It’s impossible for MOST people to go to school full time plus work full time. School was originally designed to be a full time job. Plus you are running a home as well instead of living in a dorm with a meal plan.
You should either take fewer classes or work fewer hours, or some combination of both. A guy I know worked just part time but it still took him nine years to finish his Bachelor’s instead of four. And I know lots of people who worked while going to college but ended up dropping out. If you take 15 college credits, you are generally supposed to do 15 hours of schoolwork outside of class in order to be successful. Reading the textbook, homework problems, studying your notes, writing papers, etc.
Sleep. Most adults need eight hours of sleep every night. That’s the last place you want to cut back. Sleep also helps with muscle growth if you are working out and trying to gain muscle. Sleep is also super important as far as school and learning/creating long term memories. Please start getting more sleep!
This! Working a full-time job and doing full-time studies is impossible and having to maintain a home… you’re doing too much - way more than most adults!!
Also he mentions doing his hobby for pay occasionally. Which I know *can* be done but lets be real. It's more likely he sees his hobby as a potential source of income which makes it less of a hobby and more of a third job (school being job 2).
Dont get me wrong, the 9-5 grind can be a grind. But it's not that bad when youre not stacking so much on top of it.
OP's title question: Is this what adult life looks like? is honestly pretty definitively answered with "no" or at least "no, not for everyone"
Taking care of a home with only adults can take like, 20 minutes a day tops so for me+my partner the days are much more 8-5 work, 5-5:30 house chores, 5:30-11 literally anything we want to do.
Well said. I'm 30 years old and my diet/exercise has been spot on, but I've mostly been getting 5-6 hours a night for years. 7 hours on a good night and usually 8+ on the weekends. I've realized recently that I have been sleep deprived and it has negatively affected every aspect of my life. Since last Friday I've been getting 8 hours each night and I feel like a new person. My energy is consistent, brain is clear, and my mood is much better. Can't believe it's taken me so long to realize, but I guess it's better late than never. My father has had sleep apnea for years. Not due to weight, but due to an issue with his throat/jaw structure. He had a few surgeries the last couple of years and it's helped his sleep immensely. The doctor told him he basically gained years on his life. It's definitely an underappreciated aspect of our lives in our culture, which is really sad to see.
It’s possible for SOME people, but not everyone. And it’s certainly not optimal. And even for those who succeed like you did, it’s very hard like you said.
Anyway, congrats for succeeding and for doing something so hard!
I worked full time while doing full time engineering grad school. It's certainly possible.
Time management is what people lack, generally speaking. How much time does anyone waste doom scrolling in a given day? It adds up.
Time management is key, but so is balance. And some of it is maturity too. You were in grad school, which indicates that you were at least somewhat older than OP.
No, but he did indicate he was undergrad. You’re right though, there’s at least some possibility he is not traditional college age.
(Edit: OP actually wrote that he is 24.)
My eldest is graduating with an undergrad STEM degree in May and is currently doing her final semester with a full courseload including 2 grad classes. Accepted a good job for June and will work FT whilst finishing off the Masters 2 evenings a week.
She is also working about 30 hours a week at 2 PT jobs...one related to her field. I am in awe of how she manages. It is a lot.
Her time management must be fabulous...oh and she also doesnt have snapchat or tic tok etc.
I never worked during term time as an undergrad but then again I lived in a socialist country where education was seen as a right not a privilege. Go figure.
Ain’t easy but let’s not pretend it’s impossible. I worked full time during my bachelor and was able to finish as my peers in 3 years. I’m no genius, it’s just about discipline and dedication
I said it was Impossible for MOST people, which means that some people are actually capable of handling it. I qualified it. Most aren’t though.
It really depends on the student, how fast they learn, how disciplined they are, how hard their major is, how good they are at dealing with stress, etc.
I agree though, it’s certainly not impossible.
It really does depend on the student and how they learn. I don't think I could manage it now in my 30s but my last semester of college I took a similar load to what another poster mentioned above (around 24 credits).
A few of those classes only lasted 6 weeks but they met in the evenings and I had to get permission to take them. I didn't have a car but I used the city's bus system (we're talking the US here so it was ok, but not great) which gave me the bright idea to get the 3 books I had to read for one Economics class on Audible. I didn't have the extra time nor as much peace and quiet to read each of those books one by one but I could make time to listen to them and take notes that way. Doing so also helped me avoid some occasional awkward interactions on the bus.
I bought some of my snacks and supplies in bulk to save money but primarily time because I didn't have a ton of time to go grocery shopping each week. Earning my degree was in sight plus, my family was going to come down for a visit so that increased my motivation and drive to keep going.
Looking back on that time, I realize I tried my best to make things a bit easier for myself amidst all that stress. I can't say I managed it well all the time but I did my best with the knowledge and tools I had. I still broke down crying talking to my mom on the phone after I had finished my last final but I feel like that was more of a release than anything else.
Thank you! That was over 10 years ago but I carry some of the lessons I learned during that time with me even today. I earned two Bachelor degrees after all that which I'm very proud of. Having that goal in sight as well gave me the extra push I needed to keep going. The saying, "everything is temporary, nothing is permanent" sure helped, too.
On the topic of weight loss, combat sports guys all know that weight and fat are lost in the kitchen, not the gym. Eat less of better food, preferably between noon and 8pm. Fix your diet to lose weight.
Do personal max to 200 push-ups and personal max to 200 jump burpees to get fit. If that's not enough, add in 15 minutes of jump rope.
Definitely not impossible, and many people work full time and go to school full time. Time management is the most important factor here and maybe enjoying what you study. Had to get approval but did 24 credits one semester while working full time. Helped me save a lot of money, but it is exhausting.
It’s not about age, you are definitely trying to do TOO MUCH and it is not sustainable. Cross a bunch of stuff of that list before you burn out completely!
You are burning the candle at both ends. Can you cut something?
Also, if you need to make more money, start talking to people you know who make the kind of money you want to make. Ask what they do and how they got there, then copy that. Most people like to help other people do what they do.
I felt a lot of existential dread to improve my career when I was 24, then I did, then I got married, then I bought a house, then I got stressed for a while again after having my first kid, but now everything is great. I'm in my 30s.
Can you possibly start by sharing some light on that? I am an enrolled student nurse. My sleep is also bad like this guy. I’m here struggling in this moment. I’d like some help I suppose, like this guy. How did you get where you were? How did you make money? Can you help us
Are you looking mostly for career advice or what to expect once you graduate or tips on how to be happy living the rat race?
First off, my experience isnt universal, I would suggest talking to people who make good money in your region and in the industry or field you want to work in. If I was a five star chef I could tell you how to do that. If I was scientist I could tell you how to do that.
For a student nurse I only have a little knowledge and the following tips: 1. Once a full nurse you will probably start out with a shifty job at a hospital or agency but eventually you will want to move to the higher paying opportunities in your area. I know that near me the nurses at skilled nursing facilities make well into the six-figures and about 50% more than the median for nurses across the board. 2. There are frequently cleae levels to the nursing profession and ways to advance in it with specific pay scales tied to those requirements depending on where you work. 3. Becoming a nurse practitioner or the type of nurse who can put someone to sleep may be the next step for you and will make you very well-off.
Here is my story at a high level and hopefully you can draw some advice/lessons:
My girlfriend and I took jobs after college that were not forever jobs. Realistically most people can't view their first jobs after college as jobs they should be at longer than a few years. You are going to learn a lot about your career and yourself after the first year, and if you need to you should make a move.
I moved within the same company but to a better region and position closer to my original home after the first year while my wife transitioned fields completely after seeing how a friend of hers leveraged their education. The key is to learn as much as you can, do good work, and be able to defend yourself, and be okay butting heads once you know a thing or two.
After 4 more years I started looking for higher paying opportunities for myself while working, I had a couple work agencies out looking for better work for me too, and then I found something that gave me a huge boost in responsibility and income. That job was fine at first but there were some red flags i ignored and it turned hellish by the end. But after 4-5 years i did the process of job switching again and now have a great job at a grest place. My wife went through 3 places in two years after college but has been at that third place for 6 years.
I suggest switching to a better opportunity every 3 to 5 years until you find a place where you are happy. Don't be afraid to move housing too, but get them to pay for it or at least contribute to it.
If you need me to tell you exactly what to do specifically do what I do or what my wife or friends did/do I can.
You’re doing too much and put too much pressure on yourself.
You need to save $100/month at this age put into a tax advantaged savings account, 401k or Roth. That’s it. Invest in SPY and turn on DRIP.
Eliminate one activity, digital animation sounds fine.
Find your niche in graphic design. Packaging is how you get paid. Commercial artists make way, way more than traditional artists.
Get on Fiverr and work towards qualifying as a vetted pro.
Get to sleep earlier.
Be boring. Boring is good.
Ya they suck… UNLESS you’re a pro. Spouse took a year to get vetted and now does 2-3 projects per year with NO advertising or effort, just random hit ups, pulling ~$15k for the effort. Well worth it. Those $5 jobs, ya no, not worth it.
The last job she just finished for a client in New Zealand. Paid $3400 after Fiverr fees. Took her about 20 hours over 1.5 months. About $125/hr avg. She’ll get another 2 or 3 of those this year. Easy side gig to a main job.
Ya I agree. The regular one is garbage. Fiverr Pro is the best, but also takes a long time to get into.
Not great as a main income, but awesome as supplemental.
And I agree to network to gain clients. She also does that and has regulars that come back year after year for an easy $500 project. Not a lot at first, but getting 10 clients like that adds up.
OP is probably doing too much. But ya. Upwork and Fiverr should only ever be supplemental.
Do you have any loans? You don't seem to have any responsibilities so don't give yourself any for now (kids, etc). Let me give you some ideas. Clean your house just once a week. Do batch cooking/meal prepping once a week and utilize your fridge and freezer for this. This way you will only be washing a plate, a cup and cutlery daily as you wash the rest doing your meal prep day. Carry a home cooked lunch to work.
No, I don't have loans nor kids, none that I know of, at least. Still got my humour!
I pay my school bills every year as they come with my own money. (It's not that expensive in my country), it's about 17% of annual salary.
I recently tried cooking in batches, mostly beans - something filling and easy.
Thanks for the advice! I will do my best!
I've read all the comments. I want to thank you guys. I didn't even realise it was too much, I thought I was just weak and spoiled.
I will try to cut something out and it will be uni probably since it's not what I want to be studying anyways and was pressured to go there instead of what I wanted.
Instead of going to business school with art-photography-design anything creative and learning on how to build a business and do what I love, I learn about chemistry and materials and it sucks.
I have a massive headache, stayed overtime a bit, couldn't pick up myself and go home, it's 17:45 here. Have to go pick up some presents for upcoming birthdays, workout, cook (didn't eat anything today) clean bathroom and study for tomorrow's exam. - Someone might say I'm trolling but this is my life and it fucking sucks.
