Job stacking is the ever-more popular phenomenon of working multiple jobs at the same time, with the aim of earning multiple full-time paychecks.
Our founder, Zach Wade, is familiar with the concept because he did it himself for many years. Afterward, he founded Career Free with the profits of his job stacking.
Job stacking usually works out well for the average job stacker. You get a ton of benefits: the extra money, for one, but also more job security, fulfillment, engagement, and skill acquisition.
So if it’s that great, why doesn’t everyone do it? The truth is that job stacking isn’t for everyone. If any of these four reasons resonate with you, consider pausing your job stack hunt for now until it aligns better with your lifestyle.
Reason 1: If You’re Happy And Fulfilled
Let’s say you’ve got a great job. You’re paid $200k+ a year, you love your boss, and your job gives you intellectual fulfillment. You don’t often find yourself bored, or with empty time on your hands.
But you’ve just heard of this great new concept called job stacking and the idea of adding some extra paychecks sounds great! Do you take it?
Honestly, you shouldn’t. If you’re well-compensated for the work you do, you have no issues with your job, and you don’t have any pressing need to raise more money quickly, it’s probably not a good idea to job stack. Finding a new job can be stressful and time-consuming. Then, once you actually have the job, you might find you can’t do your J1 to the best of your ability anymore.
Job stacking is best for more junior roles when you have lots of extra time, you’re bored, and you’re not earning enough to live a comfortable life.
Reason 2: If You Don’t Have Enough Ambition.
Many people see job stacking as easy money. Those people are wrong. To successfully job stack, you need to be meticulously organized, fueled by a raging inner fire, and motivated by something other than just having a pile of cash.
Read: A day in the life of a job stacker.
To job stack, you need to be prepared to work hard to manage all your tasks and stay on top of multiple comms. If you don’t have that type of drive, you’ll find the pros of job stacking are not outweighed by the cons. You’ll be stressed, tired, and nervous.
If you find the idea of taking on additional challenges exciting, and you’re saving up money for a specific goal, then job stacking is a great way to get there.
Reason 3: If You Just Don’t Want To.
Job stacking is a relatively new concept that many people aren’t familiar – or comfortable– with. And that’s OK.
To successfully job stack, you need to be happy keeping secrets. That means you don’t tell your bosses, you don’t tell your coworkers, and you don’t tell your LinkedIn connections. If that makes you feel queasy, then don’t do it.
If you don’t mind making the most of your time, working on multiple projects at the same time, and getting paid what you’re actually worth, then job stacking is a good option for you.
Reason 4: If Your Contract Doesn’t Allow It.
Job stacking isn’t illegal. But your contract might have language forbidding competition, outsourcing, or working anywhere else during the duration of your employment. You’re better off not violating that contract.
Carefully review your current employment contract. If you don’t see any red flags, go ahead. If you do, then you can always look for a new job that doesn’t contain problematic language in the contract, start at that one, then job stack on top of your new job.
Final Thoughts on Who Should Job Stack.
Amidst all the hype about job stacking, there are also lots of legitimate reasons not to job stack. You might be uncomfortable with the notion. You might be satisfied with your current salary and boss. You might not have the time and energy. That’s all OK – you shouldn’t feel pressured to job stack if you don’t want or need to.
However, there are so many reasons to job stack: you get an extra source of income. You can save up for buying a house. You can get the satisfaction of doing work you enjoy all day, instead of wasting your time in pointless middle-manager meetings.
If none of those four reasons apply, then dive right into job stacking!
