A teammate who consistently performs at a high level is an asset to any team, but there comes a point where hustle becomes a complete absence of personal pulse.
Always on
It’s 11 PM on Tuesday or 9 AM Sunday. You send them an email or a Slack message, and they respond within minutes. Their phone is never more than an arm’s length away, and notifications from work have become their primary source of dopamine outside of business hours.
If someone is online in your internal messaging apps late at night, this shows they have no boundaries or a personal life outside of the office.
Weekend vague
As your team gathers for Monday morning coffee, everyone shares what they did over the weekend. This person either becomes vague or dodges the question altogether. Sure, we all value our privacy, but if someone always turns the subject back to a project, it’s because they really have nothing else
They have no hobbies, activities with friends or family to attend. You’ve never heard them mention their favorite restaurant, movie they watched or even something as mundane as laundry day.
Second home
There is a difference between someone having a personalized desk and having an office like their second home.
If your coworker keeps a whole closet’s worth of spare clothing at their desk, a gourmet pantry of snacks, and multiple skincare products set up for immediate use at their desk at all times, they aren’t just ready for a nine-to-five. They live there.
Narrow language
The average human resorts to sports metaphors, movie quotes, historical comparisons, or present-day pop culture references to communicate life’s nuances. A coworker who lives and breathes only work explains work by using work. They have no external references.
Even when debating what restaurant to grab lunch at or how best to plan a rudimentary team happy hour, their metaphors are limited to buzzwords you’ll only hear on PowerPoint presentations: “KPIs,” “synergy,” “deliverables,” etc.
Constant presence
They are always the first person in the office and last to leave, even when they have no pressing deadlines or duties. If they don’t have a social engagement, yoga class or dinner with family to rush home for, they sit at their desks all day because they have nowhere else to be.
They’ve become a fixture of the office, and you’ll often find them reluctant to leave at the end of the day.
PTO hoarding
They never take days off. If they do take a day off, they spend their whole day off either texting in or just wrapping up one little thing on a laptop at the beach. For them, vacation is not a healing experience. Vacations are nerve-wracking interruptions in their lives.
Many workaholics have large reserves of accrued PTO (paid time off). The thought of five straight days without a spreadsheet or meeting to obsess over is terrifying, and they have no idea how to live life without a to-do list.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.