12 Steps for the Workaholic (part2)

If you haven’t read Steps 1-6 Read this first.

Step 7: Become an expert at managing your time. Always do the most important tasks first; these are the ones that would make you stay late if you didn’t get them done. Getting them out of the way first will improve your chances of being able to leave on time.
Step 8: Become a master at delegating your work and training others. You WANT to make sure you are not the only one with the skills and knowledge or you will be the only one that gets called upon to handle those things. Also, know when to keep your mouth shut. The more people know what you can do, the more they will call on you. A know-it-all can quickly become a do it all.
Step 9: Say NO more often. Remember you can’t be in 2 places at once so when you say yes to the boss or the client you may be saying No to your spouse, children or health. Learn a few tips how to say no here.
Step 10: Know when to say; “That’s good enough”. Stop being a perfectionist. Ask yourself, “What is the big deal?” and “So what” more often. Staying late might make something perfect and you look like a great employee, but it also might make you a lousy spouse or parent. Weigh the cost.
Step 11: Take care of your health. Eat right, exercise and get plenty of rest. You will be surprised at how much easier the day seems to go when your mind and body are operating peak efficiency.
Step 12: Intentionally plan and keep social commitments. Relationships are important to our health and well being. Make it a point to expand your social network by inviting guests over, going to dinner or getting involved in a local meetup group.

Bonus Step and one I shouldn’t have to mention: Use Your Vacation & Comp Time! I have spoke with a number of people that were facing death and not one of them ever said they wished they worked more.

If you have some other ideas how to prevent from becoming addicted to work please leave them in the comment section for others to read.

Work Hard this week but……… Play and love your family Harder!

Make it a great week!

Bob

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12 Steps for the Workaholic (part1)

Before I begin sharing steps to help workaholics let’s define what a workaholic is.

If you stay late finishing up a task because you want to, not because you have to and in doing so you miss your child’s birthday party; You might be a workaholic

If you go on vacation and can’t enjoy the sunset without checking your blackberry. You might be a workaholic.

If you check your email during your child’s ball game, in the middle of the night or during meals. You might be a workaholic.

If you take your cell phone, PDA and Laptop on vacation; You might be a workaholic.

If you call the office even though you left your number for emergencies just to see if everything is OK on your days off; You might be a workaholic.

Collect Friends and Memories, Not Stuff!

This is a repost from an earlier blog that I felt was worth sharing to all of my new subscribers. Enjoy.

I have moved quite a bit in my 51 years; at last count it was 16 times. The last few years have been getting a little easier because with each move comes another yard sale and a trip to Goodwill where we sell or give away all of the excess stuff we have accumulated. If we didn’t clear out the excess we would need a 4,000 square foot house with a three car garage by now. Lately though I have been trying to live a simpler life and recommend everyone try it. Not only does it leave you with a lot more money in your pocket at the end of the month, it is easier on your mind and it gives you the time to do what you really love. It is amazing how much better one feels when they get rid of the clutter in their life. Remember that feel you get right after cleaning up the yard, house, car or workbench? Imagine how it would feel if your entire life was clean and organized. Here are a few tips to get started.

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’m a Bad Husband? You have got to be kidding me!

That was the first thing that ran through my mind when I found the phone book open to divorce attorneys. I was home every night, my wife didn’t have to work, she drove a Lincoln Town Car, could shop whenever and wherever she wanted, I didn’t cheat on her, wasn’t a drunk and never abused her physically. Mentally? Well that was another lesson I had yet to learn. I didn’t understand what she wanted from a husband. I thought I was doing the right thing by being the provider I was supposed to be. It never dawned on me that without me by her side those things were just that; things. They were a lousy substitute for me.

2 Questions That Can Change Your Life

“Hey mom! Why do you cut the bone off the end of the ham?” the child asked. “You know? I am not sure; I guess it’s because my mother always did it. Why don’t you go into the living room and ask her why?“ Mom replied. “ Hey Grandma! Why did you cut the bone off the end of the ham?” Its simple grandma answered; “It wouldn’t fit in the oven!”

How many things do you partake in simply because that is what you have always done?

Two of the shortest but most powerful questions you can ask yourself are;

Eagles and Turkeys Don’t Flock Together.

“You can’t soar with the eagles if you’re spending all your time with the turkeys”

It’s been written that if I were to examine the lives of 5 of your closest friends I could probably describe your life pretty accurately. People tend to fellowship with those that have a very similar lifestyle. They shop at the same type of stores, their income brackets are usually very close, they have similar hobbies and they even tend to eat at the same kind of restaurants. While in and of itself this is not bad, it does tend to pose a problem for those wanting to separate themselves from the rest of the pack and move upward. Even though friends and co-workers can do a pretty good job of keeping us where we are at they do very little in the way of assisting us up the ladder.

Become Success Minded!

Employers don’t like whiners, gossipers or complainers. None of those traits bring improvement to a bad situation and as a matter of fact, they cost companies money in lost productivity. The only thing that corrects problems or changes poor performance are solutions. That is where your mind needs to be.

If you are going to simplify your life you need to make sure you spend more time focusing on positive productive thoughts than entertaining negative destructive ones.

If you come across something that isn’t working or is causing a problem, instead of just bringing a complaint to your employer, try bringing with it a few ideas that will solve the problem. Employers are looking for people that think for themselves; the kind of person that sees a problem and corrects it immediately whether they caused it or not. Comments like “It’s not my job”, or “I didn’t do it” are not what employers want to hear. They look for successful results and the more problems you can solve, the more successful YOU will become in the process.