{ Tips for Workaholics }

If you are anything like me, you are what is considered a workaholic. Many would define a workaholic as a person who works compulsively at the expense of other pursuits. For me being a compulsive is just an everyday thing. If you guys are anything like me you may have a hard time controlling it. So how do you know if your a  workaholic, well here are some simple signs. Do you find yourself working when your on vacation, do you check your emails at the dinner table, do you try to squeeze in one last phone call before leaving the office, these are all signs that you have an unhealthy workaholic addictive relationship with work. Now don't get me wrong working hard is an amazing thing, but up to a point. Overworking doesn't help with productivity and can in some cases actually do harm to you. We most learn how to balance. So here are some tips that can help you do just that.

{1} Learn to shut it down. Make a pact with yourself you will not work past a certain time, and honor that time to shut everything down. Learn to walk away.

{2} Give yourself a break. Learn to give yourself breaks during the workday, even if they're small ones. Go out for lunch instead of eating and working at your desk. Take short walks around the office or take a quick trip to a nearby park, a change of scenery sometimes is just what you need. Even ten minutes away can make all the difference.

{3} Change your mindset. You may be among the many people who believe that long hours demonstrate your great work ethic and that those who take breaks { or spend evening, weekends, and vacations disconnected } are lazy or less committed. But that way of thinking is both inaccurate and unhealthy, so push back when you catch yourself giving in to it. Remember, what you think is what you are.

{4} Treat it seriously. When you are consumed with work and act as if your life were dependent on your job, you're likely damaging your health and relationships. You need to take change seriously. If need be, consider getting help to learn better skills for balancing your life.

{5} Don't bring it home. This is the hardest of all the steps. When you get home, make a point of turning off your phone and disconnecting from your email. Instead, take time for friends and family. It's time to be the person who just might be unavailable to work for a while, and unless you're literally saving lives with your job, that's OK.

{6} Meditate on it. More than most people, workaholics need to learn to turn off their thinking mind. The practice of meditation is a great way to make that happen. Take some time every day and consciously slow down, breathe, relax, rest your mind, and feed your heart.

{7} Set healthy boundaries. Many people who are prone to chronic overwork also have trouble setting and maintaining boundaries. As a starting point, make work schedule and commit to it. If you need to include some late evening or weekend hours, that fine, but do it intentionally, based on schedules and patterns, not just because you're already there and you haven't yet dropped from exhaustion.

You'll be much more effective and not to mention happier, with adequate rest, sleep, breaks, and time to have other relationship and interests outside of work. Self care keeps you on top of your design game and more importantly it can keep you in the game.