You’ve committed yourself to twelve-hour workdays, you can probably juggle five tasks at once, and you respond to emails in your sleep. All these signs point to being a model employee … right? Well, not exactly. Since transforming into a stellar superhuman employee, you may have also become a workaholic. See which phase of workaholism you’re in and how over-commitment to your job might be putting your sanity, health, and personal relationships at risk.
1. You’re the first to arrive on Mondays and the last to leave on Fridays.
Your motto is often go big or go home, so you’ll work long hours to get the job done. You’re an overachiever in every sense, and you won’t let anyone outshine you. Even on your days off, you’re glued to your BlackBerry—after all, your work email is conveniently hooked up to your personal mobile device. At this point, you’re potentially toeing the line between optimism and delusion, meaning you’re most likely in denial about your extreme working habits. You’re telling your friends and family, “Don’t worry! I’ll be there!” Luckily you haven’t missed any major life events like weddings and graduations … yet.
2. You no longer keep in touch with friends and/or you have a troubled personal life.
At this stage, your work life slowly (or maybe quickly) takes over. Prior to this stage, you were able to attend life’s major milestones, but you now find yourself giving excuses about your absence in the most creative ways. You really want to be there! You just can’t make it because there is “so much work to be done.” If you are in a relationship, you might also find a disgruntled significant other becoming more hostile as time goes by. Your belief that work takes precedence over your relationship and leisure time might account for the gap widening between the two of you. You might be thinking, “But my happiness is found in my work. Why doesn’t anyone understand?” Personal relationships need the same care and attention that you’ve dedicated to your work life.
