12-STEP PROGRAM FOR RECOVERING WORKAHOLICS
Workaholics are driven. I know. I’ve been one for many years. There’s never enough time to get everything done and there’s always more coming in to be done. It’s not all imposed on us, we reach out for it in many instances. We want to learn more, be more, do more; we don’t see our limits. A year ago I decided to reform—to set limits. When I announced my resolution in my Christmas letter, a friend wrote back that he didn’t know that I had an addiction. He had mistaken WORK-a-holic for AL-coholic. He encouraged me to join a 12-step program and stick with it. After I stopped laughing, I decided to try it.
Perhaps you’d like to try it, too.
1. Set your alarm to go off one hour later—you’re probably getting up too early
2. Go out for lunch, don’t eat on the job.
3. Walk to work—if you work at home, go for a walk before getting to work.
4. Add “reformed workaholic” to your signature block so you can inspire others.
5. Put an alarm on your computer and set it to go off after the computer has been on for 8 hours. Shut it down when the alarm goes off.
6. Throw out all those motivational placards you have hanging over your desk.
7. Go into a joint venture with another workaholic who is not in the 12-step program.
Better yet, marry a workaholic!
8. Buy a home in the country and go there at least four times a year.
9. Go fishing—there’s nothing quite like it. You may think you’ll go berserk the first time, but you’ll get used to sitting and doing nothing but watching the water for the big one to jump and imbibing in a few refreshments.
10. Get a massage regularly and learn yoga.
11. Go to confession often to get rid of the guilt feelings.
12. Sell your car and keep the blinds closed in your house or apartment. Your neighbors will hate you.
