Took Low Paying Job, Now have BIG regrets

[robin4kids]

I just need a few words of wisdom here. I used to run my own daycare, but we moved to a very small rural place and I can't find anyone to care for. So long story short I got desperate and started applying to ANY horrible job I could find. I finally got a job earning $8 an hr. serving coffee and donuts. I have a degree in Education, so this job is to say it lightly WAY beneath me. I am working with kids half my age! All that said I am doing it because we need money.

So here are the reasons I think I may need to quit:

I homeschool 2 children and have 3 children in school, so I have to work the night shifts/overnight shifts. I may have not been in MY right mind when I agreed to this because WHEN DO I SLEEP? Yesterday I worked till

 midnight and did not get home and in bed till 1AM. I was up at 6AM and had to take a nap with my 2 kids running the house on their own.

Second I met some of the overnight people and they are not a nice group. I am not sure I could survive in a terrible job with people that are so unhappy and grumpy.

Third I would be spending most of the night cleaning. Even though we are open all night, it is VERY slow, so we clean. I love cleaning, but it is hard on my hands and while we are out front we are not allowed to wear ANY gloves, so my hands will be exposed to the cleaning products and the consent dampness. (I asked about the gloves and they said it is something to due with the health department.)

So there it is. It is not like I will ever put this on my resume. I am ashamed to say I even work there. Do I suck it up and do it? Or do I quit and just try to make it till something better come around?

Any kind words of advice? What would you do?

[mattemma04]

I would quit and find ways to cut the spending to make up for the loss in income,but that's just me!

Have you figured the actual net pay and expenses for having the job? How much will you REALLY make once all is paid?  I had a friend who worked nights as a nurse aide,and then was up most of the day with her young kids.At times she also had a waitress job too!

Homeschooling is important and I don't think you should cut corners there if you really want to keep them at home.

Have you considered a job where you could work on the weekends,or on the days off for your dh? I know some that work doubles on those days to make up for not working a FT job during the week. Maybe a nurse aide or home care job is a option. I know how it feels to get a lower paying job when you have a degree.BTDT and it IS hard emotionally. I tried not to think about it,because at the time we needed the money. I am a sahm now and although another income would help we cut the spending to make it.

If it weren't for the kids I would say tough it out,but the lack of sleep(or sleeping while the kids run about) is going to hurt you and them in the long run. If the money is needed to meet basic needs like rent then you have little choice but to tolerate it until you find something better.Regardless of what you decide I would keep looking for something better.And I would insist on wearing gloves even if I had to take my own in!

Best wishes whatever you decide.

[robin4kids]

We are getting by, but it is tough. There are so many same things that come up with 5 kids. Just last night my dd (10) had a Christmas program. She got all dressed up and had no dress shoes! (We live so far out that getting shoes, even if we HAD money would have been impossible at the last minute.) So we all searched the house for any shoes that she could fit into that were not white sneakers. I felt terrible. When we had money, I made sure all the kids had Christmas outfits and shoes WAY before the holiday. This year I am just happy if everyone has clean clothes. I had wanted to buy her shoes, but kept putting it off, because food was more important.

We finally found an old pair of black converse sneakers that where my son's and she wore those with her skirt. I thought it was a cute look, but i know she was less than happy:(

[Ravin]

Well, I've been working overnights (I'm down to 2 full overnight shifts a week and 4 mornings/week 5-9) at a big box store for 3 years now. It started out as an extra income for things like fixing the car and extras. Then DH lost his job and wound up with one that paid even less than mine, and now he's unemployed as is DW#2. I'm the breadwinner and find I'm gratefull for the job.

That said, it's hard sometimes. When everyone was working DD had too much time on her own, starting at age 4. She's a good deal better adapted to it now that she's 7, but it's still hard. She watches too much TV for sure.

As for when you sleep, the answer is when you have to. The kids do adapt. When I have overnight shifts, we get schoolwork done in the morning then I nap in the afternoon while DD watches TV, does art projects, etc. I try to get up in time for her to go out and play when the neighbor kids get home from school then take another nap in the evening when DH is home and can get her to bed, etc. It gets lonely sometimes feeling I'm out of synch with everyone else in the house and missing out because I'm asleep when theyr'e awake, but we do what we have to do.

If I was you (teaching degree and all), I'd look for tutoring work, both in person and online (tutor.com, for example).

[happysmileylady]

You know, if you need the money, then you need the money.  There's nothing wrong though with looking for a new job while still working this one. 

[D_McG]

Originally Posted by happysmileylady 

You know, if you need the money, then you need the money.  There's nothing wrong though with looking for a new job while still working this one. 

Agree.  

Not sure about hs'ing when you're so tired during the day though.  I'd probably put the kids in school and work on getting back on track, financially.

FWIW I also make $8 an hour working retail.  I don't hate it though.  But I am certainly overqualified.  Who cares?  My degree and professional experience don't make me a better salesperson than the others (I am not the best salesperson.  Not the worst but not the best).  Your degree probably don't make you a particularly good server.  It's just not relevant so I'd stop considering it.  If you need the money then you need the money.  Take pride in your work, no matter what it is.
 

