`` Confessions Of A Workaholic `` By Wayne Oates - 1652 Words

One in four workers can be classified as a â€Å"workaholic† nevertheless; it is still vastly underestimated in the damages it can cause (Griffiths, 2011). Workaholism has been coined as the respectable addiction and the hard working man’s disease; however, workaholism is a deadly disease that affects the workaholic, their family, friends, and even coworkers. The Japanese term for workaholism is karoshi and is estimated to kill over 1,000 deaths a year (Williams, 2012). The definition of a workaholic remains vague and unconstructive; however, the symptoms and manifestations can be quite clear. Merriam-Webster defines workaholic as â€Å"a person who chooses to work a lot: a person who is always working, thinking about work, etc.† In 1971, Wayne E. Oates coined the term â€Å"Workaholic† in his novel, Confessions of a Workaholic. Wayne Oates was an American psychologist and religious educator. Oates asserts that working can become an addiction just as alco hol (Oates, 1971). A major contributor to the problem is the belief that hard work leads to greater wealth (Williams, 2012). Workaholism is considered by many to be a respectable addiction and a positive thing. These people lack understanding into the true nature and dangers of this addiction. Numerous myths surround workaholism including: workaholics are always working; no one ever died of hard work; Workaholism only adversely affects the workaholic (Fassel, 1990). It is imperative that a distinction be made between workaholism and