How to Overcome Work Addiction

So many people hear the term “workaholic” and think it’s being used in a complimentary sense in buzzword-driven offices. It’s even highlighted in many online publications as a sign of being a part of “hustle culture” and the side-hustle economy. But the truth is, work addiction is a serious illness that can have devastating effects on your life, both personally as well as professionally. 

Many people wonder how they can recognize the signs of work addiction, and how it’s different from just being a hard worker or model employee. There are some definitive indicators that someone may be addicted to work, but there are also some very actionable tips on how they can start to overcome a work addiction. We’re going to take a look at these as well as what to do if you think you, or someone you care about, may be living with a work addiction.

Common Signs Of Work Addiction

Spending Most Of Your Time At Work

There are nearly 170 hours in a single week, and your workweek should only take about a quarter of that. If you start to approach 50%, you may need to step back and reassess.

Work Comes Home

Work coming home consistently is a good indicator that you cannot enforce the boundaries between personal time and professional time. This can result in you missing important family moments.

You Work To Escape Or Cope

If you work as a way to escape potentially unpleasant feelings, like depression or loneliness, it means you’re leaving those feelings for just when you’re at home. It also means that you’ll begin making more and more excuses to avoid going back home. 

You Work To Feel Good

We don’t mean your career is fulfilling, we mean that you work because it is one of the few, or maybe the only, way that you can feel good. Completing work is rewarding for the brain, and that can create an addictive reward cycle for an individual. 

Not Working Creates Stress For You

If you avoid stopping working because when you do, all you do is think about work, you may have a problem. If you don’t take enough breaks of meaningful length and distance from work, overtime you may see your productivity and quality of work plummet.

Tips On How To Overcome Work Addiction

The first thing you can do is make a firm commitment to fix the problem. For added accountability, you can make this commitment to or with someone else, who can help keep you focused. You’ll have a much easier time if you are clear from the outset that it will be a difficult journey, and allow yourself plenty of room to learn and make mistakes. 

If you’re seeking treatment for your work addiction, it may be a good idea to inform your boss (if you have one) that you’re seeking treatment for work addiction. Not only will it let them know you have a problem, but that you’re seeking help and may need support on their end in regards to your work schedule or taking time off. It will also let them know why they may not see you burning the candle at both ends, so to speak.

Begin setting boundaries for yourself, such as scheduling intentional rest, pledging to not access work email from home, and so on. This can be a challenge if you are a remote worker, but that extra effort reminds you how important the separation between work and life is.

Work Addiction Is No Laughable Trend

If you or someone close to you is living with work addiction, it can mean missing some of the most important parts of life. Reach out to the experts at Capo Canyon, and we can help create a personalized treatment plan that won’t disrupt your life but will help connect you with the resources you need to heal.