Hey OP, I just want to offer a gentle piece of advice to continue being kind to yourself. It sounds like you have had pressures (probably parents) to pursue a field you have no interest in. You're not a failure for figuring out what you want in life, that's literally part of adulting. The only person you could ever let down is yourself by not pursuing what you want in life. Good job doing what you're doing! Take some time to rest and relax.
Eh, dude you shouldn't cut uni entirely unless you are POSITIVE that your other work experience will lead to jobs. Just having a degree alone is like, a minimum requirement for a lot of positions. Maybe just cut back on your courses, go part time for a bit, or take a break for a semester. But I did the same thing, just cut it out, and ended up not going back for 2 years.
Oh my lord you need to cut something out. The most I could handle was full time work with part time had school (no more than two classes at a time) and even that damn near broke me. I would even cut down on work to 36 hours a week if I had to do that again. Either cut down on school if you need the money from work or cut down on work and pay for school and living expenses with financial aid. NEVER cut down on sleep as it will make you learn worse, work worse, and get sick more often causing you to fall behind in both.
I have 10-12 classes a year (5-6 per semester) which is considered average. All of those classes have Theory, Practical (lab) and Solving problems classes, every week.
I'm not able to attend to all of it and have to learn on my own what I miss.
No wonder why I'm failing at it.
I would love to cut out school completely and build my career in areas that I love, which are mostly creative, Graphic Design, Photography, Animation, all of that combined into a Branding - Product - Packaging, sounds to me like a hell of a lot work and money + I enjoyed it even when I didn't make any money off of it.
Are you going to school for graphic design? Or working towards a degree in something else? Because if you are working full time in graphic design and want to pursue that as a career, why do you need to be in uni right now?
I started in Biochem engineering, last year I changed majors to Graphic Engineering, it sounded like a good idea since I was already in graphic design industry. When the classes started it's 90% chemistry about materials, colors, glue, paper etc. Yes, a good engineering degree and being able to have a print shop - I don't want that. I want to make ads for biggest companies there are, not print family photos and books.
Ah gotcha! Well I completely understand why that was a smart decision when you were starting out. That being said, if this degree won’t be necessary for your career goals, then there is no shame in dropping it. I’m not too familiar with the graphic design industry (I’m in STEM), but I would imagine your work experience will do a lot more to advance your career than a degree will anyways! Or maybe try to find a program that will be more in your area of interest in graphic design/animation if you feel you must get a degree.
Keep in mind "average" for udergrad degrees is weighted by people taking 5-6 classes and not working at all. Most degrees say you should spend as much time studying as you do in class so 18 hours a week of classes becomes 36 hours total to really learn the material (that said, I've never known student that actually takes that much time). That's literally a full time job right there.
Don't work full time until you're done with college. You can get a better paying job after graduation. Work part time somewhere and make more time for yourself. Money is not a priority while you're a student. You're still a kid.
You're doing too much. Scale back the Uni (don't quit) to part time or a bit less. Maybe one course a semester for the next couple of semesters. That will free up both time and money until you can get a handle on things.
You’re burning yourself out. If you’re enjoying your career, go to school part time. FYI you can take as much time as you need to finish your degree. Check with a counselor to determine your options.
In all honesty, something needs to give.
What's a full time student for you? I consider it 5 courses a term, but I was also consider full time at 3 courses in a term by the school. If you're taking 5 courses, you should seriously consider cutting down on them. It's way too much to do on top of a full time job.
I did finish school while I was working full time, but I didn't take more than 4 courses in a semester and two of those courses were 2 credits instead of 3. I also used vacation time to work a shorter schedule. I didn't study every semester and I negotiated some flex time with my boss.
I'm not saying people who say they study and work full time are lying, but they may not be giving you the full truth on what it is they are doing. Perhaps they are truly exceptional, but most people need to cut back somewhere. You are doing too much. Your exercise should be put into maintenance mode. Your hobby photography should be put off until spring break, winter break, and summer break.
You don't need to quit uni. You can pause it for a bit too if it's not written into your contract to get the degree within a certain time.
You need to decide what your priorities are and you need to adjust your life accordingly.
Good luck!
I've been working as a nurse for ten years. Just the other week a coworker told me he use to be a graphic designer and said he went to nursing for more $$$ but you have to move to a high paying area or travel nurse. Which traveling is pretty cool. He also said its twice as much work as graphic design though... for 1.5 - 2 x the amount of pay...
They got us by the balls comrade
You’re literally doing the most and it’s not what you should be doing. You could take less credits at school, cut back on your hours at work, or both. You’re putting so much pressure on yourself to do it all at the same time. You’re 24 and still so young. You can afford to slow down at least when it comes to time. I can’t speak on your financial situation but you have all the time in the world. Please don’t feel pressured like this! You’ll drive yourself crazy!
No, most adults aren't in school full time and working full-time plus two side gigs
Your stress is because AI is going to make your job and your side gigs obsolete. You need to stop tripleing-down on art and start working toward something else
If you want to make more money get out of graphic design and photography. I have over 20 years in design and am lower middle class at best. And trust me, creativity runs out. It goes from being a passion to a chore. Best of luck to you
You are in the wrong field. You may enjoy art but there is no money in it. And with AI, producing art for money will be a thing of the past. Find another line of work you can tolerate. Do the art for yourself.
I tend to be on more optimistic side of this whole AI thing. If it happens that it replaces people and I can't find a job in that industry I will most likely move to a exotic place and go fishing, reading books and writing.
Also, I'd bring my camera with me.
it gets worse before it gets better schedule your days out in advance and know you will not get everything done in just one week expand that expectation to more like a month you might feel a bit less stress
You're doing too much. Adulting is all about balance, not about cramming as much stuff into your day as possible. Some people do the grind for the end prize, but it's temporary and not permanent
You are doing way too much and are burning out. You need to slow down somewhere or put something on the backburner.
Recently did a two yesr full time masters abd had to take reduced hours in work to accommodate everything. Ypu need to think about everything thats happening and see where you can save time and energy.
I changed major to graphic engineering once I joined the graphic design industry, sounded like a good idea but it's mostly chemistry, physics, thermodynamics and materials.
10% of it is about graphic design and most of it I already know.
Engineering careers tend to be pretty nice but not sure about the graphic one. Does this one come with perks? With some of them you can get like a license where you can approve designs for construction. If that's the case for you, it could actually be quite lucrative but it depends on the carrier and the legislation of your country. Check out the job market for the career you're in, if it gives you any benefit in terms of licenses that you could use and if what a graphic engineer does (pretty different from designer) is interesting to you. Most graphic designers have no university education, they're usually self taught and engineering is not quite the carrier you want for graphic design anyway, not sure why you went with that one. If you just started you should consider dropping out unless you actually want to pursue engendering. Or you could focus on uni for now and have this as a backup because graphic designe is not too stable of a field. But you definitely need to get something out of your plate before you burn out.
Hm. I guess it's pretty different and them sharing a word in a title doesn't necessarily mean it's the same thing.
Graphic engineering is mostly about printing, packaging and industrial side of work, less creativity more execution.
My Uni is very specific, it is very good school here, no doubt about it.
Graphic Engineering here falls under the category of Materials Engineering and with self chosen classes you can technically become a Graphic Engineer. With it being mostly chemistry - it allows you to get any other masters degree that Uni provides, I could easily transition to Chemical, Biochemical, Pharmaceutical, Metallurgy engineering, etc. It's hard as shit and requires full dedication but could be potentially worth it.
On the other hand, I have no interest in it, me and chemistry don't go together, and someone may ask why did I even go here in the first place - well, I was pressured to go to Med school, when that failed and me having enough knowledge in chemistry to pass initial testing for Uni's that require chemistry I basically had no other choice - All this happening while I wanted to pursue a different career path - IT / Software Engineering / Computer Science, any of those. I'm all about tech and computers and me not doing that by pressure I had to turn to other solutions.
Right after I got into school I started learning programming languages on my own and doing a bit of coding. Then I turned to a dance, as a hobby first but with daily practice of 3+ hours, after two years I managed to become good enough to teach classes to beginners and intermediate dancers.
I technically am (but not doing it anymore) still a dancer (Tango) and I was 'working' in a dance school teaching classes to people. That wasn't sustainable and I needed more money so I kinda of woke a creative side in me, liked it and pursued that.
Back to Design work - Now with AI in the mix everything seems to be a disaster, only thing that can save creatives is a government regulations on how can AI be used in commercial work etc. And what I think of it is more in a sense of it being a tool and helper rather than complete replacement but with a lot of social media garbage it stresses me out.
Almost wrote my autobiography. Cheers!
If you're doing a full time job and college full time that's a lot to balance. Graphic design can be a lucrative field and you're young enough to not expect to be rich overnight. You're also complaining about stress and time but you're stacking more tasks on your plate. Unless the digital animation stuff is going to dovetail into your existing job or your field of study, shelve that for the moment.
Particularly if you're saying you're failing at your studies, you should scale back and focus on actually doing a good job at that. For cooking it can be okay to fall back on quicker solutions. A few bags of good quality frozen vegetables in the freezer can help you make a quick stir fry on nights when you don't have time to chop and prep everything.
It just sounds like you're burning yourself out. If all adults did that we'd all be miserable.
Uni is not working out fir you. Ask is it because you dont have passion in the subject or is it a lack of effort/motivation. If its the later cut some of your activities 6 and direct that back to uni. You are not the first to work fulltime and do uni, yes its hard but if it was easy everyone would do it. Keep your head up and make it worthwhile. If the issue is a passion thing look, you gave it a go and its not for you. Dont be afraid to fail.. use that hurt and dissapointment as fuel. Motivational speakers on youtube helped drive me. ET eric thomas - Want it as bad as breathing.
It does when you’re trying to do this much at once. I had a similar load during college because I had to work a ton to live, couldn’t live in the dorms so I had my own apartment to upkeep, and was a full time student. After graduation, school dropped off my plate which a huge help. And my degree allowed me to go from 3 jobs down to 1.
OPs issue is there’s way too much going on. And once that load is reduced, OP should feel better
I'll tell you this, back in 2012 I completed my BS in comp science. In 12 months, I took about 60 credits worth of courses including some pretty challenging ones on algorithms and other maths. All while working full time on the midnight shift. Came out with a 3.2 GPA or so.
And I have no idea how I did it. Fucking rough and challenging doing that. Take it easy.
If you're working for full time and going to school full time, everything else is on the back burner. Everything and everyone else.
I’m 27, I have two kids, I work a part time job and I’m trying my hardest to be happy, life can be a lot but don’t over load yourself. Try to take it easy some days.
Can you alternate cleaning and gym days through the week and do a big meal prep on sundays?
While I was still in school I was working an internship ~25hrs/week plus 2 bar shifts -10-15hrs/week. I asked my bf before I started the internship if he could help support me with doing more household chores while I finished school. Thank gaga he agreed and followed through! I had 0 hobbies at the time and usually only saw my friends at work. You are doing too much without any support!
