I’m a Workaholic: A Club Thrifty Confessional

I'm a Workaholic A Club Thrifty Confessional - picture of papers and coffee on desk with someone writing

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So…I’m pretty sure that I’m a workaholic.  I’m not sure if it’s an actual problem or not,but I’m definitely finding that I am working waaaaaaaaaay more than I am enjoying myself these days.  Yesterday, Johnny Moneyseed wrote about how to increase your income instead of waiting for a pay raise.  Luckily, I’ve got that shiznit more than covered. I’m working in some way nearly every waking hour that I’m not spending with my kids.  The results are wonderful, profitable, and  terribly depressing all at the same time.  Needless to say, all work and no play makes Holly a dull, dull girl.   Anyways, I wanted to take a few minutes to explore my extreme tendency to work 28 hours a day and also to ask my readers how many hours you work on any given week.  Maybe I will find out that I am not alone…or maybe I will find out that I seriously need to get a life…and quick.

 

Anyway, this is how the typical week goes in our household.  Brace yourselves….it’s boring.

  • We usually get up between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m.  This way we can get some work done before our kids get up and make accomplishing anything impossible.  During these early morning hours, we write or edit blog posts, comment on all of our friends blogs, or return emails to advertisers or other bloggers.
  • Our kids usually get up around 7:45 a.m. and we get them ready for daycare as well as get dressed in our own monkey suits.  By the time we actually get to work, we have usually already worked a few hours.
  • We both work at least 40 hours a week at our regular jobs.  If we are having a particularly busy week, we may work as many as 50 hours.  Occasionally, Greg works something insane like a 60, 70, or even 80 hour week.  Luckily, that doesn’t happen very often.
  • After work, we do our usual evening routine.  We play with the kids, make dinner, do laundry and dishes, etc.  The kids go to bed at 8:00 p.m.
  • After the kids go to bed, we typically work until 10:00 or 11:00 p.m.  We write and edit upcoming blog posts and also work on other freelance writing jobs.  Right now we have a surplus of other writing jobs.  Although I am thankful for the extra work, I am starting to feel like there’s no time for anything else.
  • Weekends are typically spent playing with the kids or working.  Our kids usually take a long ass nap, sometimes three hours on Saturdays and Sundays.  We usually use that time to write or edit content and do other administrative tasks for Club Thrifty LLC.
  • In addition to our other responsibilities, we also manage our two rental properties.  Right now the properties are occupied so luckily there isn’t a lot of extra work needed at the moment.

Just typing that all our made me feel sad and overwhelmed.  I just went on vacation in February and I am sooooooooo ready for another one.  I love spending time with my kids, and I can’t wait to get a full week with them in May.  We rented an ocean front condo in Panama City Beach, and I cannot wait to see the Florida sunset with a cocktail in hand.  Ahhhhhh………

I took this picture when we were in Panama City this past September...
I took this picture when we were in Panama City this past September…

Although we have been working a lot, the good news is that Club Thrifty LLC is more profitable than ever.  The bad news is that I am becoming a crabby hermit who craves relaxation and the long gone days when I had no responsibilities.

Pros of being a workaholic:

  • Making a lot of money
  • We are saving a lot of money because we don’t have any time to spend it
  • We are creating a lot of contacts and branching out with our part time writing skillz

Cons of being a workaholic:

  • I don’t have any time to do anything
  • I’m stressed out
  • I’m not having any fun

So, what do you guys think?  Do you think we’re workaholics?  Do you think we are working too much?   Too little?  How many hours do you guys put into your online income and regular jobs on a given week?

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69 Comments

  1. Dianne @ Skinny Seahorse says:

    Phew. I’m exhausted just reading this. I admire your ability to stay focused and motivated – particularly the get up at 5 am thing you do. Because I do it too and know how hard it can be.

    1. We don’t get up that early every day luckily!

  2. I do think you should think about your wellbeing a bit too. If you feel that you don`t have any fun, and feeling stressed out all the time, then I think it`s time to reassess. It would be terrible if your workaholic life should lead to a burnout!! What about making 1 hour a day as your leisure time, no kids, no job, no blog. Just relax, spend time with each other.

