20 Stories About Workaholics That Prove That Overwork Can Also Disrupt Your Life

There is a gulf between a hardworking person and a workaholic. The first knows her own worth and knows when it’s time to stop, while the second has already lost track of time and overloaded herself so much that she can no longer contain the reins of her life. Work is like a predator that you need to watch out for, otherwise you’ll lose control of the situation and end up having your personal life devoured instantly.

We, from incredible.club, we believe that the ability to relax is as important as the ability to earn money. Maintaining a balance between work and rest can help you achieve harmony in different areas of life.

I’m a neurologist, but I also deal with tons of documentation and all that standard bureaucracy: date, name, signature and stamp. One day I decided to change my cell phone plan and went to the operator’s store. I carefully read the new contract they gave me and, as usual, I had to date and sign it. Automatically, I took the stamp out of the bag and stamped over my signature. I looked up and met the attendant’s strange gaze.
“Need anything else?”
“No, that’s all.
I only understood the comic side of the situation when I got home. © ayushkaayu / PikabuI got home tired from work, parked the car and locked it using the keyfob. When I was at my apartment door, I kept pressing the remote to open it. I even got angry that the door wouldn’t open. © Tatjana Matrjonina / FacebookOne day I woke up in the morning and the first thing on my mind was work. I got up, showered and went to the office because I have 24/7 access. A few hours later, I realized something strange: I was alone. While wondering why everyone was late, I realized it was an off day. © Janin Lyndovsky / Quora

I am currently trying not to overwhelm myself and get out of the habit of answering after-hours calls. The other day, my boss called before work hours, and I didn’t answer. But, my God, how difficult it was, the hand managed to stretch itself. I’m a workaholic, and for me it’s important to work for a reason: so that I can be praised and feel useful. Now I try to apply the “I don’t get paid for this” principle, but it’s not easy. © Подслушано / VKRecently a friend told me that she sought a document to withdraw citizenship, and an official gave her a form to fill out. She automatically corrected the mistakes and asked him to redo it. The surprised employee apologized and jokingly asked: “Are you a teacher?” Her: “Yeah, how did you know?” He simply showed the paper with the corrections. Finally, he corrected it, printed a new form with no errors, and thanked him for the corrections. © PomidorniyBochok / PikabuLate at night, leaving the office with a colleague, I say:
— I’m going on vacation the day after tomorrow and I’m not going to work, I’m not even going to take my laptop with me!
And the colleague, who was going on vacation, said:
“I’m not going to work on my day off either!”
In silence, I just looked at her hand holding the notebook. © Eliza / AdMe

My friend is a lawyer and is a workaholic. She always stops by the office at night after going out with friends to do some more work. I arranged to meet her for a weekend in her city. Prior to that, she had worked 12-hour days for an entire month with no time off. When I was waiting for her at the airport, I got a call from her saying that her back had locked in her office chair, but that she would come to the airport to meet me as soon as she got out of the hospital after getting an injection. Finally, she spent two weeks in the hospital, but even so, she got a laptop and continued working. © Ekaterina Poroshina / AdMeI am scolded by my husband, parents and friends. And I completely agree with them: it’s very bad to overwork, to devote all your free time to your career and not rest. I understand all of this, but when my boss texts me at 9 pm about a new urgent task to optimize a huge website, I can’t help myself. © nasolini / LiveJournalI’m a workaholic. I just accept that it’s time to sleep and postpone work the moment I get up from the table and realize I’m already babbling nonsense around the house. © Подслушано / VKOs workaholics prefer to work instead of doing anything else. I sleep or work. If I do anything else, the guilt kills me. Working makes you feel confident, always alert. When you are working, there is no space or time for useless thoughts. © Anusree Basu / Quora

I gave English classes to a plant manager who needed the language to facilitate negotiations with foreign partners. In one of the classes, I handed him a test with questions. He looked at me, thought for a while, wrote “I approve” on the test, then signed and dated it. There was a silence, and when he realized what he had done he started to laugh. © PolAnd1962 / PikabuMy husband is a relentless workaholic. He can’t help but complete a task because he thinks that if he doesn’t do it and leaves it to a colleague, then the colleague is likely to slop or fail to do so. And then he will have to redo everything. © kakyr / AdMeI used to work long hours a day for several years. I had my own tricks to keep myself on my toes. For example, every now and then I would “reset myself” by falling asleep for a few minutes. I could maintain a state of full concentration for 3-4 hours, but then I would feel a certain decline, “turn off” for five minutes, and then give myself some strong visual or olfactory stimuli to keep working. © MIUMAU / LiveJournalMy father was a workaholic. As a young man, I knew he had a father, but I barely saw him. All my memories are associated with my mother. She did all the housework, cooking and raising the children. I don’t remember my dad spending time with us. He always left for work before we got up and came home after we went to bed. © Jennifer Knapp Wilkinson / Quora

I see the sun rise when I’m already at work. I love what I do, I have an excellent team and good bosses. After going out with my friends, instead of going home to sleep, I just think: let’s go to work? © yerofea / LiveJournalMy colleagues ask why I am not married and do not have children, despite my good financial situation. I looked at the October report and counted that I had worked 474 hours. I have no idea how people live differently, work is my passion. It seems that if I start to rest, I will go crazy. © larpostal / Pikabu I left work late and exhausted. As I walked home, I didn’t understand why people looked at me strangely. Until a young man approached and said: “Doctor, you can now remove the surgical cap”. © G Alina Titova / FacebookBeing the spouse of a workaholic means you have to give 90% of your energy to your family. The compulsive worker even brings home a good salary, but does not participate in any other way in the family’s daily life. © Mimi Smythe / Quora

Do you consider yourself a workaholic or know someone who is? How do you manage to balance work and personal life?