My name is Amy and without a doubt, I am a workaholic.  There, I said it.  I admit it fully.  I have a problem and I am taking the first step toward recovery, which they say is to admit it.  Step one down, only eleven more steps to go :)….

I finally discovered I had a problem when I was working the other night at around midnight and I came across an article in Psychology Today that gave a short quiz to help you determine whether you are, in fact, a workaholic.

Do you work over 50 hours a week?   [Uhhhh….YES!]

Do you feel a need to constantly stay busy?    [Double YES!]

Do you have difficulty relaxing and having fun?    [Oh, my howdy YES!]

Are you a perfectionist?   [To a fault YES]

Are you unable to delegate work to others?  [I have actually gotten way better at this over the years so score one point for me!]

Are you so preoccupied with “to-do” lists that you have trouble being emotionally available to others?  [Yes, Yes, Yes]

Does your partner, spouse or children complain about how much you work?  [OUCH Yes]

Do you forget conversations or events because you are so preoccupied with planning and work? [if it wasn’t for my amazing executive admin I would remember nothing]

 If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, you could be a workaholic.   [So what does it say if you answered yes to 8 out of 9???  That cannot be good!!!!]

So thanks to that article, I now know that I am officially a workaholic with a serious problem that needs to be rectified.  How will I rectify it – I have no idea….but this week I am determined to try.  This week I am going to stay off of email this entire week.  I am going to stop sleeping with my cellphone on my pillow so I can hear the incoming email alerts (don’t judge me…I already admitted I have a problem 🙂 ).  I am going to let my phone go to voice mail this week.  I am going to stay off all work items for the entire week.  Instead I am going to focus my entire week on spending time with my Valentine this entire week.  I am going to have fun with my husband.  I am going to relax. I am going to sleep in.  I am going to play and laugh and take time to breathe. 

Yes, I am going to break my workaholic disease – at least for this one week.  And maybe, just maybe, at the end of this week of downtime I will realize that it’s okay to play once in a while, and I can become a “recovering workaholic” 🙂

Here’s to hoping!

“In all of living, have much fun and laughter. Life is to be enjoyed, not just endured.”  -Gordon B. Hinckley

 ~Amy