    1. We usually do from 10pm-11pm! We try to watch tv or just hang out!

  3. I would say I fall into the same boat, where some would say I’m a workaholic. I’m working a regular job, working on my site, doing other random side work, doing some work on our house, etc. I also sometimes feel stressed out and like I’m not making enough time for fun. Right now it feels good to be doing productive things, though, because I know I’m setting myself up for a debt-free future – plus I have a lot of life goals that require money 😉

    1. Oh yes. That is true. Hopefully all of your hard work will pay off!

  4. I am glad to see that I am not the only one that wakes up at 5:00 am. 😉 If you & Greg are workaholics then I am right there with you. All totaled we’re putting in probably 50-60 hour weeks at least and I am usually over that amount fairly easily. My wife has a much easier time of choosing to stop and separating while I keep going. I think that has much more to do with my OCD traits than anything else. The nice thing though is that the business is doing better than ever and we’re signing new clients on a regular basis.

    1. What exactly do you guys do for a living again?

      1. We run our own advertising business. We do a lot of writing for websites, advertising/marketing campaigns and help companies create marketing plans for their business. So, anything from billboards, to TV/radio ads and sales materials for businesses. It’s very rewarding, but also very time consuming.

    1. Yes, we did. Now all of our blog and freelance income goes to the LLC. Good idea for a post!

  5. I like to stay active but am by no means a workaholic. I love early mornings now because they are my only quiet and productive time, the rest of the day there is always someone requiring my attention so I try to wake even earlier, even though I am not a morning person. Looks like you have super full days, good thing your girls can sleep! 8 pm to 8 am and 3 hours naps I want the same if I have some!

    1. Oh, I know I got lucky with them. They are my little lazy bums. Sometimes I actually wake them up at 9 or 10am on the weekends because they’re still snoozing!

  6. If you enjoy your work then it isn’t a problem, but if you’re super stressed maybe getting rid of some of the things you don’t like to do as much should be outsourced… I need to get better at this myself and learn to let go! You guys are doing awesome though, your hard work is paying off…

    The sunsets here are awesome 🙂 Hopefully there are some good ones the week you come down. It was a bit chilly last night but luckily it didn’t freeze at the beach. We have to protect our orange tree 🙂

    1. I love watching the sun set over the ocean!!1 I cannot wait! 39 days until we go!

  7. As long as you enjoy it and you aren’t neglecting your family, I don’t think there’s a problem there! If you’re starting to feel overwhelmed, there’s no shame in cutting back a bit. FWIW, I get up at the same time as you and get into the office early so I can get some stuff done before people throw extra stuff on my plate. Also, I can get my head together. 🙂

    1. When the kids are awake, we have an unspoken rule about not being on the computer. We try really hard to stick to this rule! We work during the day so our evenings are for the kids. I love spending time with them. It actually helps me relax!

  8. I think I am a workaholic, too….I work 40 hours a week as a nurse, I babysit 8-15 hours a week, I housesit on occasion, I mystery shop in my ‘free’ time. It’s fun to see the extra money come in, but it does get a bit overwhelming at times. I wouldn’t change it though because I like to be busy! I still am able to have friend/family time. That is the beauty of my side gigs…if I need to say “no” to something, I can. 🙂

    1. That’s true. And we should all be thankful for the opportunity to earn extra money. Some people don’t have the ability to do so for various reasons.

  9. I posted an article about my schedule a while back; I get up at 5:30 and work two hours, drive to work and work more, come home and relax a bit with the fiance, and then read until I pass out (which is work related). It is exhausting, and will get worse before it gets better but I am okay with that for now. Hopefully things play out so I end up with more time down the line, when I have less energy. Not having kids helps… super glad I gave them away.

  10. You definetly work much more than I do so I would say you are a workaholic, but if you do it as a means to an end I don’t see a problem with it. If you are doing it with no goal on the horizon I could see you getting pretty burned out.

