I don’t know about you, but there are many times as a business owner that I would say I have definitely become a “workaholic!”  I’m sure many of your would rebuff the mere thought of this concept, or better yet, you don’t even realize that you may be exhibiting the behavior that is often associated with an overly obsessive focus on work.  Now, I’m sure we’ve all heard about how being a workaholic can lead to stress, physical illness and severely damaged personal relationships; but are you aware of the signs that indicate you are exhibiting this behavior.

As an example, how many of you are bringing work home during the week, or talking and thinking about your work all the time?  Are you having dreams at night about the job.  It’s certainly very easy to get wrapped up, especially with mobile devices that keep you connected 24/7 with the office.  It has always been understood that a 40 hour work week is the standard for all employees, but these persistent connections to the office causes the workday to never end.  I’m sure our bosses value our strong work ethics, but at what point does the absence of balance in our personal lives begin to take its toll.

Here are some statistics gathered from a survey done by CareerBuilder in the recent pasts.

• At least 52% of workers put in more than 40 hours per week, while upwards of 14% put in more than 50.
• More the 20% of workers haven’t taken a personal or sick day in the past few years.
• Nearly 25% of respondents continue to think about work at home or while attending social events.
• Sadly, more than 20% of employees are not pursuing their personal interests because of work

Now, this is just downright discouraging.  I would like to believe that I “work to live, not live to work,” however, these statistics indicate for many of us it is quite the opposite.

Well, take a good look at the findings in the Baseline magazine slideshow to see just how much we are all working.  You may be quite surprised at what you see.  After reading this, be honest with yourself and ask, “How many of these behavioral traits am I exhibiting?”

You might just be surprised….