I Secretly Juggled 3 Jobs, and It Blew Up in My Face

According to a statistic from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 8.2 million have more than one job. It’s so common that it even has a term of its own called “moonlighting.” Ginny, a moonlighter, has shared her struggle when one job found out she’s been secretly holding two other jobs.

This is what Ginny struggled with.

Dear Bright Side,

I had three jobs. A couple were remote, while the third was a regular 9 to 5. My 9 to 5 job’s HR Admin ended up finding out about my two other jobs through a LinkedIn post I made and snitched on me to management. They ended up firing me the next day. That same HR Admin didn’t stop there.

She also snitched on me having other jobs to one of my remote ones and they ended up firing me as well. I was left with one job and, to my luck, it was the least paying one. I was particularly close to the manager of this job. One day, I got an email from him saying he wanted to have a meeting with me. In that meeting, he said that an HR Admin from my last job told him that I was working different jobs.

I thought that was it and he’d fire me straight away. But he actually promoted me. He was impressed with my multitasking skills and wanted me to take on more responsibilities for a higher salary as well. But that HR Admin wasn’t satisfied with that. She ended up creating a LinkedIn post talking about how certain people lack credibility and secretly work different jobs while she’s trying to make ends meet.

She also tagged me in her post, saying I’m one of these people. What’s worse is that her account has lots of connections and people I’d like to work with in the future. I’m not sure how to respond to this. Please help.

Ginny D.

That HR Admin was probably jealous.

Thank you for sharing your story, Ginny. Having three jobs is a struggle already, but ensuring that neither one finds out about the other is an even greater struggle. The HR Admin likely felt jealous that you were able to juggle so many responsibilities, so she wanted to take you down, one job at a time.

Try to report her post.

Go back to the post and try to report it for defamation. You can ask your friends and trusted colleagues to do the same. The post is simply hateful, adds no sound career advice, and is likely uploaded out of spite. You can report the content as harassment as well.

Focus on your current job now.

Now that you’ve gotten that promotion, it’s time to prove that you deserve it. Stay focused on all your tasked and try to meet your manager’s expectations. If the salary is still insufficient to cover your expenses, you can consider a remote part-time job rather than another full-time gig.

Having multiple jobs isn’t for everyone. Once you’ve mastered time management and multitasking, you’ll be able to sustain more than one job. Just look at this inspiring story of a pregnant woman juggling two jobs. In the end, a surprising turn of events gives her the happy ending she deserved.