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“I used to be a classic workaholic, and after seeing how little work and career really mean when you reach the end of your life, I put a new emphasis on things I believe count more. These things include: family, friends, being part of a community, and appreciating the little joys of the average day.” -Mitch Albom
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In my last post, I wrote about the adverse effects of Perfectionism. In this post, I’ll address perfectionism’s twin brother, Workaholism. Vocabulary.com defines a workaholic as someone who can’t stop working. Workaholics are obsessed with working to an unhealthy degree. Just as an alcoholic has an unhealthy addiction to alcohol, workaholics have an unhealthy addiction to work.
Just as perfectionism can have a dark side, workaholism signifies the dark side of a positive work ethic. As a recovering perfectionist and workaholic, I still battle the urge to overwork. If not recognized and controlled, workaholic tendencies can resurface in retirement due to the increased free hours to fill each day.
At the start of my dental career, it seemed there were not enough hours each day. Practice management, case preparation, staff management, and patient care all consumed large blocks of time. This left a small amount of time for family, home maintenance, play, and worship. The fact remained that there were loans and house notes to re-pay, and a growing family to support. Working harder and longer seemed a reasonable and practical solution to the financial stress associated with a new dental practice.
Most workers experience some variation of the same tendency towards workaholism with project deadlines, pressure from management, and the same type of financial stress I experienced early in my practice career. But, is workaholism externally or internally driven? Does the tendency to become a workaholic originate as a solution to external factors like the ones I stated above, or does the tendency to become a workaholic originate internally and is the result of a certain mindset?
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The Psychology of Workaholism
“Work hard, play hard!” Most people have heard this catchphrase without considering the true implications. If we play hard we must work hard! And, before playing we must work. In reality, this funny little phrase is psychologically loaded!
Just like perfectionism, workaholism is considered a psychological disorder. Symptoms of workaholism can include work dependence, work addiction, shame, guilt, and work-related anxiety.
Workaholics tend to over-compensate through work for deficiencies in other areas of their lives such as family or financial problems, social inadequacy, or lack of self-confidence.
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Causes of Workaholism
- Psychological– because working hard has a positive social connotation, workaholics seek approval through work to resolve feelings of inadequacy, perfectionism, and low self-confidence. Workaholics use work as an excuse to avoid addressing personal issues, emotional distress, or the lack of a social network.
- Work– the lack of other social or emotional outlets means that work is the main source of socialization and purpose. These reasons can cause working hours to grow to unhealthy levels and work becomes the main focus of life.
- Early-life issues– feelings of insufficiency early in life, or mandatory work requirements due to family conditions may create the framework for workaholism later in life. Habits like workaholism formed early in life are hard to break.
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Symptoms of Workaholism
- Working extraordinarily long hours– young workers are encouraged to work more to “get ahead.” Workaholics take work to the next level by working longer and more intensely than normal workers. These workers are reluctant to share projects, pass on projects to coworkers, or even leave work early for a special occasion.
- A work schedule that allows little or no outside activities– the extreme work schedules of workaholics provide an excuse for the lack of friends or social contacts.
- Anxiety when not working– workaholics become anxious when away from work because when not at work they still focus on work and work projects. They are mentally unable to disconnect from work, even when physically away from work.
- Cognitive dissonance– workaholics have a hard time focusing on anything unrelated to work. They tend to have few or no hobbies or work diversions.
- Physical manifestations of emotional stress– workaholics may experience exhaustion, headaches, muscle problems, or illnesses.
- Social inadequacy– since the majority of waking hours are spent working, workaholics have few social contacts or interactions outside of work. Work replaces the need for social interaction.
- Lack of self-confidence– workaholics lean toward being introverted. Focusing on work means that there is less need to communicate and interact with others.
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According to epam anywhere:
Mental and emotional consequences of workaholism may include obsessive thoughts, impatience, irritation, poor concentration, and emotional disengagement. Physical symptoms may include headaches, fatigue, exacerbation of chronic diseases, stomach pain, loss of appetite, and decrease in libido.
Sadly, workaholism not only has negative effects on the personal lives of workaholics, but on their work as well. While workaholics may appear to be super-productive workers fully committed to their jobs and achieving excellent results, there does not appear to be any correlation between workaholism and work productivity. Workaholics have difficulty in team situations and rarely delegate, making collaboration challenging.
Generally, workaholism is related to increased work stress and burnout.
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My bout with workaholism and related stress started innocently enough but eventually caused physical problems. My work days started with case preparation and review at about 7:15 am. We started treating patients at 8:00 am and finished the morning when all patient care was completed. Then I changed clothes and ran to a local gym for a workout. After my workout, I ran back to the office, took a shower, and went back to work. Lunch was a quick sandwich between afternoon patient appointments. After finishing patient care I prepared for the next day’s patients. Normally I leave the office between 6:00 pm and 6:30 pm. This work schedule left little time for family activities, and like most workaholics, I was always focused on work (even when away from the office.) My practice was very successful, but I was beginning to pay the physical price for my practice success.
After about ten years of this work schedule, I began having stomach problems and daily headaches. Medications and dietary changes were minimally effective. I realized that medications were not the answer. The medications were treating the symptoms. I needed to resolve the problems.
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What Options Did I Have Available?
- Re-establish work hours– unlike some workers who cannot change the number and schedule of hours worked, I had complete control of my schedule. I changed my work schedule and dedicated adequate time off to get away from the office during lunchtime. Every effort should be made to decrease work hours if possible to conform to a more normal work schedule.
- What’s the real problem– identifying the underlying problem is a vital step towards resolving the problem. Is the tendency to be a workaholic the result of financial stress, social inadequacy, anxiety, guilt, or some childhood-related problem? Identifying the problem is a necessary step toward resolution.
- Perfect is the enemy of good– put aside perfectionism (See: BEYOND PERFECT: SEEKING A CURE FOR PERFECTIONISM.) Take steps to change a perfectionist attitude to an attitude of adequacy. This is not an excuse to produce substandard work. It is a call to produce work that is fundamentally adequate and functional.
- Time off is essential– I reconfigured my days so that my workouts at the gym occurred before my office day started. I scheduled a longer lunch time and small breaks during the day. I expanded vacation days out of the office and started actively moving towards shortening my work week.
- Leave “work” at work– I made a conscious effort to focus on family and activities outside the scope of work. One of the main problems of workaholics is the inability to turn off work. Scheduling meaningful activities and hobbies outside of work creates mental diversions that are necessary and healthy.
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What Happened?
The changes to my work schedule, calendar changes, and time away from the office yielded positive results. Within six months the stomach problems were resolved, medications were discontinued, and stress was decreased. Since my episode with stomach problems, I have had to actively control my workaholic desires. Even today I must remind myself occasionally that my Blog and Podcast are fun projects and no timelines are involved. Being a recovering workaholic means I’m a work in progress, and I still battle old habits!
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Final Thoughts
In the last two Blogs, I’ve described my journey through perfectionism and workaholism. Both problems are functional and both have a physiological basis. Both are treatable and controllable. But affecting a resolution is not easy.
Happiness results from resolving these issues. Workaholics have a Cross of Life that’s unbalanced (See: SEEKING HAPPINESS: EXPLORING THE CROSS OF LIFE.) Perfectionists want to permanently reside in one wing of the cross until everything is perfect. Self-awareness, self-examination, and self-realization are some of the first steps necessary to get better. You may also want to read: EXPLORING HAPPINESS ON THE LESS TRAVELED ROAD.
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