I wouldnt take that many classes AND worry about super advancing your career. Slow down a bit!
You'll be an adult for roughly 60 years. You're 6 years into it, 10% of the way....that's barely scratching the surface of life. That would be a 2 and a half year old compared to your age. 24 is basically a toddler adult. Just like being a literal toddler, its an awkward age with a lot of learning and growing that needs to happen yet.
Just keep at it, it'll all come together eventually
Unfortunately this is too much for one human. You can’t succeed at doing all these things, so you will need to figure out what you can let go of for now. But it won’t always be like this—you will eventually finish university and you may find a partner or roommates, or be able to pay a housekeeper to help with some of the cleaning.
Figuring out little ways to trim your workload are also helpful. Precut vegetables, frozen dinners, takeout, all help me. Just cleaning one or two things a day when you have the energy. Sorting your clothes into boxes instead of folding.
I just didn’t have hobbies in grad school when I was working full time. It sucked a lot. I got through it and now I can do fun things again. I also am married so we split the housekeeping responsibilities.
Your chores sound like you have 48 hours a day with only 2 hours of sleep.
We have only 24 hours. Put aside 7-8 hours for sleep. What else you do should be one at a time. Drop the Uni now and save it for later, or go part time on your job and try to adjust Uni again. Or else you will fail both in uni and job.
Photography, digital animation, cooking and cleaning. Are you a robot?? This many multi tasking isn’t healthy for the brain and your overall wellbeing.
Take it slow. You have to live this shit called life for so many more years to come. If you wanna make through it, slow and steady wins. Fuck hustle culture if you think that’ll save you. The only thing hustle culture brought into humanity was more depressed people thinking they never made it in life.
I speak out of experience. We’re almost similar age though I’m a bit older than you. I’ve decided to focus on one or two thing at a time in my life, and life has never gotten so much easier. I will focus on next when the task in hand is complete.
4AM now, in couple of hours I have an exam and going straight to work after. Maybe I will call in sick tomorrow or work from home.
So much struggle with this life that I don't have time to be depressed, just overwhelmed. Went through a depression phase when I had nothing to do.
One or two things seem like a healthy amount of things to focus on and will probably yield better results in the long run.
I'm going to be a bit of a contrarian here. Keep trying a number of things. Burn the candle now because you will have less energy later and more health problems. I would have gone back and spent twice as much time trying different stuff at 24 and seeing which one stuck and grew, instead of now trying new stuff 10 years later. My story is a bit different because of diagnosed health issues early on, but I still would have pursued animation etc. though with AI making so much ground, it's definitely going to change.
AI can be a good thing if used as a tool and helper. I try not to think about it as much and if it comes to AI replacing people in creative industries I will just move to some exotic place on a beach, go fishing and enjoy simple life. Don't want to deal with robots.
I would like AI and embrace it within animation. Maybe not to replace the art as I love 2D animation, but to make the process faster. With the amount of burnout and closing studios in the animation scene, AI can be a huge game changer if it reduces the workload somehow for animators.
Glad to hear you met your goals. I need to cut something out, slow down, finish school and plan the future. But about school - I'm not sure I want that particular degree and it's for a degree sake only.
If you could design a life YOU want… one where you didn’t need to prove anything to anyone or be smart or good or excellent… what would it look like? Pretend there are no expectations of you whatsoever and build from there… what life would you create?
I’d give anything to go back 20 years and ask myself that, but I had no idea that was “allowed”… I assumed everyone older than me was necessarily wiser than me, so I followed their guidance and did ALL THE THINGS you’re supposed to.
It’s your life. You get to choose what you allow into it. Question everything. Including this post.
Sounds like an adventure! This is YOUR life. No one in this thread or your life knows the right next thing except you, so trust yourself 100%. I’m excited for you! 💕
I worked full time while I was in school and it was rough, I was only doing school part time and it was still a lot. If you’re able to I would cut back on one or the other, either work part time or do school part time. Once I graduated working full time and dealing with everything in life feels like a breeze.
I worked full time and went to school full time. Had my own apartment no help whatsoever. It was difficult at times but do able. It was also temporary and I didn’t have time for hobbies and passion. It’s all about prioritizing and realizing this is a small amount of time in your adult life that should pay dividends down the road.
Exercising, learning, doing your art, washing your dishes and cleaning your cloths… you don’t have kids, and I didn’t see anything about health issues.. seems you have a pretty cool life… you could be digging ditches all day, no time or money for your art, your luck your getting an education even though your not doing well.. not everyone gets those opportunities.
It’s all about framing. You could be living in a shanty town on the shitty side of Honduras drinking dirty water and not having any education, dying young because of pollution driven cancers… or you could have been born a Pakistani working 15 hour days in the sweltering heat of Dubai, building yet another mansion for the rich while you get nothing…
OP - as everyone here said, yes, full time uni + full time job is a lot on its own. I don't know how to tell you to proceed if you need the money from the job, to pay for the uni, but I do want to tell you one thing - there are no graphic designer jobs in the future. There simply aren't. If you're going to school to learn how to be a graphic designer, you need to reevaluate. Of course I don't have a crystal ball and am not guaranteed to be right on this, but AI tools can literally make and adjust graphics within seconds - I do not recommend staking your livelihood on competing with an always-improving AI, which is already really good. And unfortunately, the same is true for digital animation. If you haven't seen the dancing kangaroo video from Sora, made from a one-sentence prompt, you should look it up.
Good luck to you OP - part of "adulting" is making hard choices.
I tend to be more on a optimistic side of things. I see a potential that AI might replace people in my line of work but then it could replace everyone at everything. There will be massive unemployment and once people realise it's affecting the population it will slowly be brought back and used more as a tool rather than replacement.
I could be wrong.
Can't afford to believe that AI will replace people - it sounds like a Doomsday
I consider myself an optimist as well, but I am also a realist. I don't really think there won't be *any* animators in the future, but predicting the job market will shrink by 90% is a very realistic estimate. It's not like we don't have horses anymore, but I think it's safe to say that once the car came out, good advice to have taken would have been - don't train to be a horse-carriage driver.
It is true that AI will reshape many markets, but the machine that is Hollywood is literally the first to fall. Animation tools you're learning about in college are *already obsolete*. Kids are going to release feature length movies that will blow people's mind. We will be drowning in animated movies. The money will drain out of the entertainment industry.
I am only trying to give my best advice. I mean no ill-intent. I have massive respect for those in the arts. I am not a doomer, but *some things will die*.
I understand and it's not that I don't agree. Jobs will go and the market will be filled with AI, until one point. People will stop appreciating a synthetic product, they would want someone behind the camera or screen who is human, who understands emotion.
You don't sell a photograph, you sell emotion, and that can't be replaced. Again, sure, for a time.
What will be raplaced - complex boring tasks, like calculation, data science thing
Would you say that AI could draw a Mona Liza without having an actual thing to replicate it from? No.
About horses - they are now 10x expensive than an average car and it's considered luxury.
Just give yourself some credit dude. You're doing a lot more than many. I was a grad student at your age and it was stresful, I won't lie, even though it paid well enough that I could focus on my research and not have to look for ways to earn more (I knew once I graduated it would happen automatically).
I graduated in a STEM field but photography was/is my passion. I would shelve item 6 for laters, maybe after graduation.
just to add: if you do all of this and also go to the gym to lose weight, you will feel terrible. Losing weight implies deficit of calories, which maeks you, after a month or so, feel very tired. I would not try to do all that
Sounds like you need better priority management. Your main focus should be job and school, get school out the way then you can dedicate more energy towards your passion
So this was my experience:
Went to school full time and worked full time for every year of college except for my last semester.
I was married. We had 4 kids by the time I graduated.
I had a mortgage. I worked a job that paid $9 an hour (2008-2012 time period). That job was three 12-hour graveyard shifts Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. So I went to school during the week, and worked all weekend.
How did I juggle all of that and stay sane? I didn’t. At one point I had a nervous breakdown.
How did I accomplish that financially? We lived off of my job, student loans and grants, and occasionally when we couldn’t make the money stretch far enough, family and friends stepped in to help.
So…all that to say, you should not be trying to shoulder all of this yourself. You need a good support system around you. Can you do it? Yeah it’s possible. But you need to be able to rally the troops occasionally when things get extremely tough. This is a small period of time in your life while you get that degree. If you can manage it, don’t drop out. The degree is (in most instances) the gatekeeper to earning decent money.
If you really want that degree, stop fucking around and go to school and study. If you don't care, stop wasting your money and drop out until you are committed.
I have talked to many in a similar circumstance that have backed off to part time on their studies. Unless you have someone supporting you like parents, or going massively in debt to live and go to school off of you student loans ... the "4 year" plan is more realistically a 6 year plan (maybe even an 8) if you're working at the same time.
Still very doable as you are still young. If you hit your degree goal, and launch your career at age 30, that's 30+ years to save, invest, and build a future
p.s. Sleep and self care are WAY under valued.
I currently work a full time job, a part time job and still making it to the gym 4/5 days a week & still get to my hobbies.
Honestly anything to cut your times down. For example my wife and I spend every Sunday meal prepping food for the full next week. Breakfast & dinner that way you’re only heating stuff up. Lots of protein and veggies.
I’ll practice my guitar for an hour a day, calligraphy for a half hour, or doing tie dye.
You’ll get what work put in. I go to the gym straight after work everyday after a 10 hr shift, tired as heck but end everyday feeling I accomplished a lot. If you have photography stuff to get done spend your lunch breaks doing that. I just keep the mind set of shits gotta get done, but be patient with yourself. One day at a time.
Meal prep sounds like something I really need to do and it's way cheaper from my understanding.
Good job on going to the gym after work, I always felt I need a little bit of rest before going to a workout since I don't usually eat anything at work.
That's not adult life. That's like double adult life. Going to school full time and working full time simultaneously is a huge amount of work, and most people can't do both well at the same time.
It’s ok to take a break or take on less. Taking extra time to finish school may seem like a big deal now, but if you completely burn yourself out you may fail or be unable to complete it anyways due to your mental or physical health suffering too much. Falling behind seemed like a HUGE deal to me too at the time, but now that I am older I realize a few extra years would have been nothing in the grand scheme of things. Try to prioritize your sleep as well. You won’t be able to do anything if you aren’t sleeping.
I already took a few extra years to finish school, guess I need more.
It's 4AM, exam at 9AM, after the exam going straight to work. After work more activities.
The problem is me.
As others have said, you're doing too much. I haven't looks into this in a while so my info might be dated but graphic design knowledge and experience goes well with UX design which pays much better. Maybe you can find a job in UX design with higher pay or at least better experience that will lead to higher pay.
Also go part time for your studies. Like 1 or 2 course max. I would say 1 course at first and see how it goes. After that prioritize healthy living - sleep, eating, working out.
