7 Workaholic Thinking Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

1. You’re waiting for the “right moment” to slow down.

Thinking error: You are constantly waiting for a convenient time to finally reduce the load and relax. But that time never comes: there is always another project or circumstance that forces you to keep putting all your time and energy into your work.

Cognitive shift: Try to understand why you chose this strategy. For some, the fear of missing out on something important, the so-called missed opportunity syndrome, prevents them from slowing down.

If this is your problem, admit that it’s okay to miss something sometimes. Instead of a “scarcity mindset” try to stick to an “abundance mindset”: you will always have many opportunities and many projects. Say to yourself more often: “mine will find me.”

When you take a break and step back, you will be in a better position – at a distance it is easier to see the big picture and focus on what really matters.

If you don’t have time to solve problems that pile up due to large amounts of work, figure out what needs to be done so that your workload and expectations from yourself are reasonable. Realize that if you do not solve all the problems today, it is unlikely to lead to disaster.

2. You are afraid that if you do not work hard, you will be considered an impostor.

Thinking error: People with this sense of self often see voluntary work as a kind of protection against career failure. It goes without saying for them that an honest and decent person simply cannot afford to relax even for a minute.

Cognitive shift: Admit it: believing that working overtime protects you from career disaster is a fallacy of thinking. Tell yourself, “Look, this is just impostor syndrome. He is misleading you.” Think about the fact that your overtime may be perceived by superiors and colleagues as a sign of incompetence. They may decide that you have problems with the skill of self-organization, that you cannot distinguish the important from the unimportant, and that it takes you much longer than others to do the necessary things.

3. You are confident that you can work hard without losing productivity, even if others cannot.

Thinking error: When people do something harmful or dangerous, they often (implicitly or explicitly) see themselves as the exception to the rule. For example, those who send messages while driving think, “I am a great, experienced driver. I can write SMS without being distracted from the road, nothing bad will happen.

In the same vein, people who work long and hard think that they don’t face the problem of burnout: they are able to work without rest without reducing productivity.

Cognitive shift: Recognize that you are very likely to be like other people. And if you work for a long time without allowing yourself to recover, your productivity will drop so much that further efforts will not bring the desired result. There are studies that show that effective work, on average, can last about 40-50 hours a week.

4. You think: “Maybe I’ll do something else.”

Thinking error: It seems to be a completely harmless habit – to say to yourself at the end of the working day: “I’ll just do this one more.” But even simple things require extra time – and now your regular workload exceeds 40-50 hours a week.

Cognitive shift: Learn to recognize harmful thoughts at the very moment they arise and plan in advance how you will respond to them.

For example, remember to say to yourself at this moment, “There is no need to force yourself to do extra work now. It’s not in my best interest. I decided (a) to experiment: I will complete things without waiting for complete fatigue. I want to see what comes of it.”

5. You get a secondary benefit from overloads, but you don’t realize it.

Thinking error: Sometimes people are ready to “die” at work because it saves them from things that are more emotionally costly. Or because it makes them feel more virtuous, hardworking, and responsible than others.

For example, you do this to show your husband that you are overworked, and let him not demand from you what he expected.

Cognitive shift: Analyze all the pros and cons of your workaholism in order to understand the reasons that push you to such behavior.

6. You underestimate what you miss out on overtime.

Thinking error: You think: “I always have time for children (books, bike rides, etc.), but not now, but later.”

Cognitive shift: People often find it difficult to properly calculate their “lost profits” – that is, the benefits of option A that they lose by choosing option B.

Finally, give yourself an account of what you are depriving yourself and your family of by devoting most of your life to work. Think about it in real time. For example, “I can now spend one more hour at work, or I can go home and play a soccer ball with my child.”

7. You feel anxious if you stop working

Thinking error: If you are constantly working to the limit, in overload mode, then you are likely to feel a lot of anxiety, trying to move away from the usual behavior.

People usually misinterpret this fear as a signal that they urgently need to resume intensive work.

Cognitive shift: Recognize that a temporary surge of anxiety is a normal part of behavior change and not a sign that you are making the wrong choice.

Stick to your plan and let your emotions settle down on their own without your intervention.