Holiday Conversation #2 - You’re a Workaholic

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This is my second post about holiday conversations, the first was about me being a lucky bastard, another term which came up was that of a workaholic, as I popped over to an Internet café each day of the holiday.

When I first started out with my we business I was also working a 6 long days a week coding financial systems.This paid pretty well (including over time, about $150K a year) however I’m more ambitious than that and the only way you’ll make real money and gain freedom is by working for yourself, as they say, you’ll never be paid what your worth working for somebody else.

So in the early days I was something of a workaholic, as I’d be doing 50-60 hours a week in my daytime job and then something like 20 hours a week on my own projects. So back then I would be something of a workaholic, however what I find funny is getting called a workaholic when I spend an hour or so a day, whilst on holiday growing my business.

Getting started in business takes a lot of time and effort, you’ve got to overcome the dip (if you’ve not heard that phrase before I’ll be writing about it in a future post) however as time goes on it gets easier and if you ever get called a workaholic for doing an hour a day whilst on holiday, what would you rather be doing, an hour a day whilst on holiday making money for your self or 40 hours a week, 48 weeks per year making money for you employer, hmmm tough choice.

About Al Carlton

Al quit the 9 to 5 rat race in January of 2007, before then he was a software engineer and systems architect of financial system. Nowadays Al spends the days running his various businesses and experimenting with different ideas and opportunities.
Al can be found on twitter at AlCarlton.

Comments

  1. Were you single when you were doing the 50-60 hours a week? I would imagine it’s easier to do that sort of thing without having to fit in time with a partner/kids/family life.

    • No, I had a girlfriend and daughter. I did work from home quite a lot, so would drop my daughter off at school in the morning, go to the office, do an 8 hour day and then pick her up from the child minders. I’d then take some family time off and work at home after my daughter had gone to bed. I had near unlimited double pay overtime so at the time thought I was doing really well but in hindsight I was pretty foolish.

      I think if I’d maintained what I was doing the relationship with my girlfriend (who also worked an 8 hour day) would of ended a long time ago.

  2. Working for someone reminds me of this saying a friend once said to me…

    “You’ll never get rich, digging another man’s ditch”

  3. Interesting post Al, I am working a 40 hour week with my day job, and another 20+ hours a week on my websites.

    So I guess I am doing something similar in terms of the amount of time I spend working at the moment as you were when you started, hopefully if I keep going, it will pay off in the end.

    I would love to be in the position you are in, and get called a workaholic for doing 1 hour a day whilst on holiday

  4. If you’re just ticking over the business whilst on holiday, what’s the harm? If your other half is understanding (and getting a nice lifestyle, I imagine she would be), and you’re happy with it, then do it.

  5. Yup, its hard working a 40 hour week to pay the mortgage and feed the family and then having to divide my out of office time between my family and working the websites. I’m fortunate in that I have an understanding wife, but time not spent with the kids is time not easily recovered. Its a difficult balancing act.

  6. yes, this sounds so familiar. when i was starting my first business, i was working 90-100 hours a week and i was a workaholic. “why are you killing yourself?! you should just get a regular job! then we can hang out and have fun!”

    then later, when i was working 4 hours a day i was a lucky bastard.

    yep. soooo familiar.

  7. Either way we have to work to generate money, for ourselves or somebody else.

    So, why not work for the one person that is always looking out for your best interest!

    Sure, it’s scary but think about all the ideas and personal growth that come with it, priceless.

  8. Working for someone else is the worst way of making money in my opinion, because they want more and more, and you get less and less.

    Therefore, by building your own business in the beginning it is tough, but it will pay off in the long run.

  9. So in the early days I was something of a workaholic, as I’d be doing 50-60 hours a week in my daytime job and then something like 20 hours a week on my own projects.
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    peterscott