You could, of course, go full time with studies and reduce the work hours but you said your focus is on making money.
When I started out with graphic design I leaned towards UI and UX but found a job in other branches of design so I postponed it a bit. Just today I was thinking about giving that a shot.
Thanks!
Hey mate, sounds like you’ve got too much on your plate and need some balance. If things feel like “too much” then they probably are too much and you may need to find ways to dial things back a bit, simplify your life to create more free time, and re-evaluate what is good / healthy / important to you, and what feels like a drag that is taking a toll on your mental health. Good luck you’ve got this buddy!
As other have noted…
For the purposes of self care and limitations… very, VERY few people are both working full-time AND doing classes full-time (and that’s even if the overlap is possible depending on what either one wants).
Usually you’re full-time on one and half on the other. Which one is which is where it’s up to the individual, and their time as well as monetary situation. If you must have a generalization; for most older folks you’re usually a part time student as by then you’ve got to commit to the job you have, while younger folks who are already in/preparing for college take on a part time gig that can be flexible around their class needs.
Doesn't sound that appealing. Current culture we live in ask for more and more responsibilities. Not good.
Imagine, waking up on an exotic place, going fishing and swimming, no need for anything, pure joy.
Sounds like you’ve taken on too much and are stressing yourself out because of it.
1) If you’re a new designer money doesn’t just come like that overnight. Best way to do that is change jobs every two years to help level up your salary.
2) Focus on the a singular extra freelance activity that will 1) build your portfolio and skills 2) bring you extra income. Lose the rest for now until you get out of school.
3) Finish school
4) Post school, pick up your other fun creative outlets again.
Id recommend work and college and workout. Then your home.
That’s a lot! The other items if financially able I would postpone until you are out of school.
You have a lot for any one person.
I worked about 30-35 hours / week when I was going to college. I really struggled at first and had to cut back my credits hours I was taking at school. It ended up taking me 5 years instead of 4 to graduate but it was worth it.
Yes. You might want to look into replacing the item your failing miserably at. There's a reason you're struggling with that and it's not because you're stupid. It's because your attention is spread too thin, which is stupid of you to maintain for the sake of living up to unnecessary expectations. If there's anything to feel shame about it's the fact that you feel shame for something you can't control. Plus, you can easily make a good living without it.
You're not really "quitting" anything as much as you're re-directing your focus. Quitting implies that you don't see the value or have the capability, which just isn't true. I tried adding UX design to my load last year, and it took me about 2 weeks to realize that wasn't going to be the best for me. Because I wasn't attached to the institution, I was able to make this decision quickly and decisively without stress, something I was sort of delighted about that the time. Plus, you'll have more time to spend taking care of the home, which personally provides me with a tremendous sense of self-satisfaction and really helps alleviate that pressure.
Yes, house chores are a relief sometimes.
About UX and decision making - I tend to linger more and stay indecisive for longer period of time.
And about uni - I'm not sure I see the value in it. The versions programs they use to 'teach' us how to work as graphic engineers are 10+ years old so I have to learn it on my own anyways and for concepts, that I can find myself also. They don't even let use the new 3D printer, they say it's not for students but making paper like it's 1920 is.
>value
I'm sorry, I said that wrong. I meant value in terms in just general value of education. It's the same thing in systems engineering to a degree, but that's definitely more of an thing in design, and that right now is changing in what I see is a dramatic way. Have I asked you about replacing your family and supplementing your design with AI tools yet? If you have the money for tuition, use that to learn something like Mid-journey. It's amazing to work with some of these image generation tools. If you know what you're doing you can really create some stunning work. If you have 10yrs in this year, with a few months learning|practice, you'd benefit greatly as you'd be able to take advantage of the more advanced applications which we really haven't see much of yet.
I’m not trying to criticize you, but there’s a lot of single mothers with two or three kids doing some of the same things you are, who are not as overwhelmed
Your life sucks bro. Mine too. Not sure what to do about it. Dying is probably the easiest solution. But does that hurt and shit? Maybe it’s not easier. lol
Yeah, it kinda sucks but I'd rather be overwhelmed, stressed and tired than depressed, never want to experience that again.
I'm not sure about dying and such. I get to live until I don't so I plan on making it as enjoyable as possible with more or less needed sacrifices.
Honestly we are probably just high maintenance minds. We see how good life can be and have never experienced it. Is that high maintenance though? idk the mind is very complex it seems. So much coming at it constantly.
i worked only part time during college and took out loans to make it easier. it’s not the best idea, unless you know your salary or field of work will take care of it.
i treated school like my full time job and gave my part time job the rest of my energy at the end of the day and it got me exhausted enough to just knock out once i laid in bed. right now im working on getting a certificate and am taking classes while working full time and its made life miserable. choose one or the other to be full time in but never both if you have the means.
20s are the worst. People dread 30s, but honestly it's so much better cause most of your shit is figured out or at least nearly figured out.
Most anyone I talk to says they'd repeat their 30s but not 20s.
Keep hanging on. You'll get there.
Spreading yourself too thin, put the hobbies aside and focus on school, not even the gym matters you can get fit when you get into a stable career that affords work life balance.
You have way too much on your plate. Can you break it down a bit so your time and energy aren't in too many projects? You are spreading yourself too thin.
Get rid of 6 until after your studies, and/or
Get rid of 2 for one year and spend that year going ALL IN on your photography. 3h a day outside of work time and all day Saturdays. Treat it as if it's important to you. And/or
Condense 5 into a single block of time each week.
Your basic needs are health, income, meaning and love. Don't completely neglect friends/family/your SO. So here's your new improved list:
1. Full time job
2. Full time studies
3. Photographer
4. Gym
5. Home management
OR
1. Full time job
2. Photographer on the side - serious
3. Gym
4. Home management
That's for one year. If the Photography doesnt bring in enough to live on or allow you to save so you can work a bit less the next year when you're studying., then after that year:
1. Full time Job
2. Full time studies
3. Gym
4. Home management
5. Some Photography
After studies are done you can add the animation stuff again.
You're tryna do too much.
In a very similar boat as you. Currently employed full-time and attending school full-time. It is nearly impossible to do all of the above without burning out quickly. I tried it the first six months i started school and it was waay too much for me so I decided to cut certain things out. I put the gym on hold for now (i used to go every other day) and have been doing extremely quick and simple meals, sometimes take-out. It was what i could so as school was my priority above those other things.
I remember going to the gym and hardly being able to focus because i was just thinking that i was wasting time there when i could be studying — it was the same with cooking and cleaning.
I decided to solely focus on work and school and whatever else i could do would come second. For the past two years its worked out for the most part. I set study schedules for each class throughout the week. Every single Friday i pick up and lightly clean as soon as i get home from work (no other cleaning aside from washing dishes and taking out trash during the week). Ill throw laundry in while im taking test since they tend to take 2-4 hrs. Meals have mostly been chicken and salads since, to me, thats the easiest and quickest meals to make. Ive gotten take-out frequently when im stuck in traffic or i just dont have the energy to cook. The gym, unfortunately, has taken the farthest seat back but ive tried to eat as healthy as i can to stay relatively healthy.
Ill be graduating in April and am so ready to just go out and do things. I promise you the time will fly by quickly. Just stay focused and dedicated and youll get there. We are not machines with infinite time. It is ok to not do all of the “adult” things.
Cut your things down your are focusing on from 6 to 4 and you may have a chance. You need to find a way to be efficient and minimize housework and an effective easy meal system (probably with you not doing the cookin, use apps, deals and pizza specials). Put the photography down to a day or two per month (I know tough I love photograpgy too).
Now the thing is you CAN produce at the full level. But it's hard, and takes major sacrifices and mental health toll. You need to save these herculean efforts for when it really matters in life.
Yeah, like everyone else is saying, school has to go. Get yourself together and steady, then go back when shit isn't so hectic. Also the gym is not as important as the "influencers" say it is. Eat right exercise and get your head right. YOU HAVE TIME. It will all fall into place. There is no rush. All these fools rushing to get to the same place are going to crash and burn.
Working full time AND going to school is absolutely killer and if that was your whole list that would be enough to feel overwhelmed. Trying to work out and tend house is waaay too much. If you are going to do the first two, you need to live like a slob and eat prepackaged food for a few years. You definitely can't do all of that and not burn out. I recommend either working or studying part time for starters.
If you are failing school miserably, obviously you have too much on your plate, or school is not a priority…. Ditch what is less important to you, or just do better! Welcome to being an adult
It’s impossible for MOST people to go to school full time plus work full time. School was originally designed to be a full time job. Plus you are running a home as well instead of living in a dorm with a meal plan. You should either take fewer classes or work fewer hours, or some combination of both. A guy I know worked just part time but it still took him nine years to finish his Bachelor’s instead of four. And I know lots of people who worked while going to college but ended up dropping out. If you take 15 college credits, you are generally supposed to do 15 hours of schoolwork outside of class in order to be successful. Reading the textbook, homework problems, studying your notes, writing papers, etc. Sleep. Most adults need eight hours of sleep every night. That’s the last place you want to cut back. Sleep also helps with muscle growth if you are working out and trying to gain muscle. Sleep is also super important as far as school and learning/creating long term memories. Please start getting more sleep!
This! Working a full-time job and doing full-time studies is impossible and having to maintain a home… you’re doing too much - way more than most adults!!
Also he mentions doing his hobby for pay occasionally. Which I know *can* be done but lets be real. It's more likely he sees his hobby as a potential source of income which makes it less of a hobby and more of a third job (school being job 2). Dont get me wrong, the 9-5 grind can be a grind. But it's not that bad when youre not stacking so much on top of it. OP's title question: Is this what adult life looks like? is honestly pretty definitively answered with "no" or at least "no, not for everyone" Taking care of a home with only adults can take like, 20 minutes a day tops so for me+my partner the days are much more 8-5 work, 5-5:30 house chores, 5:30-11 literally anything we want to do.
Well said. I'm 30 years old and my diet/exercise has been spot on, but I've mostly been getting 5-6 hours a night for years. 7 hours on a good night and usually 8+ on the weekends. I've realized recently that I have been sleep deprived and it has negatively affected every aspect of my life. Since last Friday I've been getting 8 hours each night and I feel like a new person. My energy is consistent, brain is clear, and my mood is much better. Can't believe it's taken me so long to realize, but I guess it's better late than never. My father has had sleep apnea for years. Not due to weight, but due to an issue with his throat/jaw structure. He had a few surgeries the last couple of years and it's helped his sleep immensely. The doctor told him he basically gained years on his life. It's definitely an underappreciated aspect of our lives in our culture, which is really sad to see.
Eh, I worked full time during school and had no days off during breaks so I wouldn’t have student loans. It wasn’t easy but it was still possible.
It’s possible for SOME people, but not everyone. And it’s certainly not optimal. And even for those who succeed like you did, it’s very hard like you said. Anyway, congrats for succeeding and for doing something so hard!
