ARE YOU A WORKAHOLIC?

It's Saturday night and you're at home… working. This would normally be the time to sip a few cold ones and share some good times with friends, but not anymore. Ever since that big promotion, you've decided that work has to come first. Working at home isn't that bad every now and again, right? Wrong. Once it becomes a regular routine, you might be unknowingly starting a new career as a workaholic.

"Workaholic" sounds like a buzzword for office overachievers, but in today's competitive workplace, workaholism is an all-too-common problem that is characterized by an addiction to work. Just like any dependency, it's a serious cause for concern for the workaholic, their immediate family and their friends. The boss might think that a workaholic's long hours and superhuman work ethic are great for business, but that's often not the case.

The greater the workload, the more damage you can do to your social life, your health and your emotional well-being. If you think that being a workaholic is honorable, think again. In the long run, it will hurt your career more than help it.

Are you a workaholic? We decided to take a closer look at the warning signs and what you can do to stop them in their tracks.
working outside the office
Symptoms
When the workday ends for everyone else, yours continues. It might be an evening, a weekend or even a vacation. It doesn't matter, because if you're not doing at least some work, you'll feel bored and unproductive or, worse yet, worried out of your mind that you're not doing more work. Believe it or not, working past quitting time will hurt your productivity and your overall performance. It's also a health risk, as it can trigger numerous ailments (you don't need more headaches), make you tired and evoke a general feeling of isolation.
Solution
If you're constantly working at home, you need to reclaim your peace and quiet and give your office space the boot. It's easier said than done, but you can start by keeping track of how many work hours are being put in at home. From there, formulate a plan to gradually lower them. Don't rush. Take small steps, such as not working on specific days, but be prepared for some bumps and bruises along the way. Just like kicking the toughest of bad habits, choosing to cut down on work will induce some withdrawal symptoms in the early stages. Depression and anxiety are some of the most common afflictions, but even with short-term setbacks, you and your body will be better off in the long run.

While you're dealing with these changes, take a trip to your doctor for a full physical. Ensure that you've got a clean bill of health and then make physical activity, sleep and a healthy diet the staples of your daily routine. When you're planning your next vacation, make sure that it doesn't involve work. Vacations shouldn't be complicated by business. Your relaxation time comes first.
never fully disconnecting from work
Symptoms
You might not be at your office around the clock, but most of your time is still based around work. Your important clients and coworkers all have your cell number when they need you. Your laptop is never out of sight, in case you need to log in at a moment's notice. It might feel like you're only making yourself available, but work is now taking priority over everything else. When that happens, you won't make the time for extracurricular activities that are important for you to enjoy.
Solution
If you're maintaining a 24/7 connection with work, it's time to change your subscription and add a few new lifestyle channels. That means making the time for new and satisfying activities that will energize your mind and body -- not just your Blackberry typing skills. Even better are hobbies that will add diversity to your overall lifestyle. If your work keeps you inside and mostly stationary, your new hobbies should take you outside -- taking on jogging or golf as regular activities would certainly do the trick. The key is to pick something that you like, so that you can balance your lifestyle with the right mix of work, relaxation and fun.

To maintain this balance, you might also seek out a counselor or psychologist. Often, fresh ideas and an ear to listen can provide a steady, healthy outlet for healing. Furthermore, if you're feeling less "tuned in" to the office on your off-hours, it's a good thing. Don't feel guilty. Your new disconnection from the office will only serve to strengthen your abilities when you're back on the job.

refusal to delegate tasks
Symptoms
In your drive to succeed, you start to believe that you are the best person for any task that's sent your way. Because you want as much glory as possible, you will take on an abundance of work, and shun the participation of anyone else. Not only can this make you difficult to work with, but the long-term effects of not delegating will leave you with bad organizational skills and little time away from work. Instead of working with confidence in a positive environment, you could be stuck with an increased fear of failure and numerous sub-par working relationships. Don't expect another promotion.
Solution
Your refusal to delegate can change if you take a big-picture approach to your choices and communicate properly at work. Don't try to do everything that's pushed your way. Plan your work around your life goals, and not the other way around. Think about where you want to be and how you really want to spend your time. Burning out won't do you any favors, so work within your means. If you're a consistent contributor without trying to steal the spotlight, your professional reputation and long-term value certainly won't suffer. If your goals are attainable, you won't feel the need to overcompensate.