    I, myself, put 0 hours into any online income generation. While I am physically at my job for 40 hours a week (no more no less), I probably do about 15-20 hours of real work on a busy week and probably 5-12 hours on a slow week. This gives me plenty of time to spend with my little guy and to spend on my hobbies. It’s not that I am lazy, it’s just that I like my passive income to be really passive.

    1. Hey, you don’t have to explain yourself to me! Everyone has to find a balance that works for them and it sounds like you’ve found yours.

  11. “We usually get up between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m. This way we can get some work done before our kids get up and make accomplishing anything impossible.”

    Holy cow, I can relate to this. One or two hours of quiet, followed by the storm. It sure feels good when the house is quiet and you can get a bunch of work cranked out without interruption.

    1. Yes, definitely. Once they get up, I cannot get anything done!

  12. You are doing fantastic work, Holly. My only advice would be to focus on what makes you happy. If you are over-working yourself and it’s having a negative impact on your life, you should start paring off some of the things that don’t actually bring you happiness. I thought about quitting blogging recently, because it eats up my free time, but I realized that I love it. So why would I give up something that I love doing?

    1. I am actually working on convincing myself to outsource some things. I have been talking about getting a cleaning lady for like….years….and I am on the verge of hiring one!

  13. I’m definitely NOT a workaholic. And right now my blog and “side income” are so small that I really still classify them as hobbies. 🙂 As long as you’re enjoying what you do outside of “regular work” then go for it! But it sounds like you need a little downtime too! Take some time and relax, you’re awesome blog will still be here when you get back! 🙂

    1. That is so true. We went on vacation to the Caribbean in February and we didn’t get on our blog the entire time. We scheduled guest posts for the entire week and everything went fine.

  14. It’s obvious you and Greg work hard on this website and I’m so happy you guys are seeing great results. Life is too short to be not be having fun and stressed out all the time though. Maybe cut back by not posting as often?

    1. Maybe. We try to put up our own posts on Tuesday-Wednesday-Thurs and post guest posts or other stuff on Mondays and Fridays. So far we have been able to get it all done.

  15. I wake up at 5 pm. I hit the gym and then head to my day job. I probably drop 45-50 hours a week in the office and some extra outside of that as the need comes up. Then it’s all working on my blog and thinking about investments.

    I don’t find myself too stressed since I spread my work out over a lot of very different tasks. But I do find that I don’t have a lot of free time. This is not a problem in winter, since it’s too bloody cold to do anything. But once summer hits, I’ll have to see how I can fit in some fun.

    1. I definitely will want to do some other stuff when it gets warm outside. I love being outside!

  16. I used to be a workaholic, but I have been working on changing my ways. I used to work a full time job, then come home an build my ecommerce business. I only slept for 4 hours each night at the max. It destroyed my health and my relationship. I won’t be in that boat again. I am trying to keep a happy medium.

  17. You guys sound super busy! I have a post just like this that I was going to publish today, but I decided not to – so don’t be mad when it goes live in a couple of weeks!

    Lately I’ve been thinking about this a lot. Should I cut back in certain areas so that I can have more free time? I feel like I’m also running around like a crazy person!

    1. Of course I won’t be mad! We’re all bound to talk about the same things sooner or later!

  18. (imagine emergency broadcast radio voice) “This is a phase. This is only a phase.”

    This, too, shall pass. In a few years you’ll look back on this and say: Wow! Can you remember those crazy days?

    Yes, you’re stressed and yes, you wonder about it. But think of it this way: it sure beats the alternative: not having a job, no income, no kids, no future to build together. There is a joy in what you’re doing, even though it might not feel like it every moment… 🙂

    1. Oh yes, it’s much better than the alternative!

  19. Oh my goodness, I feel like a lazy bum. Maybe you can cut back on some of your extra work once you reach your next financial milestone.

