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Publication

AUTOMOBIL

Page

48

Date

Sun 01 Apr 2018

AVE (ZAR)

18242.35

INSIDE LINE

Are you aworkaholic?Identifying if you are a workaholic is easy, but

| |changing your ways gets more difficult as timegoes by, says Pieter Scholtz

eekendsare usuallydaysofrest, but for workaholicstheday of restnevercomes.There

isalwaysunfinishedwork; one moreemail to read and one more phone call tomakethat simplycan't wait until Monday.Askyourselfthis. "If your businesswaslike a Formula 1 pit team, how successfuldo you think you would be? Would yoube the team managercalmlyorchestratingthe events from the safety of the pit wall,directingothers, or would you be theone running round doing every job tryingto makesure it's done well, getting ineverybody'sway, but feeling good aboutyourselfbecauseyou're alwaysbusy.Then doesthe car still go out late andwith only three wheels?

A commonproblemfacing familiesisan absent husband or wife and dador mom due to 'workaholism'. Often,to workaholics business is all aboutbusyness.

While we all know in theory that it's lesstime consumingto work smarterratherthan harder, the reality iswe tend not topractise it.

Here are the signs of a Workaholic:* Your laptop goeson holidaywith you.* You can't turn your cell phone off atnight or on the weekendsfor fear ofwhat you might miss

* You struggle to sleepat night becauseyou mind isturning over like the engineof a Formula 1 car

* You don't feel well, but a sick day inbed isnot negotiable

* You startthings but leavethemunfinished

* You work lateat night and/orduring

the weekends* You pray the clockhandswill startto goin reverse

* You standaccusedof not listeningtoother people

* Even though the businessismatureenough to employstaff, you areconvincedyou can do it quicker andbetter.

When people starta business,there's areal buzzfromworking for themselvesandgetting things off the ground. They runon high amountsof adrenaline, pumpedup, working long hoursand overcominggreat challenges.Their destiny is in theirown hands, and they setoff with a dreamthat inspiresthem. Everywin they makeimprintson their subconsciousmind,linking working hardwith success.In theearly stages,new businessowners haveto work hard becausethere's nobody elseto do the work if they don't. All of thesefactorstend to breed the workaholic.

Justlike an alcoholic, businessowners keepdoing what they know isbad for them. Thelastpersonto realisewhat is happening isthe personwith the problem.Also, like analcoholic, it's the people around them, liketheir familiesthat sufferthe most.They getneglected, friends become acquaintances,and their staff members, if they have any,are often driven away if they, too, aren'tworkaholics.

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The signsare quite clearas I mentionedabove,but if you need help to seethem, asksomeoneelsewho's closeto you to be brutally honest.

So if you are a workaholic,what canyoudo? The stepsare similar to addressinganyaddiction. The first step is to become awareyou are a workaholic. Then repeat afterme: "My name is 'so and so' and I am aworkaholic."

Once you have accepted you have a problem,take ownership of the situation. Realisethat ifyou keep doing what you've alwaysdone, youwill keep getting what you alwaysgot - anunbalancedexistence.

It takes21 timesto createa good habit, andthe longer you have been aworkaholic, thelongerit will take you to change your badhabits.

Get clearon what type of life you want tolead. Ask yourself how many hours per day,daysper week, and weeks per year you wantto work. Planout what needs to happeneachquarter in order to reduceyour workhours. Work out what you would rather bedoing insteadof working all the time?Thisis really important, becauseif you don't havesomethingyou like better, you will continueworking 24/7and eventually burn out. Thenstart putting staff in placeand delegating,so that eventually you areworking on thebusinessand not in the business. 4

Pieter Scholtz istheCo-MasterFranchisorin SouthernAfricaforActionCOACH,thefastestgrowingandlargestbusinesscoachingcompanyglobally.PieterandhispartnerHarryWelby-CookedevelopedActionCOACHacrossSouthernAfrica,whichnowboastsover40 franchises.Heisalsoa certified,leadingbusinessandexecutivecoach.Hehassuccessfullyassistedcountlessbusinessownerstosignificantlygrowtheirprofitsanddeveloptheirentrepreneurialskills.www.actioncoach.co.za / 012 665 1015

48 - april2018 www.automobil.co.za