With the stresses of high school, holding a job on the side can seem near impossible or just excruciating. However, with a few tips and tricks on ways to balance both stressors, a successful school and work life is possible:

Communication is key in all relationships, especially in the workplace. Without communication, an employer will not understand what boundaries or schedule preferences a person may have. This can create a toxic environment and a rift in one’s work life that may begin to negatively affect all other aspects of life. Most employers express willingness to work around a student’s schedule to give them periods of time to breathe but the best way to avoid any miscommunication would involve discussing hours thoroughly before joining the workforce which junior Axel Willis explains.

“You definitely have to set it when you first start working so that it doesn’t become a problem later,” Willis said.

Now while communication stays essential to pursue a healthy work and life ratio, a less necessary but just as useful trick is to plan everything out. Keep a binder with school work, what the work schedule may look like, and what days in the future one might need off. Prioritizing work with a close due date, regardless of the type of assignment, also fits in with planning as due dates are closer than they seem. With everything laid out future problems such as missing school work or scheduling issues can be avoided which senior Ashley Escobar, demonstrates through her organizational skills.

“I use Trello to manage my homework and my volunteer hours and any extracurricular stuff,” Escobar said. “[And] when I have homework and its necessary homework that I know has a due date I’ll finish it in class…”

However, even with everything, planned problems can arise especially in the form of unresponsive bosses. An unresponsive boss demonstrates dismissive behavior in regard to schedule preferences, healthy ratios, and a person’s free time. In order to deal with such a boss, oftentimes a professional attitude is needed.

“Make sure to be professional about it [dealing with an unresponsive boss],” Junior Aaron Hirani said. “Don’t let your emotions get the best of you if your boss comes to you at a time and says something that makes you emotional or angry…”

If a professional attitude does not work, then the use of parents may prove needed. A dismissive boss can neglect a minor without expecting much retaliation but once parents are brought into the equation, legal matters will become an issue they’ll want to avoid.

“…Don’t be afraid to bring your parents into the equation,” Hirani said. “If your boss refuses to listen to you and you’re a minor, you can get your parents and bring them to your work and get them to talk to your boss.”