I’m beginning to see a very positive movement starting up on the internet and I really couldn’t be happier for it.
I’m seeing the likes of Andrew Huberman and Bedros Keuilian swearing off alcohol and sharing the merits of doing just that.
Most recently, author Mark Manson, who I actually can’t stand, announced that he had also put down the bottle and quit drinking permanently.
Hopefully this is a movement that will grow in strength and continue gaining traction.
So today I wanted to talk about my own journey through a life without alcohol and the number of ways in which it has helped.
Moreover, I wanted to relate how ending my relationship with alcohol has improved my writing and overall content creation efforts.
Many of my favorite writers happen to be alcoholics and after studying for a while it became clear why they were that way.
It also helped me understand why I’m that way too.
A writer’s brain is like a factory – it’s chugging along producing ideas and creative thoughts, which is great.
Society needs and wants what writers have going on inside their heads.
But like with an actual factory, things can go wrong.
A brain that is constantly operating on hyper-drive can become very problematic and there is only so much time and energy a writer can devote to his craft each day, and that’s when the problems creep in.
It’s a slippery slope and the very substances you use to calm your imagination can eventually kill it over time.
Therein lies the need to orchestrate change.
From what I’ve personally experienced, part of what drew me to the alcohol was not only slowing down the pace of thought, but the frustration that came with not being able to move fast enough.
A perfect example of this would be writing a novel.
If you’ve never tried writing a novel before, you’ll be shocked at the many ways in which you can get stuck and how long it can take to move past those obstacles.
I used to work with a guy named Matt way back in the day.
Matt was a musician and he once made a comment that stuck with me.
He once asked if I sometimes struggle with writing since it’s a solitary craft. I never gave it much thought prior to Matt’s question.
Music, on the other hand, is more of a team sport and when you’re working with others, it can be a lot easier to get to the finish line and enjoy the fruits of your labors.
While the solitary craft of writing will always prove more challenging than other creative outlets, it is getting easier.
While it’s far from perfect, ChatGPT has helped move the writing process along more quickly – especially when writing nonfiction.
The area in which I’ve seen the greatest improvement in my writing since I quit drinking is with the YouTube videos I produce.
What has really helped me quite a bit with my own writing exploits would have to be the software I’ve talked about in previous videos. It’s the software generating the voice you’re hearing now.
This has allowed me to create faster and get more satisfaction in quicker time.
Not sure if that will help you, but I hope that it does.