Workaholism: Learn about it’s consequences and know how to help a workaholic

It is a concept that perhaps is not known much yet, it has its own terminology and types: the workaholism.

The workaholism is the term for those with an exaggerated need to work, endangering their health, happiness and interpersonal relationships. It can even be presented as the addiction to an incessant activity with the belief that if you are not active you do not have the right to enjoy life. Regularly are people who work more than 50 hours a week who face this type of behavior.

Some researchers on the subject such as Scott, Moore and Miceli, suggest that there are at least three types of workaholics:
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1. Goal-oriented: objectives are set and pursued as definitive goals, they do not like to fail.
2. Compulsive-dependent: they need a job to do to feel useful within the company.
3. Perfectionists: no mistakes are allowed in what is done, they have to carry a "zero error" pattern in their performance, or frustration will hit the employee.

Characteristics of a workaholic employee

• Problems of all kinds (it occurs more in men than in women)
• Always prioritize work
• Excess of energy
• Family care neglect
• Need for control in everything that is done
• Inability to delegate to something or someone
• Self-esteem linked to results obtained in the company
• Occupational "presentism" (going to work on weekends or when sick)

Other characteristics of the workaholic personality are:

• Urgency-impatience
• Hostility
• About commitment

Factors that can cause workaholism:

1. Demanding companies that neglect personal well-being
2. Need to work more to obtain the income that was obtained before, or that is thought to be sufficient to continue living stable.
3. Blurred line between home and work, you spend less time at home to cover what you can at work.
4. Emphasis on ambitious deadlines (dates of delivery of a labor project or something similar)

Myths of workaholism:

• "Workaholism makes us more productive"
• "Nobody dies of working hard"
• "Workaholism can be managed with stress reduction techniques of all kinds"

Why being a workaholic is not a good lifestyle recommended?
Because when we suffer from this our production goes down, the anxiety increases and the labor and personal needs become a greater burden in our life, disregarding that, one has a life to do on the outside too, with people of all kinds that will support our rhythm and allow us to breathe a bit on the way.

It is important to address the issue with people with this lifestyle, and explain the problems that cause them. We can keep in mind the following points:

1. Balance between work, love and play; balance between the sense of purpose and the sense of humor. With this we seek that our life is not just a pole, but that all others have their respective space in our lives to move forward with stability.
2. Work with focus, meaning, support and parameters. Yes, our work is certainly important, but we are too. We can not neglect friendships or sentimental relationships because they are those that represent a strong pillar in our lives and that constitute part of the stability that we seek to recover.
3. Time management. There is always something we can do for ourselves in any other place, new courses or lifelong hobbies.
4. Examine organizational expectations. We know that you want to fulfill everything to the letter, and sometimes even more, but sometimes you just have to stick to what the company says, it's that easy, that simple, without so many detours and unnecessary burdens in our lives that do not correspond to us.

Although it will not be easy to get out of the routine of workaholism, it can be achieved through the demarcation of work outside the office, seeking to use our time in activities that we enjoy, such as resting, being with family or friends, and slightly avoiding work issues so as not to adopt an office attitude even outside of it.

Workaholism in our lives is something that happened, happens and will happen, but we always have alternatives to get out of this state. Do not think that we lose time or that we are going away in nothing if we are not working, sometimes the time with oneself is the best pastime we have.

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Alejandro Llanas
​IT Recruiter Intern