My name is Bob and I’m a Workaholic

It didn’t happen overnight. As a matter of fact I didn’t even see it coming but in my quest to live a more fulfilling life I have come to find out that I am indeed an addict. Like most addicts, the drug of choice is usually not very harmful if consumed in moderation. However when the product takes control of your life and you begin to sacrifice other more important things to get another fix, then you have a problem.

My drug of choice was work.

I didn’t see it happening then but looking back I can tell you when the first symptom started. It began with the grass and I don’t mean pot, I mean the lawn. I realized that I could make more money if I hired someone to cut my grass and I went to work. So… I gave up cutting the grass and went to work instead. It didn’t stop there; the vacations became fewer and shorter and the hours at work got longer. I soon swapped the fishing pole for a laptop and evenings with my wife for time pleasing clients and I justified it with the toys, big house and the new cars I was able to purchase. It wasn’t long before pagers turned into cell phones and PDA’s turned into blackberries.

Like most addicts, you don’t realize what you give up to get your next fix until you almost lose it. When I swapped cutting my grass for work, the lawn wasn’t all I was gave up. I also gave up giving my (then) 2 year old son a ride on my lap, allowing him to steer the tractor with dad. I gave up laughter and late night board games with my wife and even though I won’t go into detail I will let you know that it didn’t end there. I almost gave up my marriage.  Since quitting that lifestyle and thinking back, I still can’t believe I gave up time with my wife and my boys just so I can work more. Boy was I a schmuck.

Did I enjoy working so hard? I loved it; succeeding at work bought me pleasure and I was good at it. The more I worked the larger the company became and the more it needed me, so the more I worked.

What I didn’t realize was that my wife and children needed me too; and I loved them more. Another thing I have come to notice is that the more I worked, the less I laughed and the more serious I became. I was turning into a successful bore. Addicts are usually not fun, the only thing they think about is their drug of choice and for me; I would work hard so I could take a nice vacation but while I was on vacation, all I thought about was work! Wow talk about being sick!

While there is nothing wrong with working hard and enjoying your job; life is more than the next deal, project or client. It’s about living, loving and laughing and it’s about helping others to live, love and laugh at the same time; especially those close to you.

Rather than becoming addicted to work, lets get addicted to life. Let’s enjoy life, our children and our significant others more. Should we work hard? Absolutely! But let us work hard so we can live an awesome, fulfilling life; not so we can have “Here lies a Hard Worker” written on our tombstone.

I am going to start a series of posts called: 12 steps for Workaholics. In these posts I will share tips and techniques that will help bring balance back to your life and with that balance; joy, laughter and freedom!

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Make it a Great Life!

Bob