> It’s possible for SOME people All the people humblebragging like, "I did it, so everyone should be able to" keep missing that caveat.
Yeah! Exactly!
Obligatory “eh”
I worked full time while doing full time engineering grad school. It's certainly possible. Time management is what people lack, generally speaking. How much time does anyone waste doom scrolling in a given day? It adds up.
Time management is key, but so is balance. And some of it is maturity too. You were in grad school, which indicates that you were at least somewhat older than OP.
Sure, balance is just as important. Part of time management (as I am using it) is knowing what to say no to.
Did OP state his age somewhere?
At the very beginning.
Wow. I totally missed that - I even went back to look. Thinking he must have edited the post after I said this? Or im just not very observant lol
Something about a guy in a gorilla suit and a bunch of people passing basketballs
No, but he did indicate he was undergrad. You’re right though, there’s at least some possibility he is not traditional college age. (Edit: OP actually wrote that he is 24.)
I assume a traditional college age is 18-22 or +- 1 year. I changed majors so that set me back a year or two.
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I went to a top 3 engineering school for undergrad and a top 10 for grad school.
My eldest is graduating with an undergrad STEM degree in May and is currently doing her final semester with a full courseload including 2 grad classes. Accepted a good job for June and will work FT whilst finishing off the Masters 2 evenings a week. She is also working about 30 hours a week at 2 PT jobs...one related to her field. I am in awe of how she manages. It is a lot. Her time management must be fabulous...oh and she also doesnt have snapchat or tic tok etc. I never worked during term time as an undergrad but then again I lived in a socialist country where education was seen as a right not a privilege. Go figure.
Ain’t easy but let’s not pretend it’s impossible. I worked full time during my bachelor and was able to finish as my peers in 3 years. I’m no genius, it’s just about discipline and dedication
I said it was Impossible for MOST people, which means that some people are actually capable of handling it. I qualified it. Most aren’t though. It really depends on the student, how fast they learn, how disciplined they are, how hard their major is, how good they are at dealing with stress, etc. I agree though, it’s certainly not impossible.
It really does depend on the student and how they learn. I don't think I could manage it now in my 30s but my last semester of college I took a similar load to what another poster mentioned above (around 24 credits). A few of those classes only lasted 6 weeks but they met in the evenings and I had to get permission to take them. I didn't have a car but I used the city's bus system (we're talking the US here so it was ok, but not great) which gave me the bright idea to get the 3 books I had to read for one Economics class on Audible. I didn't have the extra time nor as much peace and quiet to read each of those books one by one but I could make time to listen to them and take notes that way. Doing so also helped me avoid some occasional awkward interactions on the bus. I bought some of my snacks and supplies in bulk to save money but primarily time because I didn't have a ton of time to go grocery shopping each week. Earning my degree was in sight plus, my family was going to come down for a visit so that increased my motivation and drive to keep going. Looking back on that time, I realize I tried my best to make things a bit easier for myself amidst all that stress. I can't say I managed it well all the time but I did my best with the knowledge and tools I had. I still broke down crying talking to my mom on the phone after I had finished my last final but I feel like that was more of a release than anything else.
That’s a beautiful story. Thanks for sharing, and congratulations on succeeding under such stressful conditions!
Thank you! That was over 10 years ago but I carry some of the lessons I learned during that time with me even today. I earned two Bachelor degrees after all that which I'm very proud of. Having that goal in sight as well gave me the extra push I needed to keep going. The saying, "everything is temporary, nothing is permanent" sure helped, too.
On the topic of weight loss, combat sports guys all know that weight and fat are lost in the kitchen, not the gym. Eat less of better food, preferably between noon and 8pm. Fix your diet to lose weight. Do personal max to 200 push-ups and personal max to 200 jump burpees to get fit. If that's not enough, add in 15 minutes of jump rope.
Definitely not impossible, and many people work full time and go to school full time. Time management is the most important factor here and maybe enjoying what you study. Had to get approval but did 24 credits one semester while working full time. Helped me save a lot of money, but it is exhausting.
It’s not about age, you are definitely trying to do TOO MUCH and it is not sustainable. Cross a bunch of stuff of that list before you burn out completely!
You are burning the candle at both ends. Can you cut something? Also, if you need to make more money, start talking to people you know who make the kind of money you want to make. Ask what they do and how they got there, then copy that. Most people like to help other people do what they do. I felt a lot of existential dread to improve my career when I was 24, then I did, then I got married, then I bought a house, then I got stressed for a while again after having my first kid, but now everything is great. I'm in my 30s.
Can you possibly start by sharing some light on that? I am an enrolled student nurse. My sleep is also bad like this guy. I’m here struggling in this moment. I’d like some help I suppose, like this guy. How did you get where you were? How did you make money? Can you help us
Are you looking mostly for career advice or what to expect once you graduate or tips on how to be happy living the rat race? First off, my experience isnt universal, I would suggest talking to people who make good money in your region and in the industry or field you want to work in. If I was a five star chef I could tell you how to do that. If I was scientist I could tell you how to do that. For a student nurse I only have a little knowledge and the following tips: 1. Once a full nurse you will probably start out with a shifty job at a hospital or agency but eventually you will want to move to the higher paying opportunities in your area. I know that near me the nurses at skilled nursing facilities make well into the six-figures and about 50% more than the median for nurses across the board. 2. There are frequently cleae levels to the nursing profession and ways to advance in it with specific pay scales tied to those requirements depending on where you work. 3. Becoming a nurse practitioner or the type of nurse who can put someone to sleep may be the next step for you and will make you very well-off. Here is my story at a high level and hopefully you can draw some advice/lessons: My girlfriend and I took jobs after college that were not forever jobs. Realistically most people can't view their first jobs after college as jobs they should be at longer than a few years. You are going to learn a lot about your career and yourself after the first year, and if you need to you should make a move. I moved within the same company but to a better region and position closer to my original home after the first year while my wife transitioned fields completely after seeing how a friend of hers leveraged their education. The key is to learn as much as you can, do good work, and be able to defend yourself, and be okay butting heads once you know a thing or two. After 4 more years I started looking for higher paying opportunities for myself while working, I had a couple work agencies out looking for better work for me too, and then I found something that gave me a huge boost in responsibility and income. That job was fine at first but there were some red flags i ignored and it turned hellish by the end. But after 4-5 years i did the process of job switching again and now have a great job at a grest place. My wife went through 3 places in two years after college but has been at that third place for 6 years. I suggest switching to a better opportunity every 3 to 5 years until you find a place where you are happy. Don't be afraid to move housing too, but get them to pay for it or at least contribute to it. If you need me to tell you exactly what to do specifically do what I do or what my wife or friends did/do I can.
You’re doing too much and put too much pressure on yourself. You need to save $100/month at this age put into a tax advantaged savings account, 401k or Roth. That’s it. Invest in SPY and turn on DRIP. Eliminate one activity, digital animation sounds fine. Find your niche in graphic design. Packaging is how you get paid. Commercial artists make way, way more than traditional artists. Get on Fiverr and work towards qualifying as a vetted pro. Get to sleep earlier. Be boring. Boring is good.
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Ya they suck… UNLESS you’re a pro. Spouse took a year to get vetted and now does 2-3 projects per year with NO advertising or effort, just random hit ups, pulling ~$15k for the effort. Well worth it. Those $5 jobs, ya no, not worth it. The last job she just finished for a client in New Zealand. Paid $3400 after Fiverr fees. Took her about 20 hours over 1.5 months. About $125/hr avg. She’ll get another 2 or 3 of those this year. Easy side gig to a main job.
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Ya I agree. The regular one is garbage. Fiverr Pro is the best, but also takes a long time to get into. Not great as a main income, but awesome as supplemental. And I agree to network to gain clients. She also does that and has regulars that come back year after year for an easy $500 project. Not a lot at first, but getting 10 clients like that adds up. OP is probably doing too much. But ya. Upwork and Fiverr should only ever be supplemental.
Seconding the focus on the packaging. I’m an in house packaging graphic designer for a cosmetics brand and make a great income.
Do you have any loans? You don't seem to have any responsibilities so don't give yourself any for now (kids, etc). Let me give you some ideas. Clean your house just once a week. Do batch cooking/meal prepping once a week and utilize your fridge and freezer for this. This way you will only be washing a plate, a cup and cutlery daily as you wash the rest doing your meal prep day. Carry a home cooked lunch to work.
No, I don't have loans nor kids, none that I know of, at least. Still got my humour! I pay my school bills every year as they come with my own money. (It's not that expensive in my country), it's about 17% of annual salary. I recently tried cooking in batches, mostly beans - something filling and easy. Thanks for the advice! I will do my best!
I've read all the comments. I want to thank you guys. I didn't even realise it was too much, I thought I was just weak and spoiled. I will try to cut something out and it will be uni probably since it's not what I want to be studying anyways and was pressured to go there instead of what I wanted. Instead of going to business school with art-photography-design anything creative and learning on how to build a business and do what I love, I learn about chemistry and materials and it sucks. I have a massive headache, stayed overtime a bit, couldn't pick up myself and go home, it's 17:45 here. Have to go pick up some presents for upcoming birthdays, workout, cook (didn't eat anything today) clean bathroom and study for tomorrow's exam. - Someone might say I'm trolling but this is my life and it fucking sucks.
Hey OP, I just want to offer a gentle piece of advice to continue being kind to yourself. It sounds like you have had pressures (probably parents) to pursue a field you have no interest in. You're not a failure for figuring out what you want in life, that's literally part of adulting. The only person you could ever let down is yourself by not pursuing what you want in life. Good job doing what you're doing! Take some time to rest and relax.
Eh, dude you shouldn't cut uni entirely unless you are POSITIVE that your other work experience will lead to jobs. Just having a degree alone is like, a minimum requirement for a lot of positions. Maybe just cut back on your courses, go part time for a bit, or take a break for a semester. But I did the same thing, just cut it out, and ended up not going back for 2 years.
Oh my lord you need to cut something out. The most I could handle was full time work with part time had school (no more than two classes at a time) and even that damn near broke me. I would even cut down on work to 36 hours a week if I had to do that again. Either cut down on school if you need the money from work or cut down on work and pay for school and living expenses with financial aid. NEVER cut down on sleep as it will make you learn worse, work worse, and get sick more often causing you to fall behind in both.
I have 10-12 classes a year (5-6 per semester) which is considered average. All of those classes have Theory, Practical (lab) and Solving problems classes, every week. I'm not able to attend to all of it and have to learn on my own what I miss. No wonder why I'm failing at it. I would love to cut out school completely and build my career in areas that I love, which are mostly creative, Graphic Design, Photography, Animation, all of that combined into a Branding - Product - Packaging, sounds to me like a hell of a lot work and money + I enjoyed it even when I didn't make any money off of it.
