It’s holiday season and it’s also barbecue party season. It’s so easy to be tempted. I do get it, I look at the sun shining and I think "yeah why not sit outside the pub for a few hours?"
Holidays, of course are even tougher. I usually do overdo it the first day I arrive. I’m the same whenever I’m filming in a nice location. It doesn’t feel like work, it feels like the start of holiday.
I’m not bad when I’m by myself and I’m pretty disciplined. What I find difficult and I know many other people do too is peer pressure. When you’re made to feel bad that you don’t wanna join in the boozing.
What I found and it's really useful for work trips to the pub, events that take me away or even barbecues put on by friends, is to have some rules.
Now nobody knows what rules you may set for yourself but once they know you have them it’s a really strong defence against their pressure to join in with what they’re doing despite your better intentions. Let me explain...
If someone says to you, "Oh go on, have a drink" and you say "well I’m trying not to. I’m trying to be good" and they say "well one little drink, won’t you? Go on, you’re being boring". What’s your defence? What’s your argument? "I don’t really want to." Should be good enough but it often sounds weak.
What I say is this: "Oh no, it’s a strict rule of mine never to drink with work colleagues, I’ve learnt that lesson before and it’s something I never do."
Another one is, "Oh I don’t drink on Saturdays any more! I haven’t done for ages. I found that that was the day when I was most likely to regret it when I drank the most and I made the rule ages ago that I just don’t do that anymore."
Nobody can persuade you, they are the rules that you have made or you tell them you’ve made and they sound firm and unbreakable.
If people are really your friends, they should always respect your opinion if it doesn’t hurt them and you staying sober or just having a couple or trying to look after your health and lose weight should be supported by your friends
Alcohol and excessive drinking was always my Achilles heel. I’m a lot better than I used to be but I still overdo it every now and again. I’ll tell you something and this is very true, I have never ever regretted not having a drink.
Greggs Blogs
Gregg's Blog - Rule Setting
Gregg's Blog - Rule Setting
