Author Topic: Day jobs that are related, but also work with SM scheduling  (Read 5978 times)

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chadparkerla

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I've been trying to find a day job that would be good experience, and in a related field to Stage Managing, and ran into a bit of a conundrum.

Day jobs that are related tend to be full or part time jobs with production companies, but their busy nights tend to be the same nights that you get stage managing jobs.

Can anyone think of any day jobs related to stage managing that don't conflict with actually stage managing shows? I've found a few in educational institutions, but those are uncommon.

Thanks!
​"The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it." - Michelangelo

brettnexx

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Re: Day jobs that are related, but also work with SM scheduling
« Reply #1 on: Mar 14, 2013, 09:05 pm »
A very busy stage manager in my area works at Ticketmaster every so often, when he has time off.

MatthewShiner

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Re: Day jobs that are related, but also work with SM scheduling
« Reply #2 on: Mar 14, 2013, 09:36 pm »
Here's my advice.

Don't work a day job.

Or if you have to, set a time period like 6 or 9 months.  In that time, pay off as much debt as you can, and figure out how to leave as lean and tight as you can.

At some point, if you are going to do this full time, as your career - it needs to pay you, as a career does.  If you give yourself an out - like a day job - it allows you to take either take low/no-paying jobs.  These can be great for building up your resume, but eventually you need to make money at this.

You also run the risk of discovering that indeed, you day job is infinitely more appealing then stage managing - and the day job will take over your life - why?  because it's easier and more secure - and chances are, more lucrative.

If you can't get enough money to pay for your life by stage management, then, to be brutally honest, perhaps you should choose another career - and just stage manage as a hobby.  The job market has a way to tell if you are good enough to make in the biz.

Now, if you want to work in the field with a day job . . . then things like box office, office admin for a theater, rentals, etc would work.  Or, just find a nice office temp job. 

My last day job was for a health care management company (we administrated a nation wide HMO locally).  I was a temp, but survived three rounds of lay-offs, and was eventually offered a full-time management position.  I went out to lunch with everyone, and asked the rest of the staff I worked with, what they wanted to be when they grew up - a writer, a musician, an architect - but all had been side tracked by their day job which turned into the real career.  I made the decision then and there that stage management was going to be my career and have never worked a day job since - that was 16 years ago.   Now, once you yank away the security net of a day job, you hustle your a** off to get a job.  You start planning long term. 

It hasn't been easy.  But, it was the only way - I was tempted once to quit this career - it's a hard damn career to make a living at. 

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Anything posted here as in my own personal opinion, and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of my employer - whomever they be at a given moment in time.

ejsmith3130

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Re: Day jobs that are related, but also work with SM scheduling
« Reply #3 on: Mar 15, 2013, 02:19 pm »
Here's my advice.

Don't work a day job.

Or if you have to, set a time period like 6 or 9 months.  In that time, pay off as much debt as you can, and figure out how to leave as lean and tight as you can.

At some point, if you are going to do this full time, as your career - it needs to pay you, as a career does.  If you give yourself an out - like a day job - it allows you to take either take low/no-paying jobs.  These can be great for building up your resume, but eventually you need to make money at this.

You also run the risk of discovering that indeed, you day job is infinitely more appealing then stage managing - and the day job will take over your life - why?  because it's easier and more secure - and chances are, more lucrative.
Now, if you want to work in the field with a day job . . . then things like box office, office admin for a theater, rentals, etc would work.  Or, just find a nice office temp job. 

Thank you. This is something that I need to hear. I am struggling right now with my day job. I work 100% on commission selling appliances, and love it. However, I have ALWAYS put theatre first. In fact I have a crazy resume of day jobs that have only been short term because I need flexibility and if it isn't provided, I don't have a problem with leaving.

Lately I have been feeling guilty because my manager is amazingly flexible. I was very upfront about my schedule and career goals in theatre when I was hired, but they took me on anyway and have been great. My manager has in fact been the one to straight up tell me that I need to take a theatre job I was considering not doing because of a bigger time commitment. I am a very hard worker and really do well for myself and the company when I'm there. The biggest benefit is that I can make a full time paycheck on part time work with commission. It is very hard though to go in every day and work with people who have made this their career though- they have a great way of making you feel like you need to choose and are taking away their money, but I must remind myself that I have bills to pay too, and right now theatre isn't covering everything with the lifestyle I want to lead.

Last year was the first year that the majority of my income was from theatre jobs (yay!) so I know I'm taking the steps I need too. My goal is to continue in this direction and really break into my market and leave the day jobs behind. I am taking active steps towards that goal, and I think that is what you need to keep in mind if you want this as a career- theatre first, whatever the sacrifices may be. 


