Work addiction is when you or someone you love is driven to perfect work performance. The work addict is unable to relax into a sense of accomplishment. S/he functions this way because of inaccurate self-perception. Emotional challenges, an unhappy marriage, or an ungrieved loss can all affect personal perceptions.
Work addiction is also “a condition in which individuals are unable to set healthy boundaries around their job schedules and use work as their major source of satisfaction in life.” This is a choice! Unfortunately, the choice has far-reaching consequences on the worker personally and also on his/her family and co-workers. Look closely and you can see the parallels between this and other addictive behaviors like alcoholism, drugs, gambling, shopping, or any other extreme coping mechanism. Treat work without boundaries as a slippery slope that can lead to addictive behavior instead of just going along with society norms and praising hard work and long hours.
Learn to recognize these symptoms of work addiction:
• Being obsessed with work-related success
• Coping with feelings of depression or guilt by working more
• Getting defensive toward your attitude about work
• Having an intense fear of failure especially at work
• Losing sleep either to engage in work projects or because your mind won’t quit
• Making excuses about your behavior
• Putting in long hours “for the job” even when it is not needed
• Sacrificing personal relationships because you are too busy with work
• Using work to avoid or escape from difficult relationships
• Working to avoid dealing with crises like death, divorce, or financial problems
How many of these symptoms of work addiction apply to you or someone you love? No one on their deathbed ever said “I wish I had spent more time at work.” Take action today to set boundaries and deal with the underlying causes of this problem. I can help.