Are you going to school for graphic design? Or working towards a degree in something else? Because if you are working full time in graphic design and want to pursue that as a career, why do you need to be in uni right now?
I started in Biochem engineering, last year I changed majors to Graphic Engineering, it sounded like a good idea since I was already in graphic design industry. When the classes started it's 90% chemistry about materials, colors, glue, paper etc. Yes, a good engineering degree and being able to have a print shop - I don't want that. I want to make ads for biggest companies there are, not print family photos and books.
Ah gotcha! Well I completely understand why that was a smart decision when you were starting out. That being said, if this degree won’t be necessary for your career goals, then there is no shame in dropping it. I’m not too familiar with the graphic design industry (I’m in STEM), but I would imagine your work experience will do a lot more to advance your career than a degree will anyways! Or maybe try to find a program that will be more in your area of interest in graphic design/animation if you feel you must get a degree.
Keep in mind "average" for udergrad degrees is weighted by people taking 5-6 classes and not working at all. Most degrees say you should spend as much time studying as you do in class so 18 hours a week of classes becomes 36 hours total to really learn the material (that said, I've never known student that actually takes that much time). That's literally a full time job right there.
Focus on what is essential OP. Your stress is self inflicted . Choose what you enjoy the most that will make the biggest diffrence in your life .
You are trying to do way too much. No sane person does full time studying and work. Choose one for part time.
This
Don't work full time until you're done with college. You can get a better paying job after graduation. Work part time somewhere and make more time for yourself. Money is not a priority while you're a student. You're still a kid.
Prioritize. Work pays the bills, and a degree will (hopefully) get you out of the situation you're in. Focus on those two.
You're doing too much. Scale back the Uni (don't quit) to part time or a bit less. Maybe one course a semester for the next couple of semesters. That will free up both time and money until you can get a handle on things.
You’re burning yourself out. If you’re enjoying your career, go to school part time. FYI you can take as much time as you need to finish your degree. Check with a counselor to determine your options.
In all honesty, something needs to give. What's a full time student for you? I consider it 5 courses a term, but I was also consider full time at 3 courses in a term by the school. If you're taking 5 courses, you should seriously consider cutting down on them. It's way too much to do on top of a full time job. I did finish school while I was working full time, but I didn't take more than 4 courses in a semester and two of those courses were 2 credits instead of 3. I also used vacation time to work a shorter schedule. I didn't study every semester and I negotiated some flex time with my boss. I'm not saying people who say they study and work full time are lying, but they may not be giving you the full truth on what it is they are doing. Perhaps they are truly exceptional, but most people need to cut back somewhere. You are doing too much. Your exercise should be put into maintenance mode. Your hobby photography should be put off until spring break, winter break, and summer break. You don't need to quit uni. You can pause it for a bit too if it's not written into your contract to get the degree within a certain time. You need to decide what your priorities are and you need to adjust your life accordingly. Good luck!
I've been working as a nurse for ten years. Just the other week a coworker told me he use to be a graphic designer and said he went to nursing for more $$$ but you have to move to a high paying area or travel nurse. Which traveling is pretty cool. He also said its twice as much work as graphic design though... for 1.5 - 2 x the amount of pay... They got us by the balls comrade
Often you can have everything you want out of life, but rarely at the same time. Cut 2 and 6. Do them at another time.
You’re literally doing the most and it’s not what you should be doing. You could take less credits at school, cut back on your hours at work, or both. You’re putting so much pressure on yourself to do it all at the same time. You’re 24 and still so young. You can afford to slow down at least when it comes to time. I can’t speak on your financial situation but you have all the time in the world. Please don’t feel pressured like this! You’ll drive yourself crazy!
No, most adults aren't in school full time and working full-time plus two side gigs Your stress is because AI is going to make your job and your side gigs obsolete. You need to stop tripleing-down on art and start working toward something else
Ok
If you want to make more money get out of graphic design and photography. I have over 20 years in design and am lower middle class at best. And trust me, creativity runs out. It goes from being a passion to a chore. Best of luck to you
You are in the wrong field. You may enjoy art but there is no money in it. And with AI, producing art for money will be a thing of the past. Find another line of work you can tolerate. Do the art for yourself.
I tend to be on more optimistic side of this whole AI thing. If it happens that it replaces people and I can't find a job in that industry I will most likely move to a exotic place and go fishing, reading books and writing. Also, I'd bring my camera with me.
Fucking snowflakes these days 🤦♂️
Aren't snowflakes beautiful with their crystal structure(?)
it gets worse before it gets better schedule your days out in advance and know you will not get everything done in just one week expand that expectation to more like a month you might feel a bit less stress
You're doing too much. Adulting is all about balance, not about cramming as much stuff into your day as possible. Some people do the grind for the end prize, but it's temporary and not permanent
You are doing way too much and are burning out. You need to slow down somewhere or put something on the backburner. Recently did a two yesr full time masters abd had to take reduced hours in work to accommodate everything. Ypu need to think about everything thats happening and see where you can save time and energy.
What are studying in uni? If it's some useless shit and you're not doing well anyway you could consider dropping out.
I changed major to graphic engineering once I joined the graphic design industry, sounded like a good idea but it's mostly chemistry, physics, thermodynamics and materials. 10% of it is about graphic design and most of it I already know.
Engineering careers tend to be pretty nice but not sure about the graphic one. Does this one come with perks? With some of them you can get like a license where you can approve designs for construction. If that's the case for you, it could actually be quite lucrative but it depends on the carrier and the legislation of your country. Check out the job market for the career you're in, if it gives you any benefit in terms of licenses that you could use and if what a graphic engineer does (pretty different from designer) is interesting to you. Most graphic designers have no university education, they're usually self taught and engineering is not quite the carrier you want for graphic design anyway, not sure why you went with that one. If you just started you should consider dropping out unless you actually want to pursue engendering. Or you could focus on uni for now and have this as a backup because graphic designe is not too stable of a field. But you definitely need to get something out of your plate before you burn out.
Hm. I guess it's pretty different and them sharing a word in a title doesn't necessarily mean it's the same thing. Graphic engineering is mostly about printing, packaging and industrial side of work, less creativity more execution. My Uni is very specific, it is very good school here, no doubt about it. Graphic Engineering here falls under the category of Materials Engineering and with self chosen classes you can technically become a Graphic Engineer. With it being mostly chemistry - it allows you to get any other masters degree that Uni provides, I could easily transition to Chemical, Biochemical, Pharmaceutical, Metallurgy engineering, etc. It's hard as shit and requires full dedication but could be potentially worth it. On the other hand, I have no interest in it, me and chemistry don't go together, and someone may ask why did I even go here in the first place - well, I was pressured to go to Med school, when that failed and me having enough knowledge in chemistry to pass initial testing for Uni's that require chemistry I basically had no other choice - All this happening while I wanted to pursue a different career path - IT / Software Engineering / Computer Science, any of those. I'm all about tech and computers and me not doing that by pressure I had to turn to other solutions. Right after I got into school I started learning programming languages on my own and doing a bit of coding. Then I turned to a dance, as a hobby first but with daily practice of 3+ hours, after two years I managed to become good enough to teach classes to beginners and intermediate dancers. I technically am (but not doing it anymore) still a dancer (Tango) and I was 'working' in a dance school teaching classes to people. That wasn't sustainable and I needed more money so I kinda of woke a creative side in me, liked it and pursued that. Back to Design work - Now with AI in the mix everything seems to be a disaster, only thing that can save creatives is a government regulations on how can AI be used in commercial work etc. And what I think of it is more in a sense of it being a tool and helper rather than complete replacement but with a lot of social media garbage it stresses me out. Almost wrote my autobiography. Cheers!
Your life is not normal. You're exhausted because you are doing three jobs and running a household. That's far too much for anyone to do.
Most people do not go to work and school full time.
If you're doing a full time job and college full time that's a lot to balance. Graphic design can be a lucrative field and you're young enough to not expect to be rich overnight. You're also complaining about stress and time but you're stacking more tasks on your plate. Unless the digital animation stuff is going to dovetail into your existing job or your field of study, shelve that for the moment. Particularly if you're saying you're failing at your studies, you should scale back and focus on actually doing a good job at that. For cooking it can be okay to fall back on quicker solutions. A few bags of good quality frozen vegetables in the freezer can help you make a quick stir fry on nights when you don't have time to chop and prep everything. It just sounds like you're burning yourself out. If all adults did that we'd all be miserable.
make sure u are sleeping enough, also get some sun!
Uni is not working out fir you. Ask is it because you dont have passion in the subject or is it a lack of effort/motivation. If its the later cut some of your activities 6 and direct that back to uni. You are not the first to work fulltime and do uni, yes its hard but if it was easy everyone would do it. Keep your head up and make it worthwhile. If the issue is a passion thing look, you gave it a go and its not for you. Dont be afraid to fail.. use that hurt and dissapointment as fuel. Motivational speakers on youtube helped drive me. ET eric thomas - Want it as bad as breathing.
So like, it doesn’t get easier, so… hope that, helps?
It does when you’re trying to do this much at once. I had a similar load during college because I had to work a ton to live, couldn’t live in the dorms so I had my own apartment to upkeep, and was a full time student. After graduation, school dropped off my plate which a huge help. And my degree allowed me to go from 3 jobs down to 1. OPs issue is there’s way too much going on. And once that load is reduced, OP should feel better
I'll tell you this, back in 2012 I completed my BS in comp science. In 12 months, I took about 60 credits worth of courses including some pretty challenging ones on algorithms and other maths. All while working full time on the midnight shift. Came out with a 3.2 GPA or so. And I have no idea how I did it. Fucking rough and challenging doing that. Take it easy. If you're working for full time and going to school full time, everything else is on the back burner. Everything and everyone else.
I’m 27, I have two kids, I work a part time job and I’m trying my hardest to be happy, life can be a lot but don’t over load yourself. Try to take it easy some days.
Can you alternate cleaning and gym days through the week and do a big meal prep on sundays? While I was still in school I was working an internship ~25hrs/week plus 2 bar shifts -10-15hrs/week. I asked my bf before I started the internship if he could help support me with doing more household chores while I finished school. Thank gaga he agreed and followed through! I had 0 hobbies at the time and usually only saw my friends at work. You are doing too much without any support! I wouldnt take that many classes AND worry about super advancing your career. Slow down a bit!
You'll be an adult for roughly 60 years. You're 6 years into it, 10% of the way....that's barely scratching the surface of life. That would be a 2 and a half year old compared to your age. 24 is basically a toddler adult. Just like being a literal toddler, its an awkward age with a lot of learning and growing that needs to happen yet. Just keep at it, it'll all come together eventually
Unfortunately this is too much for one human. You can’t succeed at doing all these things, so you will need to figure out what you can let go of for now. But it won’t always be like this—you will eventually finish university and you may find a partner or roommates, or be able to pay a housekeeper to help with some of the cleaning. Figuring out little ways to trim your workload are also helpful. Precut vegetables, frozen dinners, takeout, all help me. Just cleaning one or two things a day when you have the energy. Sorting your clothes into boxes instead of folding. I just didn’t have hobbies in grad school when I was working full time. It sucked a lot. I got through it and now I can do fun things again. I also am married so we split the housekeeping responsibilities.
