It is hard to distinguish between someone who is ambitious and hard-working and a workaholic.

Some people who are very efficient can "get ahead" in their career and still manage to work 9 to 5.

There is the occasional person who can be qualified as a genius...in some professions this might translate into shorter working hours.

However, these two cases aside, those people who want to advance in their career, who do not want to be stuck at the bottom of the org chart, often end up having to work more hours than are strictly required.

Does this mean they are a workaholic? I don't think so. After all, a parent might have to spend many, many hours watching their newborn, but are they considered a parentaholic? I think it can be the same way with a person and their work.

A workaholic is someone whose "life" is disrupted--if married, they do not communicate their hours, or break promises... if single, they do not pay bills or live in a reasonably clean environment (however, there is some naturalness in the bachelor pad phenomena...).

But a single person who works extremely hard to get ahead, to become a leader in their chosen profession? A married person whose spouse supports and makes achievement of career success a mutual goal? These people are not necessarily workaholics.