[happysmileylady]

Originally Posted by D_McG 

Originally Posted by happysmileylady 

You know, if you need the money, then you need the money.  There's nothing wrong though with looking for a new job while still working this one. 

Agree.  

Not sure about hs'ing when you're so tired during the day though.  I'd probably put the kids in school and work on getting back on track, financially.

FWIW I also make $8 an hour working retail.  I don't hate it though.  But I am certainly overqualified.  Who cares?  My degree and professional experience don't make me a better salesperson than the others (I am not the best salesperson.  Not the worst but not the best).  Your degree probably don't make you a particularly good server.  It's just not relevant so I'd stop considering it.  If you need the money then you need the money.  Take pride in your work, no matter what it is.
 

I agree with this.  I have a teaching degree as well and I work a crappy drugstore retail job as well.  My degree is not relevant to my job, and it wasn't when I applied. 

Have you checked out tutor.com?  I am currently going through the testing process and on the waiting list, but I have heard it's not bad money (don't know since I am on the wait list) and it's something you can do at home on your own schedule.

Also, check around for in person tutor jobs, tutoring is good money in general.  My aunt is a teacher also, and she makes more in the after school hours she spends tutoring than her in school job (per hour, she only tutors a couple hours at night a few nights a week)

[fierrbugg]

I think it depends on your goals.  If the main reason was to make some extra money and you're doing just that - then has this job fulfilled the expectations?  Of course.  I took a lower paying sales job a few years back because I had absolutely no sales skills.  I wanted to learn and I did.  But it proved to be a bit of a road block when I went to move back into the business world.  I actually had a corporate bank manager laugh at me.  Why are you working retail he asked?  I explained that I had lacked the necessary skills and wanted to change that.  "Yeah, but retail . . . . . with a business degree?" - needless to say he was a jerk who didn't offer me the job - and I wouldn't have taken it if he had.  So, provided the job fulfills your expectations - then keep doing it.  If it does not or your expectations have changed and you can find something that works better around your hs schedule or utilizes your background - then by all means go for it.  I would think that even offering some afterschool tutoring on your own in your area might help accomplish your goals and open up your schedule.  I have a friend who answers the phones for a moving truck rental company a few times a week.  She does this from the comfort of her own home and makes a couple extra hundred dollars a month.  She's also a teacher who tutors in her home a few times a week too.  Start doing research, you might be surprised at what is out there. 

[GreenGranolaMama]

I can totally relate- sorry this is going to be totally long lol! I have a degree in public health/physical fitness and one in biology but was looking to work part time. I found a part time position at the YMCA in our area that was pretty nice- I could do most of the work from home except that I might be called in to work at little to no notice if there was a no show in one of the exercise classes. Obviously this wouldn't work as I have DS and am not interested in putting him in daycare. I opted to take an entry level position in their fitness center/ teaching one exercise class with the promise of eventual on the job training opportunities to learn to teach more classes.

It. was . awful . I was making $8 an hour in the fitness center and my job, essentially, was to wipe sweat off of machines and mop the floors (so yeah, I was pretty over qualified to say the least) Because DH works during the day the only time I could work was at night, so none of the 'important' folks worked past 5 so it's not like I could even meet people who I could, for lack of a better way of putting it, impress to advance and move up.  As for the exercise class I was teaching, I had to pay to have DS in the Y child watch so I could teach, so I would have been making $9 an hour for that but it cost $3 for the child watch so I was only making $6 : / 

When I first started, I got my schedule confused and ended up at the wrong place at the wrong time (I worked between two facilities) and my boss screamed at me and said "You know, other people with kids manage to make it work..." when it had NOTHING to do with my DS at all. I should have quit right there but...

I stuck it out for 6 months. Finally a training opportunity came up...and it cost $600 dollars. Um yeah, they didn't tell me about that.  The thing that finally did it for me was the child watch- the caregivers were changing all the time (apparently that job must have sucked too) and I felt like it was very unfair of me to leave DS with a different stranger every week. I could hear him crying while I was trying to teach my class and I had had it with the whole thing- I ended the class and quit right there.  The nights when I worked were also very hard on DH and DS as DH is a teacher at a special needs school and is drained when he gets out of work, so it was hard when I was leaving for work when he was just getting home.  

We are much happier with me not working there-  DH is able to work a few nights a week with a program associated with his school, so with overtime he is making more than i did anyways. I have an Etsy shop that keeps me surprisingly busy and I have started supplying a retailer with the baby shoes I make. I'm also going to start substitute teaching (with a friend with a toddler the same age as DS watching DS) a few days a week. 

So to make a long story short, if you hate it, I mean hate it hate it and can manage without- quit. Your happiness and the happiness of your family isn't worth it and something else always comes by. 

[VisionaryMom]

I have some thoughts, but I have children at home for snow day who are going stir-crazy. I wanted to say, though, that I don't blame you for hating it. I know some people can suck it up and work crappy jobs they hate, but I've never been that person either. It would be hard for me to force myself into that kind of situation if I didn't have to, and I think there are other options for you.