# working 7 days a week....????



## kslim (Oct 23, 2013)

i know ive been posting a lot. i got the catering job for part time position and decided to say yes. im also keeping my full time job simple to be able to keep my health insurance, etc. 

heres the catch. ill basically be working seven days a week, five days full time and two days part time. i REALLY want to get back into some actual cooking, etc which is why im agreeing to do this. im hoping i can at least make it a few months doing both. 

i figure im about to put in for vacation at the end of september, and have plenty of PTO (paid time off)  to take, so i should be able to balance it out at least a few months. 

people say its crazy, yada yada... and i know. but has any chef or long term cook ever done a schedule like this for some time, and how long did it last before you said enough is enough. 

i would really love to hear some stories, or advice or whatever comes to mind..


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

After a while you will suffer from BURNOUT


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

I worked with a line cook at a place he would work grill while i worked saute. 

He worked at the restaurant in the morning to noon and would then work at a pizza place from noon to past midnight. 

He would take a bike to work and back as well, so i can only imagine how tired he would be. 

He lasted for 3 years....

But he probably could have gone a lot longer, only reason he stopped is because one the places closed... 

I guess it really depends on strength, determination and courage. In his case he needed the money as well. 

I would work two jobs easily (of course i would need a good reason) because i know i could take the pain for months before actually wanting to give up. 

Considering i have worked jobs where i would work 12-14 hours a day, working 2 jobs would basically feel the same way to me. 

IMO i think after a while you will feel the heat of the situation and won´t be able to support the pain and lack of sleep. Eventually you will quit. Like i said the cook i worked with NEEDED the money. Im sure if he didn´t need the money so badly he wouldnt have lasted so long. With 2 kids to raise and a stay at home wife to support on minimum wage as well as paying rent i guess he felt that the situation called for semi-drastic measures.


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## dreamshards8 (Dec 2, 2013)

I worked for about sixty hours a week for around 4-5 years. I would get breaks in the winter where I only worked about 45 hours a week. I have a young child so my two biggest reasons for working so much was to have enough money to support us and to be able to move out of state so I could follow my passions and attend culinary school, and for him to have more opportunities in the city. Yes it took me five years and during that time I would have spells of getting completely burnt out and wondering if I still wanted to cook for a living, but those times didn't last long. I tend to be a workaholic and everyone is different, I went through years of people telling me I was crazy for working so much. The biggest thing is to listen to your body. For me working a lot of hours is not so bad if you have at least one day off, but that doesn't mean you can't do it for awhile. If if gets way too stressful for you then don't torture yourself.


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## chefbuba (Feb 17, 2010)

All depends on your work ethic and drive. If you are already planning on using PTO and vacation to "balance out" your extra hrs, you won't last long in this business.


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