  20. Your life is great! Maybe you could incorporate some fun excercise – biking, running, or whatever. We have 3 kids and I run for 30 mins with a running group 3x a week and my husband plays hockey once or twice a week. This is also social for us.
    In the evening, maybe sometimes watch stand up comedy or a movie or something when the kids are asleep – like a date night in – have some glasses of wine or beer or whatever.
    If possible, carve out a few hours to do something fun with your kids every Saturday or Sunday that you find relaxing too – mini golf, bowling…
    Don’t wait for just vacations to have fun – enjoy your youth!!!
    You must want to change if you’re feeling a little down, I’m sure you’ll work it out!

    1. Thank you!

      I actually hired a babysitter for this upcoming Saturday night. I think we’re gonna go get some Thai food and see a movie or something fun! My kids are too little to do much right now (ages 1 and 3) but I could see us bowling and doing minigolf in the future! That actually sounds like a lot of fun!

  21. Wow, you are super busy! I usually wake up 4:30-5, but to go work out which I consider “play time.” Other than my normal job, I mostly just help out my bf with his side business. If you’re starting to feel overwhelmed with stuff, is there any way some things can be done with a personal assistant or something? It seems like you really enjoy the blogging business (and obviously very successful at it!), but it might be nice to take some downtime for yourself. 🙂

  22. I have heard of a lot of people who describe themselves as workaholics! Is work a compulsion and is it at the expense of other pursuits? I work a lot of hours on my blog, but I see it as in pursuit of a goal. Also, I don’t think it is at the expense of other pursuits.

  23. You’ve got to work to live, and it should only be the other way round if you’re in financial turmoil. I personally thing there is nothing wrong with working hard makes those moments of freedom all the more enjoyable!

  24. I sort of look at working through the same lens as I look at saving. If I work really hard now (and save a lot now) it will be paid back to me over time when I don’t have to kill myself during my retirement years. As long as you have some balance to your life and feel good about what you’re doing, I see nothing wrong with working a lot of hours.

  25. I have always love to work and make money… us workaholics typically have no hobbies except working, or figuring out ways to save or make money. I started mowing yards at the age of 10, have worked every since…

  26. Thought I am working crazy hours right now, my usual schedule is a bit tamer than yours. Get up at 7:00, carpool to work, comment on blogs during lunch/breaks, come home to play with my kid, do some house work, eat food, then blog from 8 – 10 (2 hours MAX) on Tuesdays/Thursdays and Saturdays. Though, I’m probably not NEAR the income level you guys are with your online ventures 🙂

    For me, my weekends are sacred, and I try not to do ANY work during them, except for a few hours on Saturday evening (unless it’s date night). I’ve been trying to grow my online income without increasing the time spent. It’s getting increasingly tougher to do, though.

  27. Justin@TheFrugalPath says:

    I’m a workaholic too, but very poor with time management. It’s good that you’re working as a team. By doing so you’re able to get so much more done than if you were on your own.
    My wife proofreads the site, but really doesn’t like the whole financial aspect of things. We’re working on finding ways for her to bump up side income too.
    Great job on becoming a LLC. I’m debating between that or incorporating but have a long ways to go before I consider that.

  28. Well Holly, as long as you are making time for your kids, yourselves, and your health, this is not a bad SHORT term plan. Dont trade any of these for a few dollars, it is not worth it!

  29. I think you need a day off. Pick Saturday or Sunday and skip the blog and just have family time and one of you should get to do something with friends while the kids nap. I nap on my days off and I wake up with more energy and often new blog idea in my brain.

    What about a pot luck brunch on a Saturday morning for family or friends that you don’t need to fuss over. The good kind of friends that come to see you and not your house. It gets harder to develop friendships when you are older and if you don’t nuture friendships now they will start to disappear.

    You need to work less. I need to work more.

  30. I was a workaholic for years, but since I’ve started working part time, I don’t feel that way at all. I could put 6 hours a day into my blog and still have more to do, but I’d say I average about 2 hours. Now, when we spent a month renovating out rental last fall in our spare time, I was a train wreck and my husband and I were super grumpy, but it was over pretty quickly. I am now trying to do no computer work on Saturday if I can help it. When you are able to cut back on your day job, life gets great. I believe that is one of your goals? I bet you’ll get there before you know it.