One of these goals should be maintaining solid relationships with your coworkers. If there are a few relationships that need to be mended, it's up to you to make it happen. Strive for social interaction and regular communication with these people. Be willing to work together and be open to new ideas. In addition, if you can take short breaks to relax and collect your thoughts, you'll communicate more effectively and you'll be a lot more approachable. In time, a refusal to delegate will give way to a desire to work practically and an appreciation for working collectively.
constantly talking about work
Symptoms
It might be your friends, it might be your wife; if someone's willing to listen, you're more than happy to talk about work as much as possible. Maybe it's another project or a boss you dislike -- either way, you have to talk about it. While a little bit of work chatter is certainly allowed, you aren't actually paying attention to the people closest to you. Your relationship isn't with them, it's with your work, and the people in your life are turning into accessories. By harming your personal life, you are only encouraging yourself to keep working, especially when you push away the ones who care about you the most.
Solution
The topic of work might matter to you, but it's not necessarily popular with everyone else. Your friends and loved ones want you to be happy, but you need to give them their due attention as well. That starts with recognizing the affect that work is having on your conversations and intimate relationships as a whole. As with other addictions, an honest awareness of your problem goes a long way. Be honest and ask your family and friends for their feelings on how your work issues are affecting them. It won't be an easy conversation, but it will be a step in the right direction.

Giving your loved ones the proper attention isn't just about talking. It's also about spending time together. If you're in a relationship, set aside at the very least 30 minutes every day to talk, listen and enjoy each other. In case you're wondering, work isn't on that list of topics. If you're more inclined to spend time with your friends, do just that and engage in regular social outings. Make a point of surrounding yourself with positive people. It will give you happier thoughts and better things to talk about besides work.
balancing act
A perfect life balance for some might mean steady work, steady relationships and steady health. Certain people are more adept at balancing than others and when it comes to work, it's easy to let your mind and body get lost in the shuffle. The allure of a new job and a challenging workload might sound attractive on paper, but as you climb up the corporate ladder, don't forget to take care of yourself along the way. Otherwise, you could lose everything else in the process.

COMMON EMAIL MISTAKES

In our modern age of communication, it's not just what you say that can get you into trouble at work, but also what you write. Thanks to laptops, Blackberries and cell phones, e-mail is arguably the primary means of communication for professionals everywhere. In 2007 alone, there will be an estimated 2.7 trillion e-mails exchanged, with even more to follow. While e-mail is convenient and easy to use, it's also easy to abuse.

As a professional in today's e-happy world, the more you know now about e-mail habits, the less likely you will be to make an e-blunder down the road.

With e-mail, there's no undoing our mistakes; there's only steadfast prevention. Here's our inbox of e-mail mistakes and tips to keep you protected.
Unprofessional tone
When we talk to someone in person, we have the benefit of physical gestures and tone of voice. Written words speak for themselves and are left completely to interpretation. In an e-mail exchange, it means that a sarcastic one-liner and a witty e-mail signature could be misconstrued as insults, regardless of the initial intention.
E-mail tone is also hampered by jokes, slang and typing in caps -- which is the written equivalent to shouting. In the office world, e-mail is an extension of business communication, so a bad e-mail tone makes for bad business, or worse, lack of business.

Re: Tips: There's nothing wrong with being courteous, but stay within professional boundaries. You can do this by reading a past e-mail from your recipient and matching their tone in your reply, instead of trying to invent your own. If they're talkative and informal, go with it. If not, stay brief and professional. Choose your words thoughtfully, writing as you might talk to them in person without the false safety net of a computer screen. Sticking to the essentials and being polite will keep your tone clean and your overall exchange pleasant.
Reply to all
If you've ever received a mass e-mail, you're aware of how an informational correspondence can evolve into an irritating inbox monster. Replying to all recipients is a deadly practice, even when accidental. It might seem funny to e-mail your co-worker and mention that the boss's dessert recipe was a poor addition to the most recent company newsletter, but you'll get your just desserts if your reply goes to all recipients -- including the boss. It's even worse when more important information is accidentally sent to clients. The reply all button is a mouse that's just waiting to become an elephant.

Re: Tips: Before starting a reply, think about whether it's really necessary at all and consider who needs to read it -- probably not everyone. So picking reply over reply all every time is a good solution. If your message winds up being relevant to more than one person, insert the other recipients carefully and ignore the temptations of reply all. This will cut down on overall e-mail volume and keep your e-mail reply reputation intact.

Sensitive or confidential information
E-mail is not the best way to exchange sensitive information. In fact, it's one of the worst. Modern computer upgrades haven't stopped hackers, which makes your e-mails vulnerable to interception on your side and your recipient's. If a hacker doesn't get you, remember that your recipient and their company are free to do as they please with whatever you send them.

If you think your e-mail stays private, think again. Many companies have strict e-mail policies and usually keep all messages on their company server, even if they're deleted from your machine. All of your messages can easily be traced back to your computer's IP address. E-mails are legal court documents. So where e-mail privacy is concerned, assume there is none.