Maggie K

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Re: Day jobs that are related, but also work with SM scheduling
« Reply #4 on: Mar 16, 2013, 12:03 am »
I agree that the ultimate goal is to work only in stage management.  However, I currently have a part-time retail job mainly for the gaps between shows.  The gaps have been getting shorter and if all goes well in the next few months I may no longer need it. 

The difficulty in finding a second job that allows you to do theatre is not so much the job itself (frankly, I feel that a lot of the skills we use as stage managers are applicable in many other positions) but in finding a manager who is willing to work with you.  At my store I had an awesome manager who understood that part-time employees who are paid a little more than minimum wage have to have multiple jobs.  Also, many of my co-workers are students or have children.  She was really amazing at making a schedule that worked for everyone.  I would sit down with the calendar for my upcoming shows, figure out what days/times I was available, and then give her a list.  Sometimes I would give her a couple months at a time so she had plenty of time to figure things out.  She recently moved to another state for family reasons, so I am currently determining if I can develop the same relationship with the new manager.  There are also some jobs out there where you can determine your own hours to a certain extent.  I know another stage manager who does a lot of transcription work on the side.  However, because she is a self-contractor she has to be really careful about how jobs she accepts.

The main thing I keep in mind is that working at the store is a job while stage management is my career.  I've had a few other second jobs that I quit because they weren't willing to be flexible about my schedule.  If you take another job you have to be prepared to walk away at any time.

The other thing to consider is whether or not you can handle the work load without it being detrimental to your work as an SM.  This last Christmas season, between the store and my holiday show, I didn't have a full day off for about 8 weeks in a row.  However, I knew ahead of time that it was likely to happen and made sure I scheduled in down time for myself and planned some days down to the minute.  For example, I made sure that I had the overnight shift on Black Friday, went directly to the theatre after my shift, slept in the greenroom, showered in the dressing room, and was ready to go for tech later that morning.  I was a little more tired then usual by the end of the night but my PSM, who knew my plan, told me that she didn't notice any difference in the quality of my work.  I often feel that juggling two jobs requires me to stage manage my life.  So be honest with yourself about how much you can handle. 

All in all, if you have to get a non-theatre job for a while make you sure you don't lose focus on your real goal.  The moment your second job starts to interfere with stage management it's time to either leave that job or give up a career in stage management.

Good luck and happy hunting!
I like the ephemeral thing about theatre, every performance is like a ghost - it's there and then it's gone. -Maggie Smith

Thespi620

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Re: Day jobs that are related, but also work with SM scheduling
« Reply #5 on: Mar 16, 2013, 07:49 am »
Everything that others have said about only taking a day job if you really feel it's necessary is all valid. I'm currently not SMing anything, just helping out with a few projects as an extra set of hands, because it's what my life requires at the moment--and I'm really loving it, though I'm missing so much about theater that it may be time for another lifestyle shift. 

I've also found that most jobs can be applicable to Stage Management. Think of the parts of the job you love, or those where you maybe lag, and look for opportunities to apply those skills in a day job. Love working with kids, but have a hard time managing them? Pick up some hours at an afterschool program or a weekend sports league/YMCA program. Is your paperwork impeccable? Any temp agency or other office job-placement agency will adore you.

On that note--find a good temp agency. If you're in a larger city, chances are a fair number of your actor contacts have spent at least a few months as a temp. It can be tough to start out, but if you find an agency that is used to working with actors/directors/so-called "creative types", they're bound to be great with your scheduling needs--and you're probably already a stellar candidate for a placement, with paperwork creation and management skills in your back pocket.
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SMAshlee

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Re: Day jobs that are related, but also work with SM scheduling
« Reply #6 on: Mar 17, 2013, 12:50 pm »
Right now I'm in between theatre jobs.  We moved to a new area and the only theatre here is collegiate level or community theatre that is volunteer only.  I knew this was the case before we moved here, but other family matters made me needed at home more than off traveling somewhere for work. 

Anyway, I started working for a temp agency.  After I explained what stage management was, I've been placed in offices answering phones, filing papers, typing, etc.  They do have fulll-time positions, but I've opted for the short term assignments.  The nice part is, there is rarely work on the weekends, and jobs are done by 5. 

As for other non-theatre but sorta related fields, most of the one's I've applied for were in the university setting.  Ticket office, student life event planner/coordinator, conference assistants....It really seems to depend on the department that's hiring, and depending on the department (student life for example), you will be working all hours of the day/week.