There are clearly many benefits to becoming a full-time employee post-college and holding down a static schedule. There are also many setbacks to this traditional life. It all really depends on your unique perspective and what you value. We all have different values and expectations when it comes to earning a living. This is why I wanted to dissect the idea of being an employee once you graduate from college.

We will start off the discussion by looking at what are the positive of being an employee?

Static schedule.

When you work for a company as an employee you’re usually given a static schedule that you follow on a weekly basis for a very long time until some changes are made by your boss. The odd time you might have to stay at the office longer to finish up a project. Regardless, the schedule that you have as an employee is set for you by someone else. You don’t have to worry about time management, productivity, or late nights. You just show up to your company and do your work. What you get done in your 8 hours is the only work that you’ll have to do for the day.

Pay guarantee.

No job is ever guaranteed in this economy, but as an employee you’re guaranteed to get paid every time pay day comes around. This pay guarantee creates a sense of security and assurance for employees. Anyone with a family understands the importance of this steady pay as it gives you the ability to budget properly and to save for your various money goals. If you were to venture off on your own it would be more  challenging to budget since you’re never really sure of how much money you’ll earn during any given time period. With a static schedule you know exactly how much you’re going to earn every paycheck.

Ability to move up the ranks.

When you start off in one company after college you’re in a position where you can move up the ranks in your company. Barring office politics, if you work hard and put in the effort, you can easily increase your pay and your spot in the company. There’s no telling where you can end up after a few years of hard work and long hours.

Being an employee isn’t that bad, is it? Well we must take a look at the negatives of being an employee before you can come up with your own conclusions:

Time consuming.

When you hold down a job as an employee you’re essentially committing at least 40 hours a week of your time to your employer. This 40 hours may not seem so bad, but think of all of the other time involved. You have to consider the time it takes you to commute to work and back home, time getting ready, rest needed, and any general preparation that you need to do before work. Once you factor all of this in you’ll realize that your job is very time consuming and life as an employee may not be right for you. This time consumption will interfere with the million other things that you’re going to want to do as a 20-something.

Energy drain.

One thing that I’ve noticed from my friends with full-time jobs is that they can be drained after a day of work. Too often do friends bail on me when it comes to an evening workout or just a meet up. Can you handle the energy drain that goes along with living the life of an employee with a static schedule? For some it’s simple, but for others work can be a major energy drain.

You won’t follow your passions.

The unfortunate aspect of a job with a static schedule is that you may never get to follow your passions. You won’t have to worry about life insurance, but you won’t be happy with your lack of time. Just the other day I was speaking with a friend that’s approaching the age of 40. He told me that his one regret is that he got stuck at a job in his 20s and he never got to follow his true passions. I don’t want this to happen to me or to any of you reading this. In this day and age we have no excuse to not follow our passions. The problem with becoming an employee right after college is that it’s easy to get stuck at your job and to get too comfortable. This comfort can take you away from the goals you set only a few years earlier.

There you guys have it. We have looked at the pros and cons of being an employee. How do you feel about being an employee? Are you more of an entrepreneur or an employee? Where do you see yourself in three years from now?

(photo credit: ambernectar 13)

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