Oh yes, your boss sure would love you and saying No to any job is blasphemy in your book.
But, what about enjoying the little frolics and fancies that life has to offer to you? When would you do that?
Present day scenario witnesses a trend wherein, more and more of us seem to be brainwashed into believing that the only way up in an organization is to be a workaholic, not just a hard worker. Saying ‘No’ is unimaginable. But, sadly, most of us think that workaholic and hard worker are synonymous. But, this is far away from the truth. Unlike a hard worker who loves her job and goes that extra mile to meet a deadline, a workaholic is totally out of control. Says Sheetal Agarwal, a consulting psychologist, “A workaholic tends to over-focus on work and have a tendency to magnify every work related incident. They draw their self-esteem from the work and feel panicky or depressed when they cant work.”
“They do not know how to draw the line.” And its scary because, its ok when your young and you can lose yourself in work. But what about a time, when work loses its charm and you need something else to fall back on…and that’s when it hits you hard…that you have nothing to fall back on!!!
These days, the pressure to succeed is very high. An inherent need to reach the top quickly is making most of us sacrifice our over all wellbeing and don the mantle of a workaholic. The other culprit is of course, high material aspirations. And most of us feel it is alright to sacrifice all at the altar of work. As Anahita Singh, financial consultant with a leading multinational bank nonchalantly says, “Working helps me prove something to myself. It helps me achieve a goal and for that, if I’ve to forgo my personal life, so be it.”
And, surprisingly, there are so many of us out there who share Anahita’s view.
Warning signs of Work holism
Your home is just another office
You take your work with you wherever you go, even on vacations.
Work makes you happier than anything else
Your time off would still have you working out work related problems.
Friends cease to matter and you can’t wait to get back to your desk and stare at the computer screen.
You are tired, socially isolated and irritable.
Fret not, if you are a workaholic. We bring you four steps to our de-addiction programme.
Reassess your Goals
Ask yourself what is it that you truly want! Do you want your existence to be controlled like an automated robot whose day dawns with the power on button of your laptop and day ends when your laptop is shut and stored away in its bag? It sounds nice, but what about enjoying the first rain…what about enjoying your child’s laughter…what about enjoying your spouses’ love…finally, that is the only thing that matters in your life.
Make time for your loved ones!
Relationships need to be worked on. And taking a relationship for granted is blasphemy. Every time you have a panic attack when you are away from work, try to ease the anxiety of the attack by leaning into your family or friends. It’s magical… what a few laughs, a kiss from your child, a hug from your spouse can do to ease the attack.
Hit the gym
You feel that you need a mission in life …a goal for your existence and sadly, work’s become synonymous to that. But, at the cost of doing a mean number to your body! Ulcers, heartburn, hypertension are very common ailments amongst the workaholics. Hit the gym and try to make your body your primary goal.
Me time
Discover ‘me’ time. Tell yourself that you are worth much more that being cooped in your desk staring and forecasting your company’s future. Indulge in activities that touch the carefree part of your soul. Could be as simple as walking along the beachfront…learning to do a number on a salsa or tango beat…retail therapy…yoga…just about anything which would act as a balm to your soul.
Source: Meenakshi Shankar/India Syndicate
Also read:
How to fight the bulge during recession
Six mantras that help you overpower stress at your workplace
