What is Sober October?
Updated: Dec 2, 2019
Wow look at all those beautiful, confident and happy people in this photograph? Look how they're all getting along with each other without a care in the world? Look how happy and carefree they all are? They look like they're having the time of their lives! Or are they...
If you're a fan of philosophy then you've probably heard of Friedrich Nietzsche, the German philosopher and scholar who had a profound impact on the modern intellectual movement.
And Nietzsche had one particular belief just in time for Sober October.
INSPIRED GOAL SETTING: Scroll to the bottom of this article for your Sober October Challenge!
Nietzsche believed that if you wanted to reach your goals, the LAST thing you should be doing is drinking alcohol. He said drinking alcohol delays our progress because it masks our suffering and inadequacies. It obscures our ability to reach long term pleasure because of the short term reward drinking offers.
Why Do We Drink?
Let's be honest here, drinking to get a slight buzz feels great, but is that really the only reason we drink?
Is that really the only reason the world drinks? Why the global market of alcohol was valued at over 1300 billion USD worldwide in 2017 ?
No we drink for many reasons we don't often talk about:
We drink to get buzzed, and to have a laugh
We drink to feel confident in big or small social settings, like a first date, or a big networking event
We drink to connect with others. Friends old or new.
We drink as a reward for the hard work we put in the day
We drink because we never had any 'me' time in our day, and now we deserve it
We drink to forget about our problems
We drink sometimes with the plan to get completely drunk.
We drink to celebrate a new job or promotion
We drink when we get fired from our jobs
We drink when we get married
We drink when we get divorced
...We drink because it's socially accepted as the norm to drink, even when we don't want to
What is the Cost to this Drinking?
Short Term Pain
The price of course comes soon after the drinking ends. The pleasure of drinking gives you at best borrowed time. If you're new at drinking, a headache could kick in within just a few hours. If you're more seasoned, it may take 4, or 8 hours before the ill effects take hold. More often than not, when we drink too much, at worst we feel horrible after drinking, and at best we feel just 'ok.'
Disease, Cancer, Social Disfunction
Long term excessive drinking has been clearly linked with increases our chances of all sorts of cancers and other serious diseases. Drinking shortens our life and quality of life over time. And it left out of check, drinking too much can completely overtake someones life, leading to our inability to function normally in our world.
Drinking Delays Your Ability to Reach Your Goals
Simply put, drinking is a strain on your mind and body. It prevents the best of you to be available, awake and present today, here and now. Drinking stops us from evaluating the truth - that drinking is often a substitute for something else. And that something else is worth understanding and looking into.
This is where our dreams and desires should kick in. Who do we really want to be? Is where we are now the place we intended? And if not, what work are we willing to put into our future selve? Drinking delays our development of our Inspired Life Foundations, and slows, delays and even prevents us from working towards our Inspired Career plans and Goals.
The Inspired Challenge: Sober October
So with that said, it's time for Sober October! If you've never heard of it, the idea is simple.
No drinks, of any alcoholic kind for 1 month, starting October 1st. And that's it.
I participated in my first Sober October last year in 2018 and it was an incredibly rewarding experience.
Once the initial shock of not being able to drink took hold, and all the weird looks and comments subsided when I was the ONLY one NOT drinking, I suddenly found myself having more free time doing the things I really enjoyed doing.
I was sleeping better.
Reading more.
Exercising more.
And I looked better...drinking is calorie dense and makes us fat.
Most of all, in general, I felt GREAT and much more self aware of who I was and what I was doing.
...And that was all from just taking a short break, one month off, from drinking.
So, join us in the Sober October Challenge!
INSPIRED TIP: Want to Reach Your Goals? Drink less by giving Sober October a try with me. If you plan to join AND want to share your experience, send us an email at info@the-inspired.com letting us know you're joining the Sober October challenge, and tell us about your experiences as you go! How was week 1 compared to week 3? At the end of the month I'll share your thoughts here on The-Inspired so others can learn from your experience!
Thanks for Reading and until next time, don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter so you never miss the latest from The-Inspired.com
Until next time...stay inspired.
Goran Yerkovich