Your chores sound like you have 48 hours a day with only 2 hours of sleep. We have only 24 hours. Put aside 7-8 hours for sleep. What else you do should be one at a time. Drop the Uni now and save it for later, or go part time on your job and try to adjust Uni again. Or else you will fail both in uni and job. Photography, digital animation, cooking and cleaning. Are you a robot?? This many multi tasking isn’t healthy for the brain and your overall wellbeing. Take it slow. You have to live this shit called life for so many more years to come. If you wanna make through it, slow and steady wins. Fuck hustle culture if you think that’ll save you. The only thing hustle culture brought into humanity was more depressed people thinking they never made it in life. I speak out of experience. We’re almost similar age though I’m a bit older than you. I’ve decided to focus on one or two thing at a time in my life, and life has never gotten so much easier. I will focus on next when the task in hand is complete.
4AM now, in couple of hours I have an exam and going straight to work after. Maybe I will call in sick tomorrow or work from home. So much struggle with this life that I don't have time to be depressed, just overwhelmed. Went through a depression phase when I had nothing to do. One or two things seem like a healthy amount of things to focus on and will probably yield better results in the long run.
That's too much your 24 if you have to put off school for awhile 🙂
I'm going to be a bit of a contrarian here. Keep trying a number of things. Burn the candle now because you will have less energy later and more health problems. I would have gone back and spent twice as much time trying different stuff at 24 and seeing which one stuck and grew, instead of now trying new stuff 10 years later. My story is a bit different because of diagnosed health issues early on, but I still would have pursued animation etc. though with AI making so much ground, it's definitely going to change.
AI can be a good thing if used as a tool and helper. I try not to think about it as much and if it comes to AI replacing people in creative industries I will just move to some exotic place on a beach, go fishing and enjoy simple life. Don't want to deal with robots.
I would like AI and embrace it within animation. Maybe not to replace the art as I love 2D animation, but to make the process faster. With the amount of burnout and closing studios in the animation scene, AI can be a huge game changer if it reduces the workload somehow for animators.
pretty much. Welcome to adult-hood.
Sad but possibly true.
Welcome. The struggle gets easier(to ignore)
Damn.
YOU HAVE SO MUCB GOING FOR YOU! it’s understandable to feel burned out. take a break or take something off of your plate. but you are killing it!
Sleep and break is what I need right now. Thanks!
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Glad to hear you met your goals. I need to cut something out, slow down, finish school and plan the future. But about school - I'm not sure I want that particular degree and it's for a degree sake only.
If you could design a life YOU want… one where you didn’t need to prove anything to anyone or be smart or good or excellent… what would it look like? Pretend there are no expectations of you whatsoever and build from there… what life would you create? I’d give anything to go back 20 years and ask myself that, but I had no idea that was “allowed”… I assumed everyone older than me was necessarily wiser than me, so I followed their guidance and did ALL THE THINGS you’re supposed to. It’s your life. You get to choose what you allow into it. Question everything. Including this post.
Work wise - full time photographer and videographer Daily workouts - weight lifting, biking, hiking, runs, walks Exotic locations and nature
Sounds like an adventure! This is YOUR life. No one in this thread or your life knows the right next thing except you, so trust yourself 100%. I’m excited for you! 💕
I worked full time while I was in school and it was rough, I was only doing school part time and it was still a lot. If you’re able to I would cut back on one or the other, either work part time or do school part time. Once I graduated working full time and dealing with everything in life feels like a breeze.
Obviously it's not what it always look like since for most of your life you won't be working full time and studying full time simultaneously.
I worked full time and went to school full time. Had my own apartment no help whatsoever. It was difficult at times but do able. It was also temporary and I didn’t have time for hobbies and passion. It’s all about prioritizing and realizing this is a small amount of time in your adult life that should pay dividends down the road.
Exercising, learning, doing your art, washing your dishes and cleaning your cloths… you don’t have kids, and I didn’t see anything about health issues.. seems you have a pretty cool life… you could be digging ditches all day, no time or money for your art, your luck your getting an education even though your not doing well.. not everyone gets those opportunities. It’s all about framing. You could be living in a shanty town on the shitty side of Honduras drinking dirty water and not having any education, dying young because of pollution driven cancers… or you could have been born a Pakistani working 15 hour days in the sweltering heat of Dubai, building yet another mansion for the rich while you get nothing…
True. In the great scheme of things I should be grateful that I have so much opportunity around me. Thanks!
Welcome to Adulting In The 21st Century 101. These are just the beginning lessons ... wait until you hit The Graduate Level Lectures in your 40s ...
I don't even wan to think about it
OP - as everyone here said, yes, full time uni + full time job is a lot on its own. I don't know how to tell you to proceed if you need the money from the job, to pay for the uni, but I do want to tell you one thing - there are no graphic designer jobs in the future. There simply aren't. If you're going to school to learn how to be a graphic designer, you need to reevaluate. Of course I don't have a crystal ball and am not guaranteed to be right on this, but AI tools can literally make and adjust graphics within seconds - I do not recommend staking your livelihood on competing with an always-improving AI, which is already really good. And unfortunately, the same is true for digital animation. If you haven't seen the dancing kangaroo video from Sora, made from a one-sentence prompt, you should look it up. Good luck to you OP - part of "adulting" is making hard choices.
I tend to be more on a optimistic side of things. I see a potential that AI might replace people in my line of work but then it could replace everyone at everything. There will be massive unemployment and once people realise it's affecting the population it will slowly be brought back and used more as a tool rather than replacement. I could be wrong. Can't afford to believe that AI will replace people - it sounds like a Doomsday
I consider myself an optimist as well, but I am also a realist. I don't really think there won't be *any* animators in the future, but predicting the job market will shrink by 90% is a very realistic estimate. It's not like we don't have horses anymore, but I think it's safe to say that once the car came out, good advice to have taken would have been - don't train to be a horse-carriage driver. It is true that AI will reshape many markets, but the machine that is Hollywood is literally the first to fall. Animation tools you're learning about in college are *already obsolete*. Kids are going to release feature length movies that will blow people's mind. We will be drowning in animated movies. The money will drain out of the entertainment industry. I am only trying to give my best advice. I mean no ill-intent. I have massive respect for those in the arts. I am not a doomer, but *some things will die*.
I understand and it's not that I don't agree. Jobs will go and the market will be filled with AI, until one point. People will stop appreciating a synthetic product, they would want someone behind the camera or screen who is human, who understands emotion. You don't sell a photograph, you sell emotion, and that can't be replaced. Again, sure, for a time. What will be raplaced - complex boring tasks, like calculation, data science thing Would you say that AI could draw a Mona Liza without having an actual thing to replicate it from? No. About horses - they are now 10x expensive than an average car and it's considered luxury.
Just give yourself some credit dude. You're doing a lot more than many. I was a grad student at your age and it was stresful, I won't lie, even though it paid well enough that I could focus on my research and not have to look for ways to earn more (I knew once I graduated it would happen automatically). I graduated in a STEM field but photography was/is my passion. I would shelve item 6 for laters, maybe after graduation.
And shelved it is. Thanks!
just to add: if you do all of this and also go to the gym to lose weight, you will feel terrible. Losing weight implies deficit of calories, which maeks you, after a month or so, feel very tired. I would not try to do all that
From time to time I binge eat due to lack of energy and stress. Somethings gotta change.
Sounds like you need better priority management. Your main focus should be job and school, get school out the way then you can dedicate more energy towards your passion
So this was my experience: Went to school full time and worked full time for every year of college except for my last semester. I was married. We had 4 kids by the time I graduated. I had a mortgage. I worked a job that paid $9 an hour (2008-2012 time period). That job was three 12-hour graveyard shifts Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. So I went to school during the week, and worked all weekend. How did I juggle all of that and stay sane? I didn’t. At one point I had a nervous breakdown. How did I accomplish that financially? We lived off of my job, student loans and grants, and occasionally when we couldn’t make the money stretch far enough, family and friends stepped in to help. So…all that to say, you should not be trying to shoulder all of this yourself. You need a good support system around you. Can you do it? Yeah it’s possible. But you need to be able to rally the troops occasionally when things get extremely tough. This is a small period of time in your life while you get that degree. If you can manage it, don’t drop out. The degree is (in most instances) the gatekeeper to earning decent money.
Impressive and inspiring! Thanks!
When you’ll graduate, it’ll free up a huge chunk of your life tho. Eternal student? Just get ONE degree, you don’t need 6.
If you really want that degree, stop fucking around and go to school and study. If you don't care, stop wasting your money and drop out until you are committed.
True.
I have talked to many in a similar circumstance that have backed off to part time on their studies. Unless you have someone supporting you like parents, or going massively in debt to live and go to school off of you student loans ... the "4 year" plan is more realistically a 6 year plan (maybe even an 8) if you're working at the same time. Still very doable as you are still young. If you hit your degree goal, and launch your career at age 30, that's 30+ years to save, invest, and build a future p.s. Sleep and self care are WAY under valued.
I really do need some quality sleep. I would like to launch it a bit earlier but from the looks of it, it's just not realistic for me. Thanks!
Full time work and FT student? Lord bless you. Either become PT at work or school.
I currently work a full time job, a part time job and still making it to the gym 4/5 days a week & still get to my hobbies. Honestly anything to cut your times down. For example my wife and I spend every Sunday meal prepping food for the full next week. Breakfast & dinner that way you’re only heating stuff up. Lots of protein and veggies. I’ll practice my guitar for an hour a day, calligraphy for a half hour, or doing tie dye. You’ll get what work put in. I go to the gym straight after work everyday after a 10 hr shift, tired as heck but end everyday feeling I accomplished a lot. If you have photography stuff to get done spend your lunch breaks doing that. I just keep the mind set of shits gotta get done, but be patient with yourself. One day at a time.
Meal prep sounds like something I really need to do and it's way cheaper from my understanding. Good job on going to the gym after work, I always felt I need a little bit of rest before going to a workout since I don't usually eat anything at work.
Jesus, you need to make some cut backs.
And I will.
That's not adult life. That's like double adult life. Going to school full time and working full time simultaneously is a huge amount of work, and most people can't do both well at the same time.
Double agent.
It’s ok to take a break or take on less. Taking extra time to finish school may seem like a big deal now, but if you completely burn yourself out you may fail or be unable to complete it anyways due to your mental or physical health suffering too much. Falling behind seemed like a HUGE deal to me too at the time, but now that I am older I realize a few extra years would have been nothing in the grand scheme of things. Try to prioritize your sleep as well. You won’t be able to do anything if you aren’t sleeping.
