Hello! Sorry this is off-topic but I'm thinking you may all have some wise insights.
Essentially, I work for myself part-time and I also hold a part-time job. I work a lot. This is fine because I like what I do.
The part-time job is structured traditionally: I make a salary to work X number of hours per week. However, the type of consulting work I do for them doesn't fit this mold and this has grown more so over the years. It's more project-based. I could spend 5 hours on a project one week and 20 the next. Sometimes I can go days without new work. My manager also isn't really available -- we check in once weekly but she has a million other things going on and not a lot of time to manage me.

Over the years, I've basically fallen into a pattern where I do what is asked of me, but then I have free time. I feel guilty working on other things during this free time (I work from home), but I also don't know what to do. I have brought up to supervisors the reasons why a project-based contract would make more sense, but each time I do this, it seems the supervisor leaves and I get a new one.

I also make very little money at this job -- they get a deal by paying me a salary; if I billed hourly at the going rate, it would be far more. So I think it benefits them to keep me as a salary position. But my guilt level is high! I feel bad using my hours to work on other stuff, but I also have literally nothing to do and ask for more work and don't really get anywhere. Sooo...I also get uniformly good reviews at each review period.

What would you do if you were me? Sorry for rambling post.

TLDR: I don't have enough work to do given my hours but feel badly doing other stuff during this time.