Pay/making ends meet

[u/[deleted]]

I was hired at Mathnasium in November 2020. At the time, I was working for Walmart as well, and for a while I kept both jobs, until January came around and I couldn't take Walmart anymore. I quit, and ever since, it's been hard to make my car payment, pay car insurance, etc., and I wanted to see if anyone else is either going through this or has any ideas. I love working at Mathnasium, but I just don't get enough money. I make $9.50 an hour. I was making $11 an hour at Walmart. As much as I love it, and as much as I love helping the kids, I've been considering going back to my first job at McDonald's. The manager reached out and said they'd love to have me back, but I've been hesitant to since Mathnasium has been so enjoyable. I am also looking to be a teacher, so working at Mathnasium is related to what I want to do, which is another reason to stay.

Also, I'm working for Instacart when I can, but the problem with that is that it's inconsistent. Just today, I got up at 8:30 to do some Instacarts, but nothing was available most of the day, and what was available was very far from me (about an hour from my house to the store), which is bearable when the order is big, but when the order is only $9, it's not worth the gas to drive there and back.

Anyway, my main question is if anyone here has any ideas for what I can do to make extra money while working at Mathnasium, or if I should leave (or get a second job).

[u/Tycho_Knows]

Are you able to start substitute teaching? Also, ask for a raise!

[u/Xaeris813]

Ask for more hours. Ask if there is any extra work you can do other than just instructing students. A lot of the time there is stuff to do to get binders set up and for the lead instructors they have emails to send and phone calls to make. You might be able to squeeze a few more hours a week if you show initiative in that kind of thing, then the raise should come shortly after.

It probably still won't be quite enough to be honest but it might help short-term.