Own Your Future Continued…
Understand what are your addictions about and make them work in your favor….
Reflecting a bit more on where my true addiction resided in relation to work and achievement, I realized that it was not fully about work but the high (adrenaline rush) that the achievement provided me. Let me explain a bit more what I mean.
Through achievement voids in other areas of our life are filled such as self-worth, power, being accepted, feeling valued, belonging, a believe that I am enough, and/or many others. It is a way in which we find validation. This external validation many times can become our identity, generating an attachment to its source; in this case to work.
With time, if not made conscious, like it happened to me, a codependency to work is created, typically leading to a non-ending cycle marked by self-sacrifice, focus on others' needs, suppression of one's own emotions, and attempts to control or fix other people's problems.
That is how I learned that by becoming more self-aware of the motivations for my workaholism and “achievement high” that I was able to turn things around. I don’t want to give the impression that achievement and work are an evil. On the contrary they area powerful drivers in our life that we should cultivate to help us move forward. In the end our intentions are what make the difference.
Avoid being the frog that after falling into a pan where water is being brought to a boil continues to adjust to the heat, unaware of the dangers of not reacting and getting away before the water reaches boiling point. In our case the raise in temperature may be reflected in lack of sleep, stress, anxiety, illnesses, and more. We assume this disconnected lifestyle is normal and the way to be… leading to unexpected and undesired consequences.
The good news is that this situation can be changed! The First Step is to identify if you may be exposed to this addiction. Take a minute to answer the questions below:
1. Are your first and last thoughts of the day related to work?
2. Do you wake up in the middle of the night with an idea or anxious about work?
3. Have you sent emails in the middle of the night to be able to go back to sleep?
4. Do you regularly work during the weekends (2+ hours)?
5. Often you miss or are absent minded at family and friend’s events due to work commitments?
6. Do you find yourself regularly forgetting to take breaks to eat, rest and recharge (e.g. including going to the restroom)?
7. Are you constantly checking your work phone for emails and messages?
8. Do you have the urge to respond immediately to work requests at all times, even if they interfere with your personal life activities?
9. Is it easier to decline a personal call vs. a work call?
10. Most of your time learning new things is focused on supporting your professional life advancement?
11. If more time is needed to accomplish work activities, the first thing to be dropped is my self-care time (e.g. hobbies, exercise, rest, social life, etc.)?
12. Do you find yourself at the end of the work week feeling lonely and empty, wanting to connect with friends or loved ones or wanting to be on a date?
If you answered 5 questions or more with a YES…. It may be a good time to STOP to re-evaluate. Work in this case show us the symptoms. There are ways to break addiction patterns to work and achievement. Would you like to make a change and learn how to transform your reality to mold the life experience that you want?
TAKE ACTION NOW! Write in the comment box I AM READY!
I would like to share with you the other steps and some tips that may help you start turning-around your current situation.