More and more individuals are deciding to take a year, or even more, off from the work force. A recent college graduate may want a year between her studies and her first job, or a parent may be expecting the birth of a child. Before making this decision, however, there are some factors to consider, even beyond the obvious question of planning how to pay living expenses.

A key question is what do you plan to do with that time? In some cases, it might be a fairly easy answer, like caring for children or an ailing relative. In others, though, you may have only decided that you need a break. Traveling and volunteering are options, but, whatever you might be interested in, you need to have some sort of plan beyond sitting on the couch and watching TV, if only to make a later transition back into the work force easier.

Another issue to consider is how you plan to keep your skills sharp. Even if you are contemplating a career change along with your time off, you will still want to be able to show future employers that you are still able to work well. You might consider volunteering your services on an occasional basis, or freelancing in your field.

Consider how your time off will affect your career path. You may lose touch with contacts that you need for promotion, or may be ‘mommy-tracked’ (a label given to women who have children distracting them from their careers). However, with effort, you can keep yourself in the loop throughout a sabbatical. You can find networking opportunities and be ready to dive back into advancing your career after your time off.

In most cases, employers welcome applicants with a break in their work history, as long as they can demonstrate that time was beneficial. For instance, taking a year to travel around the world can be hugely useful to an employer — you can point out your awareness of global issues, self-sufficiency and even expanded language skills. While not all employers will appreciate these abilities, many will consider it a boost to your value as an employee.

The number of employees who run their own companies or take on second jobs in their spare time is growing very quickly. While some employers encourage this trend, many are concerned that it can harm their businesses. A company’s management might worry that their employees may start companies that will compete with their employer or that can take away time from what they are paid to do at work.

If you are considering any sort of side job, whether starting your own company or working a second job, you may want to take note of the following suggestions, in order to avoid any issues with your primary employer.

Make sure that you have not signed any sort of contract that would limit your ability to work outside of your primary employer. The most common contract that could affect your ability to do so is a non-compete contract, which states that, within certain geographical and chronological constraints, you are not allowed to work for (or start) a business that competes with your current employer. However, some employers are asking employees to sign more strenuous contracts, which limit their ability to work beyond their employer.

Do not allow your secondary job to invade your main work. If you are paid as an employee of one company, it is unethical to be doing the work of another — even if you own that other company. Don’t take phone calls for your other job, don’t read email for it, and don’t do work for it. If an emergency comes up, you may choose to take personal time to deal with it, but don’t make it into a habit.

Avoid networking for your ‘other’ job when you should be working on a project for your primary position. While you may have the temptation to speak up and say that your other company might be perfect for something, you should resist it. At the very least, you should keep a low profile on your multi-employment status.

Eliminate your second job if the workload becomes too much. Assuming that your primary job is the more important of the two, if you find yourself unable to meet the requirements of both, eliminate one. Depending on the reason you took on the second commitment, it may not seem like an option. If, for instance, you need the second income in order to meet your obligations, you may want to consider other options for higher income, such as asking for a raise, or finding a new job entirely.

Many individuals transition from employee to entrepreneur or from job to job with some sort of overlap. It can be difficult to balance such a workload, and it takes effort to keep such a situation from becoming a problem. You will need to prioritize to succeed, and even then, if you do not prioritize your primary employer, you may run into trouble.