  31. Wow, I felt a bit overwhelmed reading that.

    I’m actually looking at taking on a few more after-hours types of jobs writing. It will be interesting seeing how I balance my time. I’ve made mistakes at it before and nearly burnt out.

    I think it is possible to do more work without being overworked, but it’s a goal I haven’t quite hit yet.

  32. Mr. Bonner says:

    Wow, I agree with the other posts that i’m exhausted reading about your schedule. With my new blog I’m feeling a little overwhelmed trying to start things up from scratch on top of work, family time and gunning for a couple half Ironmans in the next couple months. The blog will hopefully pay off one day, but I’m not going to stress over it if it doesn’t. I’m going to give it my all and see what happens the next few months. You’ve got quite the model to follow, so keep up the good work!

  33. Maybe a bit of a workaholic, but I certainly don’t think you’re alone. In fact, I’m not sure I even know anybody who doesn’t run like crazy from sun up to sundown. It’s a problem for many people, I’d say.

  34. Yeah, it does kind of sound like you’re burning the candle at both ends. It’s hard to give up some of that stuff, especially when their is a profit involved, but what will it all mean if you’re not taking good care of yourself. I had a really busy Feb and March, but it’s starting to mellow out now. It was a lot for me, but I also knew it had and end date, making it more tolerable. Try to find some balance for your sanity! 🙂

  35. Holy guacamole this is craziness! I commend you for keeping such a schedule. I’m working a lot more now that I don’t have the 9-5 dragging me down, but I seem to be spending less time overall because I do things at odd, wacky hours. I’m far too interested in having a life balance to work myself too far though. I cherish my afternoon runs, and I typically completely unplug on Saturdays and part of the day on Sunday.

    Schedule that vacay–even if it’s a one/two-day getaway!

  36. Your day sounds a lot like mine (work, get the kids to school, work, do more work, enjoy yourself at night, and then do a little more work). I’ve learned to just go with my inner workaholic. It can be stressful, but I just try to channel it into things that make side cash.

  37. I’m definitely a workaholic. 🙂 Weekdays are pretty much full speed from the moment I get up to the moment I fall back into bed. But I try really, really hard to let weekends be family and fun. Sunday night, after the girls go to bed (sadly mine no longer take naps!) I might fire up my email and start cleaning up my inbox. I can’t say I have mastered work and fun, but I’ve learned to allow myself time away from work and to relax without guilt.

  38. Definitely vacation time for Holly!! Florida sounds awesome 🙂

  39. Holly,
    Been there, done that – I do NOT recommend it. I used to go on (maybe) 5 hours of sleep a night – getting up at 3:30 or 4:30 am. I’d cook, do laundry – whatever needed to be done before the kids woke up – got them dressed, fed off to school etc and then went to my (very stressful) job only to rush home p/u the kids, play, do homework, cook, clean etc some more. It was fun for several years and altho I was tired, I was never burned out – UNTIL – about 15 years into this schedule I just got really, really tired and I would fantasize about sleeping until nothing but my own body woke me up. 30 + years later – I actually have the “freedom” to sleep in when I want, but I seem to have programed my body so that I still wake up at 3:30 or 4:30 am – even when I don’t have to. Best of luck. It is exceedingly difficult to find that balance.

    1. Thanks for your reply, lady!

      I definitely won’t be doing this for 15 years…I am hoping that this is a short term thing to get me to where I really want to be. Thank you for your insight though. I definitely don’t want to be miserable!

  40. It is good to hear that all your hard work and being workaholic were paid off. But still, don’t forget to take some rest and have a little fun because life is too short not to have fun as well.

  41. Looks familiar! That said, the fact that you both work together on the site must be a real advantage. Blogging tends to pull me away from my wife, so finding balance there is sometimes difficult. Heck, finding balance in general is difficult to be honest!

  42. I’m terrible at balance and definitely have workaholic tendencies myself. That said, I’m not good at sustaining the kind of pace I set for myself so I usually burn out pretty quickly and then need to take a break. I am usually at work for at least 45 hours a week, and sometimes work up to another 10-15 hours if it’s a busy freelancing week.

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