Matthew, a registered nurse based in the Western US, began working as a field case manager about a decade ago. But it wasn’t until several years later that he started working multiple jobs in secret to boost his income.
In 2019, Matthew was promoted to a supervisor position, he told Business Insider via email. He’d been looking for ways to make some extra money and thought his new role — which allowed him to work remotely a few days a week — might be flexible enough for him to accommodate some part-time work.
In addition to supplementing his income, Matthew thought juggling multiple roles could help him grow professionally.
“I was feeling my mind stagnating where I was at — very limited development or improvement,” said Matthew, whose identity is known to BI but asked to use a pseudonym because of his fear of professional repercussions.
After thinking it over, he decided to pursue additional work opportunities — a decision that has paid off for him financially.
Last year, Matthew earned nearly $250,000 across his full-time case manager job and three other part-time jobs, according to documents viewed by BI. He said he kept his extra roles a secret from his primary employer. While working multiple jobs can be stressful at times, Matthew said he hasn’t burned out yet.
“I didn’t realize how much I really enjoyed the challenge and the adrenaline and the juice I get from knowing I am able to juggle several things at once at a high level without anyone being the wiser,” he said.
Matthew is among the “overemployed” Americans who have secretly worked multiple jobs to boost their incomes and job security: BI has interviewed over two dozen of these job jugglers. These people have made as much as $1 million a year across their roles and used their extra money to pay off student debt, afford luxurious vacations, and save for retirement.
While some companies may allow their employees to take on extra work, doing this without approval could have professional repercussions. Additionally, some job jugglers have experienced burnout and questioned whether their overemployment is sustainable.
Juggling multiple jobs has helped him find work he enjoys
Matthew said his overemployment journey began by working three 12-hour shifts, Friday through Sunday, in a nursing role — in addition to his full-time case manager job, which involves connecting patients with the healthcare resources they need. The pandemic hit about a year later, which Matthew said created some other opportunities for part-time work.
“I started working contracts for COVID-19 testing,” he said.
Fast-forward to 2024, and Matthew is still juggling multiple jobs. Today, he works as an occupational health nurse for a corporation in addition to his case manager job.
Along with improving his finances, Matthew said job juggling has provided him with some of the professional benefits he hoped it would.
For example, it’s given him the opportunity to learn what it’s like to work in other roles, like an occupational health nurse. He said this position has proven to be a good fit because it allows him to use several of the skills he’s developed over the years.
For now, he has no plans to give up his other job.
“I still keep my case manager role and can work from my laptop during those hours,” he said.
Are you working multiple remote jobs at the same time and willing to discuss details about your pay and schedule? If so, reach out to this reporter at jzinkula@businessinsider.com.
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