At some point in our careers, we will likely end up working long hours. Maybe it’s from the “peak” season in your industry, such as tax season for accountants. Perhaps your work is experiencing a staff shortage, or you have extra projects you were asked to help with. Working long hours isn’t that uncommon, especially during these challenging times when we are all just trying to get slightly ahead or stay afloat.

However, contrary to popular belief, working long hours does not make you a workaholic. Ultimately, we are all just trying to do our best, and sometimes that means less play and more work. So, what, then, exactly, is a workaholic? Let’s go over this because, unlike working long hours, workaholism can be a problem.

What Is A Workaholic?

Just because you put in a lot of hours at work does not automatically mean you are addicted to working. Today, more and more people are becoming addicted to work. Thanks to technology and working from home, bringing your projects home with you through the week or on the weekends is happening more frequently.

Because of this, many people are finding it hard to “switch off” from their working hours to personal free time. In general, we can say that someone may be a workaholic if they:

• Try to free up as much time as possible so they can work
• Work to minimize feelings of anxiety or depression
• Feel excessively guilty when not working or doing something for work
• Make hobbies and interests less of a priority in the name of being able to work more
• See a decline in health over a long period of time because of working a lot
• Have been told to cut down on working so much either by family members or even other coworkers

What Are The Consequences Of Being A Workaholic?

Hardworking. Go-getter. High-achieving. All fantastic qualities, to be sure. After all, there’s something to be admired when someone is always being financially smart and intuitive about their family’s future. However, moderation is essential to living a healthy, balanced life. There have been many studies done that suggest that working too long hours for too long can actually decrease productivity. While being unable to detach from working such long hours may increase production levels, it is only for the short term. And on top of that, it can cause personal relationships to be damaged in the process.

Someone working more than 50 hours per week isn’t necessarily a bad thing. However, once these 50+ hour workweeks begin happening more frequently over a few months, we start to see the true difference between working a lot of hours vs. being a workaholic. It can also lead to mental health disorders such as burnout, anxiety, and depression.

How To Break The Cycle Of Being A Workaholic

Maybe working long hours became necessary for one reason or the next. But when it turns into never being able to stay away from work, even in your free time, it can start to cause major issues in all areas of your life. If you are starting to think you are a workaholic, don’t get too caught up in this detail or shame yourself if you realize that you have been doing this. We all have underlying motivations and factors that influence how we behave and think in this world. In most cases, a workaholic unknowingly uses their work to avoid something in their personal life.

If you are ready to break the cycle of work so you can have a more healthy balanced life, reach out to me for anxiety treatment. I can help you find out why you are working so much that goes beyond the “I need more money!” mentality.