Overachiever

Value
Common, Strong: 15 Points • Common, Total: 20 Points
Description
Overachievers feel they are required to perform better than their peers, even when they aren't required to. Such a character feels pressured to excel in every area, regardless of the subject, and because of this pressure they go over and beyond the expectations and standards to which they are held. They base their feelings of self-worth on their accomplishments (the more they do, and the more they do well, the better they feel about themselves), and thus base how they feel about themselves on the opinions of others rather than on their own opinion.
For the most part, people who act in this manner lack a sense of balance and perspective. Quite often, Overachievers spread themselves too thin. With only so many hours in the day, and only so much energy to give, the character has to divide his attention among a number of endeavors because he's overscheduled his time. He loses the chance to discover genuine personal interests or talents in his quest to master everything simultaneously. Consequently, the character loses sight of what he truly likes, and gets less and less enjoyment from the things he does. In addition, such characters tend to suffer from sleep deprivation and poor eating habits, because they work long into the night and grab food on the go.
Also known as Workaholic, characters with this Complication lose sight of the original reason they were working so hard, until the work itself becomes an end in and of itself. He cannot bear to be "unproductive", and when not actually at his job, will be doing something connected to his job, even when he is supposed to be relaxing. (This is the sort of person who spends his supposed "family vacation" talking to his secretary on his cell phone, or who brings paperwork to his kid's little league game.) Such characters might neglect their family and friends for weeks or months, and is usually a prime candidate for illnesses related to stress and overwork.
Often the character will verbally express how much he "Hates His Job" and bemoan the fact that he "cannot" spend more time with his family... but will nevertheless feel he is too essential in his position to take time off, or else fears that he will be fired if he dares show "weakness" at the workplace.
At the Strong level, the character can be forced to relax just a little bit and deal with his personal life. At the Total level, even that is impossible.
See Also
Control Freak, Craves Approval, Craves Respect, Fear of Failure, Hard Charging, Hardworking, Held to a Higher Standard, Holds Himself to a Higher Standard, Takes His Responsibilities Seriously, Takes the World on His Shoulders, Underachiever
Category:Complications
Category:Psychological Complications
Category:Psychological Complications O - P
Category:Fears
Category:Self-Esteem Issues
Category:Personality Traits
Category:Ambition and Motivation Complications