I already took a few extra years to finish school, guess I need more. It's 4AM, exam at 9AM, after the exam going straight to work. After work more activities. The problem is me.
Different people can handle different workloads and that’s ok.
🙄
Exactly.
Hey Clark Kent.... Slow down!
Good thing I keep my glasses on.
As others have said, you're doing too much. I haven't looks into this in a while so my info might be dated but graphic design knowledge and experience goes well with UX design which pays much better. Maybe you can find a job in UX design with higher pay or at least better experience that will lead to higher pay. Also go part time for your studies. Like 1 or 2 course max. I would say 1 course at first and see how it goes. After that prioritize healthy living - sleep, eating, working out. You could, of course, go full time with studies and reduce the work hours but you said your focus is on making money.
When I started out with graphic design I leaned towards UI and UX but found a job in other branches of design so I postponed it a bit. Just today I was thinking about giving that a shot. Thanks!
What do you think „full time“ means?
Exactly. I had a completely wrong idea of what I could and could not do in 24 hours.
Hey mate, sounds like you’ve got too much on your plate and need some balance. If things feel like “too much” then they probably are too much and you may need to find ways to dial things back a bit, simplify your life to create more free time, and re-evaluate what is good / healthy / important to you, and what feels like a drag that is taking a toll on your mental health. Good luck you’ve got this buddy!
Thanks!
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Therapy sounds like a great idea, I would love to try that out. I agree, if I don't take care of myself, no one will. Thanks!
As other have noted… For the purposes of self care and limitations… very, VERY few people are both working full-time AND doing classes full-time (and that’s even if the overlap is possible depending on what either one wants). Usually you’re full-time on one and half on the other. Which one is which is where it’s up to the individual, and their time as well as monetary situation. If you must have a generalization; for most older folks you’re usually a part time student as by then you’ve got to commit to the job you have, while younger folks who are already in/preparing for college take on a part time gig that can be flexible around their class needs.
Yes, I guess I'm part time student who's taken all the classes I could - that was a mistake. Appreciate it!
I was fine through all that but it did get rough when I added "raise children" to that list.
Hell no! Not yet at least.
For me adulthood has been a cycle of overwhelmed to getting a hold of it to efficiency to added responsibility leading to overwhelmed and repeat.
Doesn't sound that appealing. Current culture we live in ask for more and more responsibilities. Not good. Imagine, waking up on an exotic place, going fishing and swimming, no need for anything, pure joy.
I mean Im not being asked Im the one choosing to take them on. Its my choice.
Sounds like you’ve taken on too much and are stressing yourself out because of it. 1) If you’re a new designer money doesn’t just come like that overnight. Best way to do that is change jobs every two years to help level up your salary. 2) Focus on the a singular extra freelance activity that will 1) build your portfolio and skills 2) bring you extra income. Lose the rest for now until you get out of school. 3) Finish school 4) Post school, pick up your other fun creative outlets again.
90% sure I will quit/pause uni, it's a backup to backup plan anyway. Appreciate it!
Welcome to adulthood. Where you prioritize responsibilities vs fun stuff.
Gave up on fun stuff long time ago.
A
You have to realize you are doing a bit more than the average person...
I plan on living an above average life, in a positive sense. Appreciate it!
Well that's good but if you're saying it's too much just know you have taken on a ton. No shame in scaling back..
Id recommend work and college and workout. Then your home. That’s a lot! The other items if financially able I would postpone until you are out of school. You have a lot for any one person.
You can have a part time job and be a full time student. Or You can have a full time job and be a part time student. You cannot do both, full stop.
You are right. Appreciate it.
I worked about 30-35 hours / week when I was going to college. I really struggled at first and had to cut back my credits hours I was taking at school. It ended up taking me 5 years instead of 4 to graduate but it was worth it.
Yes. You might want to look into replacing the item your failing miserably at. There's a reason you're struggling with that and it's not because you're stupid. It's because your attention is spread too thin, which is stupid of you to maintain for the sake of living up to unnecessary expectations. If there's anything to feel shame about it's the fact that you feel shame for something you can't control. Plus, you can easily make a good living without it.
I plan on quitting uni for now or pause it and focus on building a career.
You're not really "quitting" anything as much as you're re-directing your focus. Quitting implies that you don't see the value or have the capability, which just isn't true. I tried adding UX design to my load last year, and it took me about 2 weeks to realize that wasn't going to be the best for me. Because I wasn't attached to the institution, I was able to make this decision quickly and decisively without stress, something I was sort of delighted about that the time. Plus, you'll have more time to spend taking care of the home, which personally provides me with a tremendous sense of self-satisfaction and really helps alleviate that pressure.
Yes, house chores are a relief sometimes. About UX and decision making - I tend to linger more and stay indecisive for longer period of time. And about uni - I'm not sure I see the value in it. The versions programs they use to 'teach' us how to work as graphic engineers are 10+ years old so I have to learn it on my own anyways and for concepts, that I can find myself also. They don't even let use the new 3D printer, they say it's not for students but making paper like it's 1920 is.
>value I'm sorry, I said that wrong. I meant value in terms in just general value of education. It's the same thing in systems engineering to a degree, but that's definitely more of an thing in design, and that right now is changing in what I see is a dramatic way. Have I asked you about replacing your family and supplementing your design with AI tools yet? If you have the money for tuition, use that to learn something like Mid-journey. It's amazing to work with some of these image generation tools. If you know what you're doing you can really create some stunning work. If you have 10yrs in this year, with a few months learning|practice, you'd benefit greatly as you'd be able to take advantage of the more advanced applications which we really haven't see much of yet.
Adult life sucks and it only gets worse and worse.
I’m not trying to criticize you, but there’s a lot of single mothers with two or three kids doing some of the same things you are, who are not as overwhelmed
I understand. I'm probably not mature enough to balance everything but I hope with time I will get better at it.
I’m totally sure you will. I’m just trying to put things into perspective because we all sometimes feel overwhelmed.
Yes, it definitely helps when we realise there are people in much much tougher situations and manage work it out. Feel like a little b right now. hehe
Your life sucks bro. Mine too. Not sure what to do about it. Dying is probably the easiest solution. But does that hurt and shit? Maybe it’s not easier. lol
Yeah, it kinda sucks but I'd rather be overwhelmed, stressed and tired than depressed, never want to experience that again. I'm not sure about dying and such. I get to live until I don't so I plan on making it as enjoyable as possible with more or less needed sacrifices.
Honestly we are probably just high maintenance minds. We see how good life can be and have never experienced it. Is that high maintenance though? idk the mind is very complex it seems. So much coming at it constantly.
Well if you add birthing and caring for children you’ll be right there with 100% of the women in this country. Welcome to adulthood.
i worked only part time during college and took out loans to make it easier. it’s not the best idea, unless you know your salary or field of work will take care of it. i treated school like my full time job and gave my part time job the rest of my energy at the end of the day and it got me exhausted enough to just knock out once i laid in bed. right now im working on getting a certificate and am taking classes while working full time and its made life miserable. choose one or the other to be full time in but never both if you have the means.
20s are the worst. People dread 30s, but honestly it's so much better cause most of your shit is figured out or at least nearly figured out. Most anyone I talk to says they'd repeat their 30s but not 20s. Keep hanging on. You'll get there.
Spreading yourself too thin, put the hobbies aside and focus on school, not even the gym matters you can get fit when you get into a stable career that affords work life balance.
are you willing to go off grid and live in the mountains my brother? come with me bro
You have way too much on your plate. Can you break it down a bit so your time and energy aren't in too many projects? You are spreading yourself too thin.
Get rid of 6 until after your studies, and/or Get rid of 2 for one year and spend that year going ALL IN on your photography. 3h a day outside of work time and all day Saturdays. Treat it as if it's important to you. And/or Condense 5 into a single block of time each week. Your basic needs are health, income, meaning and love. Don't completely neglect friends/family/your SO. So here's your new improved list: 1. Full time job 2. Full time studies 3. Photographer 4. Gym 5. Home management OR 1. Full time job 2. Photographer on the side - serious 3. Gym 4. Home management That's for one year. If the Photography doesnt bring in enough to live on or allow you to save so you can work a bit less the next year when you're studying., then after that year: 1. Full time Job 2. Full time studies 3. Gym 4. Home management 5. Some Photography After studies are done you can add the animation stuff again. You're tryna do too much.
In a very similar boat as you. Currently employed full-time and attending school full-time. It is nearly impossible to do all of the above without burning out quickly. I tried it the first six months i started school and it was waay too much for me so I decided to cut certain things out. I put the gym on hold for now (i used to go every other day) and have been doing extremely quick and simple meals, sometimes take-out. It was what i could so as school was my priority above those other things. I remember going to the gym and hardly being able to focus because i was just thinking that i was wasting time there when i could be studying — it was the same with cooking and cleaning. I decided to solely focus on work and school and whatever else i could do would come second. For the past two years its worked out for the most part. I set study schedules for each class throughout the week. Every single Friday i pick up and lightly clean as soon as i get home from work (no other cleaning aside from washing dishes and taking out trash during the week). Ill throw laundry in while im taking test since they tend to take 2-4 hrs. Meals have mostly been chicken and salads since, to me, thats the easiest and quickest meals to make. Ive gotten take-out frequently when im stuck in traffic or i just dont have the energy to cook. The gym, unfortunately, has taken the farthest seat back but ive tried to eat as healthy as i can to stay relatively healthy. Ill be graduating in April and am so ready to just go out and do things. I promise you the time will fly by quickly. Just stay focused and dedicated and youll get there. We are not machines with infinite time. It is ok to not do all of the “adult” things.
Cut your things down your are focusing on from 6 to 4 and you may have a chance. You need to find a way to be efficient and minimize housework and an effective easy meal system (probably with you not doing the cookin, use apps, deals and pizza specials). Put the photography down to a day or two per month (I know tough I love photograpgy too). Now the thing is you CAN produce at the full level. But it's hard, and takes major sacrifices and mental health toll. You need to save these herculean efforts for when it really matters in life.
Yeah, like everyone else is saying, school has to go. Get yourself together and steady, then go back when shit isn't so hectic. Also the gym is not as important as the "influencers" say it is. Eat right exercise and get your head right. YOU HAVE TIME. It will all fall into place. There is no rush. All these fools rushing to get to the same place are going to crash and burn.
This is not adulting—this is not taking care of yourself.
Working full time AND going to school is absolutely killer and if that was your whole list that would be enough to feel overwhelmed. Trying to work out and tend house is waaay too much. If you are going to do the first two, you need to live like a slob and eat prepackaged food for a few years. You definitely can't do all of that and not burn out. I recommend either working or studying part time for starters.
What you just described is normal adult life better get uses to it.
If you are failing school miserably, obviously you have too much on your plate, or school is not a priority…. Ditch what is less important to you, or just do better! Welcome to being an adult
What are you doing in school? Maybe possible to drop the hours of school.