How becoming a Workaholic can Affect your overall well being
Picture this.
It is Saturday night. Her eyes are strained with exhaustion but she sets up her computer and worked for five hours straight on a new corporate pitch. She drinks two glasses of Chardonnay. Then she has some Columbian coffee and continues working. She fights the sleep and keeps looking at the clock on her kitchen wall. The hours are passing rapidly. Her eyes are glued to the screen and she fills up on more coffee to stay awake. She is determined to stay working until the presentation and brief are finished. She fears that if she leaves it until tomorrow, she would lose her thought process. It is damp and freezing outside. All of a sudden, she finds herself chewing on a finger and wondering what everyone else from her office is doing that night. They were probably stumbling out of a club by now. Chances of any of her colleagues working at the weekend are slim.
She simply can not concentrate any longer. She shuts down her computer. Sharp pain stabs through her lower back and her palms are sweaty, shaking slightly. There is tension everywhere, in her shoulders particularly. She arches backwards. She takes a hot shower somewhere around four in the morning. She tilts her face up towards the powerful sprays of water, perhaps trying to wash away the anxiety. She crawls under the covers just as light is breaking outside. She sleeps straight through for the first time in weeks. She jumps awake, squinting in the light. Her phone is ringing. She ignores it, sits up in the bed and tries to focus on her watch. It is after midday. Twenty-four hours to go until the pitch is due. This is her first waking thought. It is what she goes to bed with and her last thought every night. Her body aches. She wills herself to stay calm. It is raining heavily outside. She craves an espresso from her local café. Another day’s work lies ahead and she can not face leaving the house.
The worry that is endured by a workaholic is constant and unrealistic. They simply can not see beyond their day to day role, the deadlines appear endless and when stress takes over, it is all-consuming and inescapable. Friends and family fade into the distance and often one’s own health takes a very definite back seat. It can start out as simply being ‘wrapped up’ in work. In the beginning, boundaries are very often set, even for those who are highly ambitious and fond of a real challenge. Many people start off by making inward promises. They pretend to themselves that they will make time for their personal lives and for the people that matter, refusing to let work commitments interfere with romance or friendships. They turn off their phones at weekends and try to avoid talking about the daily woes of their jobs too much for fear it would take over the more important things in life. This however is easier to intend than to maintain.
Even when someone thrives on operating in a fast-paced business environment and on juggling deadlines, it can often reach a point where it is simply impossible to take on any more. Work becomes a complete obsession and there is no time for life outside the office. The ‘workaholic’ stops having fun. They can not switch off and usually they clock up huge hours. They spend unnecessary time on various projects, pouring over things from morning until night and failing to engage anyone else or ask for help. Senior management tend not frown upon this and often the fact that they are so impressed with the workaholic’s enthusiasm and their ability to please clients, spurs the person on to work even harder and for longer.
Of course, technology means that even when they are at home, those with an inability to switch off are constantly checking their messages and worrying about what is coming the next day. The burden of instant communiqué turns life on its head. Often they are desperate to regain a sense of balance, but just don’t know how any more and things spiral out of control. While it is not usually the intention, they often push themselves to the edge and it reaches a point where they are so stressed, they no longer have the energy or capability to actually perform the job they so desperately wish to do.
Taking a holiday ignites fear in the workaholic. It can make them feel uncomfortable and edgy. There are no boundaries between the workaholic and his or her job, the line simply breaks down. The two merge. Work defines them. Some become unpredictable and constantly seek reassurance. A lack of balance in life is a seriously damaging road to take. Fatigue, stress and anxiety are often just the beginning. There is a lot to be said for simply learning to say no, for taking a step back or at least leaving the office on time and without a briefcase or laptop in hand. Life is short. It is so crucially important to keep in mind that whilst you can enjoy what you do professionally, it is not who you are, it is not what you will be remembered for or at least it shouldn’t be.
