Workaholics are identified as workaholics; compulsive or work-dependent worker.

1. Workaholic & workaholism

Workaholism it is an addiction in which the individual consumes considerable and exaggerated periods of time for work, activities and thoughts. This addition can be defined as an irrational commitment to excessive work and equates work dependency with other dependencies.

Workaholics are individuals who like to be constantly full of work, but with the exception of having the uncontrollable need to work incessantly, thinking about work even when they are not at work, regardless of putting their health or happiness at risk, since their interpersonal and social relationships are placed in second place in favor of work.

These individuals can be extremely productive, perfectionist, rigid and inflexible, leading to negative changes in their performance, which can lead to a high price, both for the individual and for the organization, since they do not delegate tasks, which can create conflicts and difficulties for your co-workers. Workaholics always devote more time and thoughts to their work than the situation demands.

The motivation to work excessively is not because they like their work or aspire to great achievements, but because they are perfectionists and set excessively strict standards.

2. Types of Workaholic

Workaholics can be divided into three different behavior patterns:

• The compulsive-dependent: compulsion to work excessively or irrationally and even when recognizing this excess, cannot control the workload;
• The perfectionist workaholic: features rigidity and inflexibility, tries to dominate the environment and control the work and his colleagues;
• The achievement-oriented workaholic: has strong achievement motivation, a strong ability to deal with delayed rewards, and strives to excel in everything he does.

Life beyond the working area is neglected. The wokaholic recognizes overwork but feels unable to reduce or control and continues to work despite family (eg, emotional absence, divorce), social (eg, isolation) and health (eg: anxiety, sleep disturbances) consequences .

3. Warning Signs

Some characteristics can be identified in the behavior of workaholics:

1. 1. Willingness to work hard:you have a broad view of what your job involves and work much longer than you should;
   2. Time: uses lists and other tools like virtual applications to make the most of your time in the best possible way;
   3. Working hours:works long hours and doesn’t mind constantly working at this pace;
   4. Rest: has very shallow sleep habits, possibly suffers from insomnia. Sleeps little and doesn’t miss rest during the day;
   5. Food:does not complete the lunch break or have lunch at the office desk, without interrupting work;
   6. Leisure:unable to enjoy leisure time and needs to be constantly involved in some task or activity;
   7. Retirement:forbidden word next to a workaholic, as he is terrified of not working, and much more of being retired;
   8. Family: does not know how to set aside time exclusively for the family. Live full of cell phones and other devices during meals. To make the most of the time, he takes his family on business trips;
   9. Excellence: he is driven by the desire to be the best at everything he does. You may have difficulty sharing credit for your actions with other people and you don’t know how to take second place;
   10. Workplace: has the ability to work anywhere; in the bathroom, on vacation, in the hospital, in the car.

Can identify with the following situations:

1. 1. Cancel personal commitments because of work?
   2. Do you exceed the hours you are asked to do at work?
   3. Do you take work home?
   4. Think about work?
   5. Do you have difficulty getting off work when you get home?
   6. Do you prioritize work over other areas of your life?

SUMMARY

It’s important to work well and always give our best. Showing commitment to the organization you work for can be good for career development – and it can be an advantage over other professionals with similar performance. But when it starts to become evident that it’s a workaholicand failing to strike a sensible work-life balance, he is cultivating the ground for long-term failure.

If you are or know someone who is going through this phase, get help. Get in touch with us!