Workaholics Anonymous? Are you joking? Do we really need to have a cousin of AA for everything these days?

That thinking was a clue that I have a problem.

If we take workaholism as seriously as we take alcoholism, let’s not brush this off with a chuckle.

Workaholics Anonymous has a checklist to help you determine if, indeed, you need to make some changes to improve your health and relationships. Read through these twenty questions and count up how many times you answer yes:

1. Are you more drawn to your work or activity than close relationships, rest, etc.?
2. Are there times when you are motivated and push through tasks when you don’t even want to and other times when you procrastinate and avoid them when you would prefer to get things done?
3. Do you take work with you to bed? On weekends? On vacation?
4. Are you more comfortable talking about your work than other topics?
5. Do you pull all-nighters?
6. Do you resent your work or the people at your workplace for imposing so many pressures on you?
7. Do you avoid intimacy with others and/or yourself?
8. Do you resist rest when tired and use stimulants to stay awake longer?
9. Do you take on extra work or volunteer commitments because you are concerned that things won’t otherwise get done?
10. Do you regularly underestimate how long something will take and then rush to complete it?
11. Do you immerse yourself in activities to change how you feel or avoid grief, anxiety, and shame?
12. Do you get impatient with people who have other priorities besides work?
13. Are you afraid that if you don’t work hard all the time, you will lose your job or be a failure?
14. Do you fear success, failure, criticism, burnout, financial insecurity, or not having enough time?
15. Do you try to multitask to get more done?
16. Do you get irritated when people ask you to stop doing what you’re doing in order to do something else?
17. Have your long hours caused injury to your health or relationships?
18. Do you think about work or other tasks while driving, conversing, falling asleep, or sleeping?
19. Do you feel agitated when you are idle and/or hopeless that you’ll ever find balance?
20. Do you feel like a slave to your email, texts, or other technology?

How many did you say yes to? I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.

No wavering, I have a firm yes for questions 9, 13, 14, 15 (absolutely), 16, and 18.

Y’all just three yeses means you have a workaholic problem.

I think entrepreneurship might require a bit of workaholism, at least at setup. Maybe for seasons.

Question 17 about long hours causing injury to your health – yeah, running through airports hauling a suitcase behind me for a decade led to a frozen shoulder. And maybe a divorce?

But I’m not in that season anymore. And maybe I never needed to be. I probably could have traveled half as much and made a little less money but have still fulfilled every definition of success while keeping my shoulder mobile.

Old me definitely took work on vacation (Question 3).

Question 6 about resentment? I’ve d-e-f-i-n-i-t-e-l-y been there. In fact, it’s one of the ways I knew I was burned out.

I don’t love that I can still say yes to 6 of these questions. I guess I’m a recovering workaholic.

I find myself bargaining.

Wait, isn’t it good that I solve work problems while I’m driving/showering/taking a walk?

Or is that the equivalent of an alcoholic saying Wait isn’t it good that I drink at home rather than spending extra money out at the bars?

I’m also justifying.

Watch this:

When you’re a single mom trying to maintain physical health and social life, you gotta squeeze eight hours of work into the 6 that your kid is at school so of course I’m gonna be irritated if someone interrupts me when I’m in the middle of something (Question 16). I had years when I couldn’t even pee in private.

That said, I am very firm NO on Question 19: Do you feel agitated when you are idle and/or hopeless that you’ll ever find balance?

I feel more in balance every month and I teach about ways to do that with the students in my course, Boost and Bloom.

I wish I could force the changes to happen even faster but when we’re talking about the delicate balance of life, income, health, and relationships, sustainable change often means a slower implementation. Unlike alcoholism, cold turkey is unlikely to be a permanent fix. I still have bills to pay.

Where are you at with this checklist? Do you wanna figure this out with me?