Javier Milei said the word “workaholic” was a term invented by lazy people.
I completely agree.
Discussion
I disagree. I can't speak for laxy people (when exactly are you lazy? By what measure?), but there are some people that are super-performers and seem to do very well under heavy workloads (40 hrs/wk *minimum*, repeatedly), and while i admire and greatly respect people capable of that, it's a fact of life that that work burden would crush many people.
The dot-com era led to many cases of alcoholism and depression because work made its way into the private life of many it workers by way of the internet, during the 90s.
I do *not* expect everyone to be able to shoulder 40 hours/wk, let alone > 60 hrs/wk that many CEOs and startup founders put in. In fact, I know it to be outright dangerous for some to try.
I would argue that it’s an entitlement problem. The same people who can’t handle a 40 hour/wk position tend to expect the same benefits (i.e. PTO, vacation, health benefits, etc.) and pay as someone who works 50-60 hours/wk, when the concept doesn’t add up.
They expect to work the bare minimum and succeed. I’m “accused” of being a workaholic by a lot of people close to me, because instead of taking weekend road trips, vacations, etc. I spend that spare time podcasting, investing, doing side work, and putting time into my future.
At the end of the day, everything is about human capital. If you provide low human capital, you receive low return on investment. I’m working hard as fuck now so that can make sure that I’m financially secure in the future and don’t have to rely on a monthly social security check to get by. That doesn’t make me a workaholic - that makes me smart.
I fully expect to spend the later part of my life lavishly and comfortable. The problem is, those same people accusing me of being a workaholic expect me to subsidize their retirement by paying into SS and Medicare because they don’t want to put in the effort now.
Instead of making up terms to describe people that simply work harder, they should be focused on setting realistic expectations for what their lack of work will produce. It would probably make that “mental stress” a little easier to deal with when they realize that the light at the end of the tunnel is a speeding train.