I’m one of the kinds who thinks that we need to do the same thing with our life. It’s one thing to work for a living. It’s another to live for working. Like I said, don’t get me wrong, most of the times, I don’t feel like I’m working, but in the meantime, I do. Your job cannot replace your life: boyfriend, children, spouse, friends, hobby, family, relaxation, sport, video games, music…
I saw many people in my entourage that are workaholics. People who work days, nights, weeks, weekends… all the time. I do this, sometimes, when I have too many things on my plate, or if I really want to do something that usually I would say no, but I always have time for myself, with my friends and my familly. When you always have too much on your plate, there is a problem: you are not enough competent for the work or your employer gives you really too much stuff to do. What is wrong, is when you do this all the time. I know people who are married and have children and one of them is never, or rarely, there to help and to show some love. Let me tell you that in all the cases I saw in the past, that usually end in two ways: a radical end of this way of life or people that suffer for this way of living. The radical end is basically people that understand that it’s not a way to live and change or the end of a relationship, friendship or marriage.
I read somewhere (sorry I don’t remember where. I think it’s from a book of Seth Godin) that workaholic isn’t sometimes good at all: some people use this term as a quality to talk about themselves. Most of the times, it’s insecure people that always need to do more to be accepted and recognize by their pairs. It’s a way for them to try to be a linchpin, someone indispensable in the business, but trust me, it’s not the good way. As I always say (because I always want to find a better way to be more productive), work less [work more intelligently], do/achieve more (I stole this sentence from someone I don’t remember too, sorry).
So what I want from you today is to check your actual life, give it a closer look. Write things down on paper if it’s help you, but think about it. See if you work too much and don’t take much time for your own life, your friends, your relative… If not, think about changing things and make your life happier. Don’t worry, I’ll do this introspection too!
Create commons image: https://www.flickr.com/photos/polkadotcreations/5343267956/
