Simpleology Blog

With the deluge of new projects, the office's list of "Most Likely to Have a Meltdown" candidates grew long. (I was Number Two!) I had feared that I would be taking home the title--but my friend Julia was declared the winner just a few days ago. She even received the Workaholic Candle which Samantha, our accountant bought as a gag gift.

Julia--who has never missed a deadline--pulled an all-nighter. With her brain near dead after she had already clocked in close to 20 hours straight at the office, she lost it when a setback presented itself the following morning. First, she sent me (and several others) an angry e-mail reminding us to be up to date with our task lists. Then, she fainted as she was getting her nth cup of coffee.

Though she is an invaluable member of the company, Julia has been ordered to go on a real vacation. I hope that the splendid sights of Hawaii are enough to make her realize that doing several things on warp speed isn't all that it's cracked up to be.

I dug up three good reasons that would further convince her and workaholics everywhere to cut themselves some slack:

1. Haste leads to waste. "Taking a moment to slow down can actually help your productivity," says Dr. Kirk Byron Jones, author of Addicted to Hurry. So, take a breather and cleanse your mind to make room for new ideas. Many workaholics often make the mistake of coming up with mediocre work just so they could finish as many tasks as possible. Sadly, their efforts are in vain, as the work's substandard state doesn't make the grade.

2. All work and no play makes you dull. Being serious is great--but it's not advisable to be "too serious." The folks at Slow Down Now, a site that injects humor into the lives of workaholics, certainly think that injecting humor will contribute to one's creativity.

3. Keeping it simple is sensational. In Slowing Down to the Speed of Life: How to Create a More Peaceful, Simpler Life From the Inside Out, authors Richard Carlson and Joseph Bailey assert that workaholics risk losing their capacity to feel childlike joy over "little triumphs." Workaholics, for example, wouldn't feel proud about getting through a meeting. They'll only be happy when they feel that they've trumped everyone else's efforts.

It'll do Julia a lot of good to keep these in mind when she gets back to work. In fact, she should post these three reasons on her giant cork board to remind herself that it's not a crime to quit going on full throttle 24/7. A lot of people at work would be happier when she learns how to create a more realistic task list for her division--one that wouldn't require people to work until they're overcome with mental fatigue. (It's great how you always push us to do our best, Jules...but we can't do much at all if we all get sick from the stress.)

We can all do superb work without running ourselves ragged--or winning the office's "Most Likely to Have a Meltdown" contest.

Credits: Image of Workaholic Candle courtesy of Marriott International, Inc.'s Desert Springs Spa online retail catalog.