Being a workaholic, working through every time anyway. It can just creep in that you work just a little too hard. There are several reasons why you may think it's a good idea to keep working, when in fact you need to slow down. To find out when you work too hard and what kind of beliefs cause this, in this blog I will discuss the effect of working long hours.
Australian research on people aged 40 and older shows a possible explanation for why women in the Netherlands often work part-time. This is because if you work more than 25 hours a week, your cognitive ability, your ability to think, deteriorates. Up to 25 hours of work per week, working is actually good for your thinking ability.
So actually, those Dutch ladies are very smart! This also goes to show why many companies are experimenting with 5- or 6-hour workdays because it is good for thinking skills. The theory then is that this makes no difference to the productivity of an 8-hour workday.
So making a 40-hour work week is more than enough for most people. Especially if you work more than 50 hours a week, the extra hours over 50 are completely useless in terms of productivity.
Do you still prefer to work longer? If so, there may be something going on. For example, if you need money, it may make perfect sense to work more hours.
Has working through become more compulsive? Then beware if you don't have workaholism or are actually running into burnout. Working too much has a correlation with a disturbed work-life balance, stress and poorer health, both mental and physical.
People who are more burdened or tend to overwork are often perfectionists and often have the following personality traits:
- Extravert
- Ambitious
- Aware of Status
- Impatient
- Proactive
- Organized
The numbers and features are clear, but what beliefs are suddenly causing you to overwork?
Belief 1: At a quieter time, you do slow down.
You feel like the busyness you have at work right now is temporary. The strange thing is that success often makes for more success, so you really don't always get calmer.
Every time you think you can slow down, yet another new project or opportunity comes along that you just have to grab.
Ultimately, it's important to prioritize. Especially if you are afraid of missing opportunities, it is important to examine those fears.
That's where a hypnotist can help you. Many people have a fear of missing opportunities. This can emerge, for example, in people who like to go out, but so can people who work a lot.
On the contrary, if you spend all day solving problems, consider for yourself what might happen if you don't solve the problem immediately, but put it off for a week.
A hypnotherapist can help you figure out why you are always in a hurry to solve problems. This can be done, for example, through regression. During regression, you go back to an event in your life that created the belief of being in a hurry and that problems need to be solved immediately.
Most beliefs are formed in childhood, so you may be in for some surprising results.
Belief #2: Actually, I'm a fraud, if I stop working I'm bound to fall through.
Many people feel they don't actually deserve the place they have at work. That's when you suffer from scammer syndrome.
A hypnotist can help you suffer less from these symptoms. It also helps you keep track of the thoughts you have and recognize when this syndrome is rearing its head.
In the process, people can also see a lot of overwork as a sign that you are a bad planner. So who's fooling who now?
So you're definitely not a fraud, but why you might think that is something a hypnotist can help you with. Through a Socratic Conversation, in which the why question is repeated several times, you get to the core of your belief and then you can work with the hypnotist to figure out why that belief is actually wrong.
A good way to suffer less from feeling like a fraud is to make a list of all the talents and skills you have. In addition, you can also make a list of things you have accomplished in your career.
Belief 3: I can work through things better than other people
Did you know that most drivers think they drive better than the average car driver? This is because, as humans, we like to think that when dangerous or risky behavior occurs, we are the (positive) exception to the rule.
You've just read that working more than 50 hours a week won't improve your productivity. If you then thought to yourself that that is really not true for you and that you are productive for as many as 60 hours a week, including those last 10 hours, you also think you are the exception to the rule.
To keep it safe, it's best to assume you're just like the average person. Surely those really work best between 25 and 50 hours a week.
In doing so, you really don't have to do it to impress your manager. Research shows that managers cannot tell the difference between people who really work 80 hours a week and those who pretend to work 80 hours a week. If you do work overtime, do it for yourself not for the promotion.
If you are indeed working overtime to solve a problem, you can work 60 hours for 2 weeks. After that, it really stops and it's time for rest and sleep.
Hypnosis can also help make this belief a little more realistic. In particular, you can repeat the benefits of not working overtime during self-hypnosis to put the importance of rest above the importance of working overtime. For example, with the following suggestions.
"When I don't work overtime I have more time to sleep which is better for my thinking."
"If I don't work overtime I can relax earlier which reduces my stress hormones."
"If I don't work overtime I can focus better the next day."
Belief 4: You can always go the extra mile
Do you often have the thought towards the end of the work day that you are doing 1 more thing....and then suddenly you are 2 hours away again? Especially if you already work close to 40-50 hours a week, it is important to find out why you have this belief when you already work more than a full work week.
A hypnotherapist can help you figure out why this little voice is raising its head, and he or she can then help you change your beliefs so that the little voice is quiet, especially if you already work more than 40 hours a week.
This can be done, for example, by repeating other beliefs during self-hypnosis, such as:
"I don't need to push myself when I already work enough hours."
"I get to quit earlier than when I'm overtired."
"I can work better when I take my rest."
Belief 5: I have all the time
You only live once and you can only spend your time once. Therefore, time is the most important thing you have and many people think it is important to have a high hourly wage or to work only part-time.
Just think, will you have enough time later to play with your kids or have some fun with your partner? Think again. On the contrary, most parents feel that time goes very fast because their children grow so incredibly fast. Before you know it, you have a rebellious adolescent who thinks you are unimportant because you are mostly at work.
Therefore, always determine which option you actually let go when you work an extra hour.
If you are faced with the choice to overwork ask yourself what choice you are really facing.
Such as:
- I can work an extra hour now, or I can assemble Lego with my child.
- I can work an extra hour now, or I can cook with my partner (little wine thrown in, who knows what happens 😉 ).
- I can work an extra hour now, or I can spend some time at home reading that book.
- I can work an extra hour right now, or I can go out for a workout.
- I can work an extra hour now, or go see my friend(s) again.
So there are all kinds of pitfalls in beliefs that can cause you to work too hard; fortunately, there's also a lot you can do to straighten out your work-life balance.
Want to learn more about hypnosis and other mental techniques? Then check out the Hypnosis Institute Netherlands' training courses and calendar and sign up.
Sources:
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2737742
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0149206314522301
https://hbr.org/2015/08/the-research-is-clear-long-hours-backfire-for-people-and-for-companies