Re: Tips: Think of your e-mails as public legal documents. If there's a private matter at stake, try calling your recipient instead or arranging a meeting. When e-mail must be used, don't include financial info and use e-mail encryption software like Centurion Soft or the budget-friendly PGP (Pretty Good Privacy). Be professional without being confidential, and your words won't come back to haunt you.
Subject line woes
E-mail subject lines are as important as the messages themselves and the worst subject lines are empty ones. Blank subject lines get as much attention as flavorless ice cream at your company Christmas party. With the average employee receiving over 100 e-mails per day, messages with blank subjects get filed at the bottom of the totem pole, to be looked at when everything else is done.

Subject lines also become problematic when they don't change with the growth of a project. If your e-mail dialog has evolved from a website to a marketing discussion, your recipient will not enjoy filing everything under "Website," since you haven't changed your subject line to reflect a topic change. Knowing your subject is as important as building your message.

Re: Tips: First off, always use a subject line, no matter how unoriginal you might be feeling. With that in mind, don't use greetings like "Hi John" or "Hello Doris" as a subject because they carry no significance to your correspondence. Subject lines are meant to catch the eye of your recipient, so choose keywords that will reflect that. As your e-mail exchange progresses into additional topics, remember to change subject lines accordingly.
E-mailing the wrong person
On the e-mail circuit, sending e-mail into the wrong hands is a classic blunder. It's unprofessional and especially damaging if your message doesn't carry a professional tone. Even worse is if you're writing about a coworker and, since they're on the brain, you accidentally select them as your recipient. If that's the case, don't expect any Christmas cards in the mail.

One of the "perks" of e-mail programs is the dreaded auto-fill feature, which allows you to type in partial letters in the recipient field, which the computer then completes on its own. This increases the chances of e-mailing the wrong person and it's a sign that maybe e-mail technology isn't so friendly after all.

Re: Tips: Because the address field is above an e-mail message, our instinct is to type the recipient in first and then our message. This is troublesome, because we're thinking about our message, not our recipient. Go the opposite route by writing your message first and then selecting the recipient. This will decrease the chance of error, as you will be totally focused on the address in question. Don't forget to double-check -- or even triple-check -- the recipient before you click "send."
Not checking e-mail accounts regularly
With e-mail being such a prime communication choice these days, it's an instant faux pas if you don't check it regularly. When you don't check your e-mail, you're probability for error rises; in your mad rush to download and read everything later, your risk of deleting important messages increases, as does the tendency to not give essential e-mails enough attention.

This problem extends to employees who use multiple accounts that deal with various clients, personal contacts and mailing lists, etc. It can lead to a significant loss in business if you don't read them or even acknowledge someone because you forgot to check one of your accounts.

Re: Tips: You might think that the solution lies in fewer e-mail accounts. And you'd be wrong, because the separation between personal e-mail, business and everything else will make your inbox easier to sort out later on. If you're having problems keeping track of your accounts or even checking them efficiently, try a program like Pooka that checks all accounts at once. When you are proficient at checking and responding to all e-mails in a timely fashion, don't overdo the habit by letting e-mail control your working time. Just stay on top of who's contacting you and what's important.
Sending too quickly
In your need for speed, a premature e-mail can breed grammatical errors and spelling embarrassments. A message that is littered with mistakes makes for a negative perception of you and your company. In a potential job interview situation, a sloppy e-mail assures a nonresponse.

Messages that are sent too quickly are often accompanied by missing attachments -- the ones you mentioned in your e-mail, but didn't include. Business colleagues and clients will not enjoy dealing with you if they have to spend time replying to ask you for something you thought you sent in the first place. If you add it all up, the fastest e-mails can make for unflattering professional pictures.

Re: Tips: If you want your reader to respect you, you have to respect them by making your writing professional and succinct. Aim for proper spelling and grammar: That means rereading your messages thoroughly and using advanced grammar software, if it's at your company's disposal. Spend more time writing your e-mails, but keep them brief with professional openings and closings. As for attachments, they can be included before you type your message. When you increase the time spent composing your e-mails, you will dramatically decrease your number of errors.
surviving the digital age
The electronic age has brought with it the wondrous tool of e-mail. As professionals, we are as accountable for our words as we are for our actions. With every new e-mail comes a new chance to be flawless or a new opportunity to fall into the blunder trap. With that in mind, you can take comfort in knowing that most e-mail dangers can be avoided with common sense, proper time considerations and a careful choice of words. So, just keep the right tools at your disposal and hope that all of your e-mails shine with professional perfection.