Moonlighting could be a need for some people. Health experts have given a red flag to moonlighting practice while everyone is busy on the debate as to whether working apart from their jobs is an ethical practice or unethical ones. The topic “moonlighting” came into discussion after the company Wipro fired their 300 employees because they had taken side projects. According to Dr (Prof) R. K. Suri, Clinical Psychologist & Life Coach “when a person works for 72 to 84 hours per week, his/her mental health is negatively affected. It has a negative effect on both his physical and mental health”. Some researchers have said that it can also increase the risk of depression and anxiety by 2.5 percent.

Moonlight could be fancy for some people because there could be social pressure or the need to have materialistic things. This is true when you are the breadwinner of the family and you and your family members see a lot of abundance and luxury around. And therefore they develop a certain way of living. They go for it because they continuously see in the newspapers, magazines, television and other social media handles they are having.

 Wanting to succeed as well as, if not better than, others is only natural in a society where there are so many goals and aspirations. Everything is a pull and a drain, from your children's schooling to vacations, owning cars, and living a posh lifestyle. Therefore, the majority choose moonlighting. Additionally, moonlighting will undoubtedly have an adverse effect on your health if it is done under extreme expectations and pressures.

What is moonlighting?

Moonlighting has become a quite popular term after the Covid-19 pandemic. Many of them are looking for second job options as there are slashes in the salaries. Some of them have lost their jobs and got a job which gave them lesser money as compared to before pandemic job they had. People who do overtime regularly also experience a lack of sleep, low energy and diminished interest in talking to people around them. Lack of sleep has been linked to a host of harmful effects, including weakened immune systems, impaired judgement, and psychological problems. These people also experience a number of physical health issues, including type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, and pain in the neck, chest, or back. Although it is true that having too much of anything is bad, still people act in the same way.

Psychological challenges of moonlighting

Some psychological challenges faced by people who choose moonlighting are:

Sleep deprivation and its impact on brain and body

Although, People moonlighted after the pandemic because there was a cut in their salaries but they should ask themselves whether it is good for them to risk their mental health just because they want to earn more money. They should think about the consequences they are going to have when they are opting two jobs at a time. They could be suffering from sleep deprivation and it has a negative effect on the brain and body of the people. Sleep, as we all know is very important to get rid of the toxins from our body. Lack of sleep causes toxins to build up and prevents detoxification from taking place. Over time, the poisons in the body will have an impact on other organs. Heart disorders will result from excessive blood pressure and high cholesterol.

Psychological stress

The worst part is that until it is too late, very few individuals are aware of the stress they are under and the damage it is doing to their bodies. People need to recognise that their back, neck, and similar health problems are psychosomatic symptoms of the stress which is caused by doing two works together. The greater damage is what the body is going through with the stress caused. Unfortunately, it is impossible to separate the physical symptoms from the stress.

Need for maintenance of work-life balance

It has been emphasised that maintaining a work-life balance is essential to having a decent quality of life and that companies must do their part to help make sure that their employees are content both physically and emotionally. Giving staff enough time to relax and recover is not an unfair request. Increase pay to discourage the desire to work second jobs.

A worker needs get investment from the employer in order to perform at the highest level for the company. The leading cause of death in the modern world is stress. Additionally, when there is stress at the workplace, the people cannot work with their full efforts. This can also cause health problems and absenteeism at the workplace which may in turn make the company lose a lot of money. It is important for the company to establish a stress free environment where the employees may live a healthy and stress free life.

Employers must be aware to the needs of the employees. Employees need to be aware of the rules and responsibilities of their employers. They should only take on side jobs if they have no negative effects on their productivity. The perfect side job would increase their productivity or add to their skill set.

The compassionate leadership engage best EAP service provider in India, to mitigate the challenges of moonlighting and have better engagement of workers for increasing productivity.

Contributed by: Dr(Prof) R K Suri, Clinical Psychologist, Counsellor, &Life Coach & Dr. Sakshi Kochhar