-lingual or math. Or a specialized nurse.

But if one of you is in a highly technical field that is regionally based like say - oil and gas and the other one is in a technical field that is somewhat regionally based like say - pharmaceuticals, it could be very difficult to line up those two needs.

In my case, my wife and I had good jobs in Austin but when we moved to Denver, there wasn't much opportunity for her to work locally. In Los Angeles, there was a lot of opportunity so she found a good job relatively easily but, when we moved to Sydney, Australia, it took her 3 years to find a good job that was right for her qualifications and experience.

Now, I think we're both ready to move back to the United States but... who gets the new job first? Me or her? It's a tough call. If we stay where we are, we're both pulling in good wages. If I make the job move first, what if she can't find a job there? Or, what if it takes 3 years again? I don't want to lose 3 years of good wages. On the other side, what if she gets a new job first? I wind up having to be satisfied with living wherever she can find work. In my case, I don't think that will be a problem because her job is regionally specific but, obviously for some folks that kind of situation could be a huge problem.

Hey honey be happy for me, I got a job in Provo, UT or Las Cruces, NM, etc. Now see if you can find a job there. I've got a friend of mine who is a Chemical Engineer who has been living in Santa Fe, NM for the past 10 years because of her husband's job. She's been a SAHM but, if she really wanted to work, I think she'd have a hard time finding something in and around Santa Fe.

Sorry there's no easy answer.
Rudyjax
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Can you stay in Kansas until that job is ready? 3 months isn't exactly a long time.
Beckdiesel03
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Have y'all discussed your expectations for the long term? Early on I was the breadwinner with the expectation at some point my career would take the backseat for my spouse so that I could stay at home for a few years with our kids. I turned down quite a few jobs that would have been great pay for what I was doing but required us to move away from both family, the town we wanted to be in, and my husbands job field. It was frustrating to see what I could have been doing and earning. However it was what we had talked about at length before even getting married. Also at one point we lived and worked in different cities bc that's where we could find work. It wasn't ideal but it landed us jobs later on back where we wanted bc of that. Are you guaranteed a job even taking leave? Can you hang on a little longer until finding something? Or are you okay with the time off and maybe it taking longer to find a job if this doesn't work out? It's all just things to think about and talk about with your spouse.
largelili
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
We're both geologists with master's degrees so you'd think it'd be easy to find jobs in the same area, but the downturn has been rough. We both specialized in petroleum geology, but you all know what happened so we turned to environmental work. It's not great work. We work for engineering consulting firms, and it's long hours with relatively low pay (I'm salaried with no overtime too!). He's getting out of geology all together, and I'm going to focus on my GIS and programming skills. I'd like to try doing independent contract work and start my own business out of our home. That way I can maintain an independent career with flexibility for future moves. It'll be a ton of work, but I want it and he supports it

I had told the bf and his kiddo that I could stay up here and wait to transfer, but the transfer wasn't guaranteed. The office had layoffs in March of 2016 and were only starting to think of rehiring for the position. The fam didn't want to move without me, and I didn't want to stay without them. It wasn't worth it for just a chance at a job.

I like hearing all your thoughts. It's a struggle to manage two careers!
Duncan Idaho
How long do you want to ignore this user?
don't list the 3 month job on your resume, linkedin or anything else.
combat wombat™
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
IMO, if your resume looks good, and the three month job is a fluke they'll probably give you the opportunity to explain it. Their concern will be that you will quit after a short time if your husband is transferred again. So make sure to address that and stress that you plan to put down roots in a town with family.

My resume has a position where I was there for 7 months. I landed at a firm where the managing partner was, in my uneducated opinion, a psychopath and I got out as soon as I could after I figured that out.
JamesPShelley
How long do you want to ignore this user?
So how do I explain a 3 month job in an application and cover letter? I don't want to appear flaky.

You don't explain it in an application or cover letter. Let them ask about it, if ever it is considered.

Your "to-from" employment instances should be absent any designation of "month". For Example:

1.
November 2015 to March 2016

May 2011 to August 2015


2.
2011 - 2015

2015 - 2016.

The second example looks solid. Professional. Certain. There appears to be no absence of employment. Thus, there would be no reason to broach the subject. Not even in an interview. 'I worked at XYZ Company from 2011 to 2015, and ABC Corporation from 2015 to 2016. Unless someone asks... don't reveal.

It's like when you're being questioned by law enforcement: don't reveal more than asked. They're looking for an arrest. You're just looking for an interview. Don't confuse the two.

Finally, the inclusion of months in the to/from component presents collegiate. That's not going to reconcile with executive status.

Cheers!
HollywoodBQ
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Quote:

Finally, the inclusion of months in the to/from component presents collegiate. That's not going to reconcile with executive status.
The only hang up with your yearly strategy is when:

You're trying to justify getting paid based on the 3 month job. i.e. - I was making $90K at Job A for x years and at job B, I was making $100K for 3 months and now at your new job, I want $100K or 110K because I know what my skills are worth in the open market.

And if you are in a situation with an employer who does extensive background checks and wants to verify your employment dates. It could become a question for them when they find out that you're hiding something. Also, if you're moving around a lot, it might be worth explaining in a cover letter or in an HR interview if they ask. They might not care but, they might be interested in how committed you are to the new market.

In my case, when I left Denver for Los Angeles, I left off my 2 week contract work in Kansas City because it was just that. A 2 week gig, nothing more. And I don't expect the experience to be valued by anybody and I don't expect to get paid off of it. I did have to qualify to the new employer how committed I was to moving to Los Angeles and that I wasn't just going to try them out for a few weeks and go back to Denver. So, you might explain in a cover letter, your commitment to the new area.
Refresh
Page 1 of 1
 
×
subscribe Verify your student status
See Subscription Benefits
Trial only available to users who have never subscribed or participated in a previous trial.