Section B

Are You a Workaholic?

There's a big distinction between working hard and being a workaholic.

Working hard involves being organized, focused, getting a lot of work done, knowing when to stop, and having a life other than work. Workaholics, on the other hand, are often disorganized, always find reasons for working more, feel lost without work to do, hide from problems through work, don't know how or when to relax, bring work home from the office, can't communicate well with fellow workers and family members, and have unbalanced, one-dimensional lives.

Workaholics, like those who are constantly drunk, suffer from a controlling habit, usually defined as compelling behavior despite negative consequences. They are sometimes pushed into their habit by their work beliefs, by workaholic role models, and by a work system that automatically sanctions workaholism. Despite lip service to the contrary ("a balanced employee is a productive employee"), most employers want loyal employees who work longer hours, rewarding them with higher pay and better benefits. In many companies, workers unwilling to burn the midnight oil are at risk. Certainly, they hazard their jobs by working normal hours. Americans tend to become trapped in a working and spending consumption mode, driven by merchants, that leads them to rack up their expectations.

According to some psychology counselors, workaholism can be both good and bad for us. It can fuel a sense of self-worth and accomplishment. And we get paid for it and praised for it, which produces good feelings we may not necessarily be able to attain in other parts of our lives.

Workaholism is a problem that has been evident since the Stone Age — whenever people have sought to escape other parts of their lives through work. Our parents and grandparents worked very hard, but theirs was more of a physical work. Ours has more stress in it, especially in these days of rising competition and shrinking companies. The companies are getting smaller and smaller because of bleak economic conditions and employees fear for their jobs — so they work longer hours. We seem to be more in the fast lane than ever before.

Psychology counselors have noticed three types of workaholics:

·People with high energy that needs discharging.

·Very competitive people who have a strong need to prove themselves and tie their self-worth to their work.

·People who use work to escape from something, such as grief, frustration or guilt. They keep themselves so busy that they have no time or energy to deal with their real problems.

These three types generally have the same traits. They can't stand not being active. They find it hard to go on vacation. They're more comfortable being with fellow workers than with family and friends. They equate self-worth and success with hard work. They'd rather be at work than elsewhere or doing anything else.

Workaholics presumably view their work habits through denial and rationalization. They deny the excessive time they're devoting to work, and they rationalize that their schedule is for the family and essential to being promoted. They also tend to view themselves and their work as indispensable and their working long hours as commitment to the company. Of course there is nothing wrong with their commitment, ambition and durable energy. But what is wrong is that these things often come in at a high price to their health and the welfare of their families.

As workaholics tend to put all their eggs in one basket, their job, they can be helped by spreading these eggs into several baskets. Psychology counselors, for example, often help these people by asking about the hobbies they enjoyed in the past and don't have any more now. That kind of question can often get them started toward regaining more of a balance in their lives.

To be a healthy person physically and psychologically, one should lead a balanced life, summarize some psychology experts. Those little things — reading mystery novels, playing volleyball, spending time with family and friends, playing with the dog, going fishing — may seem relatively insignificant means to a healthy end. They can be at least as rewarding as work.