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To change a workaholic's ways, designate some work-free zones.
RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—Spanish and Dutch researchers analyzing and identifying workaholics confirmed what U.S. researchers in the field already knew—a workaholic is identified as someone who works excessively and compulsively. "Here's the big deal. It's actually a process addiction, much like compulsive gambling," explains psychotherapist Bryan E. Robinson, PhD, author of Chained to the Desk: A Guidebook for Workaholics, Their Partners and Children, and the Clinicians Who Treat Them
THE DETAILS: Robinson, a professor emeritus at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, developed WART—the Work Addiction Risk Test—more than 10 years ago, and it's a popular tool used clinically around the world to identify workaholism. This new scale, published by Dutch and Spanish researchers in the Spanish journal Psicothema, takes many components of Robinson's test and adds a few new ones, but the general idea is similar to existing tests. The 17-part survey involves participants ranking some of the following questions, among others, from 1 (almost never) to 4 (almost always):
I often wish I weren’t so committed to my work.
I seem to be in a hurry and racing against the clock.
I find myself continuing work after my coworkers have called it quits.
It’s important for me to work hard even when I don’t enjoy what I’m doing.
I stay busy and keep my irons in the fire.
I feel guilty when I am not working on something.
I feel guilty when I take time off work.
It is hard for me to relax when I’m not working.
It's not a diagnosis—that would take the full survey, administered by a trained researcher—but the higher your scores, the more likely you are to have workaholic tendencies.
More about balancing work and health:
Don't Worry Yourself into a Sick Day
Is Your Job Too Boring?
Why Taking Work Home Hurts Your Health
Get Outside for a Moving Meeting!
WHAT IT MEANS: Those questions are meant for clinical settings, but as Robinson explains, there are many things family members and even workaholics themselves can do to identify a problem, and work toward a fix. And while most of us have pulled an all-nighter here or there to complete a project, that doesn't define a true workaholic, who may actually seek out high-pressure jobs, or use work the way a gambler binges on betting. "A workaholic is someone who does it regularly and is out of control with it," Robinson says.
Workaholism
Workaholism is not the same as working hard.Despite logging in an extraordinary amount of hours and sacrificing their health and loved ones for their jobs, workaholics are frequently ineffective employees.Although the term workaholic usually has a negative connotation, it is sometimes used by people wishing to express their devotion to one's career in positive terms. The "work" in question is usually associated with a paying job, but it may also refer to independent pursuits such as sports, music and art. A workaholic in the negative sense is popularly characterized by a neglect of family and other social relations. Corporate Hospitality Jobs
Workaholic husband
Bringing up this topic is a sore subject with my husband. He gets up at 3:30 am M-F to be at work by 5:30 and then works until about 4:00 - 4:30 pm. He won't take sick days and when he does take off early, it's usually to come home to cut the grass or other chores around the house. He brings home his laptop and usually does a couple of hours of work over the weekend and maybe 1/2 - 1 hour during the week. On average, I'd say it's 60 hours a week. I say he's crazy to dedicate his life to work but he says that I don't understand that that is what it takes to be successful and keep your job. He has been an engineer at the same place for over 20 years and I admire that he still likes his job and is willing to work so hard. But I do feel we don't connect during the week and the stress is going to get to him. He wants to keep up the pace he set for himself and since I only make a little money with odd jobs while raising the kids, I feel as I don't have a lot of ground to stand on. The only thing I can think of to do is print out these kind of articles and maybe before retirement it will sink in.
Workaholic
I'm collecting Social Security and I am a freelance photographer. I enjoy working very much. I've been a photographer in one form or another all my life and in a sense, addicted to it. I don't work as hard now as I use to. Assignments have slowed down somewhat which sometimes concerns me. I feel I have to keep going to be a contributing member of society. If I stop working and doing what I love, I will become a burden on society and my family. I don't want that. I know sometime in the future, I will have to face that fact but as long as I'm able, I'll keep doing what I love.