I stopped drinking!

Britain loves alcohol. Especially at Christmas.?

It’s tradition. A time to relax, to reconnect with loved ones over a few drinks.?

Alcohol isn’t good for you. It’s a major contributor to poor mental and physical health. It’s ingrained in our culture, even the way we think.?

So, to mix things up, I did something to break from the norm: I stopped drinking.?

In this week’s Newsletter, I’ll tell you why I stopped drinking for 5 weeks and how it affected my productivity and mental health.?

No Holiday, No Drama

My wife and I took a big risk this year: we didn’t book any time off work from August until December. Not one day.?

Why?

I can’t tell you. We’ve been so busy with our two little girls. We’re also growing two businesses which isn’t easy.?

We always schedule time off during the school half-term. We visit somewhere new to recharge and refocus. To repair ourselves.?

But this time we decided to power through knowing lack of rest leads to exhaustion.?

October

Autumn came around and I was feeling tired. I began feeling unenergetic between coaching sessions. I started to feel sleepy in the evenings.?

I know this feeling well. I burned out from my career in 2018. A low point in my life when exhaustion took over.?

My evenings would be spent in silence until I crashed out on the sofa. I’d then struggle to fall asleep because of these power naps, often wide awake until 4 am. It was torture.?

I knew I wasn’t stressed this time, but I had to take action to feel good again.?

Performance

Energy is critical to high performance. If you want to speak well and create new ideas, you need energy reserves.?

You get these by eating healthily, getting the right amount of sleep and living an active life.?

A well-rested Tom thinks better.

My brain feels healthy and I make better decisions.?

When I’m tired, I procrastinate. I get brain fog making me unproductive.?

My goals at the start of 2023 were to grow my business whilst delivering incredible service.?

How would I do this without a break for another 8 weeks??

The Solution

Over the years, I’ve experimented with periods of sobriety. I don’t drink a lot. I used to when I was a student. But who didn’t?

I have periods where I drink 1 or 2 beers consistently. Not every day but on social occasions and in the evening.

When I stopped (particularly after 2 weeks of no booze) I felt terrific. I could think. Ideas came to me quickly. It all felt productive.?

So, this is why I decided to stop drinking. If I was going to get through this period without a break, I had to change my habits.?

To be a great coach, my brain needs to function. I need to be present. I need to listen attentively so I can offer the best advice.?

Not only that, I WANT to perform at my best. So, quitting alcohol made complete sense.?

I drank no 0% beers when I met with friends. I stopped bringing alcohol into the house. I changed my habits.?

Social pressure

Social media experts give out advice without proper grounding. Not all, but some.?

Whether it's a cold shower or waking up at 4 a.m., not all advice is going to be tailored to your specific needs. ?

If you’re waking up too early (because it's the thing to do) you’re denying yourself early morning REM sleep. This is what your brain needs to function at its best.?

The more quality sleep you get, the better you are at solving problems. The better your relationships. Who doesn’t want that??

Your life improves because of sleep.?

Waking up at 4 a.m. prevents your brain from getting the recharge it needs.

Alcohol also stops you from getting what your brain needs.?

Drinking affects the balance of neurotransmitters in your brain. It prevents you from experiencing REM sleep (the type of sleep that allows you to lucid dream)

This type of sleep isn’t just your brain having fun, it serves an important purpose. REM sleep enables you to solve problems whilst asleep.

This is why I feel better when I don’t have a drink. It enables me to have better quality rest.?

The lack of alcohol in my system gives me more energy to get through challenging moments.?

Even helping me to get through a period of little rest from work.?

It’s really worked for me and I hope it can inspire you to think about changing your habits too.?

The question is, could you benefit from changing your relationship to alcohol??

And how would this benefit your life and career?

For anyone wanting more information on this subject, I’d highly recommend reading ‘Why We Sleep’ by Matthew Walker.

Otherwise, have a great weekend.?

Tom ?