Why do people drink? It seems like a crazy decision for reasons everyone knows. Namely:
1) It’s expensive
2) It ruins your tomorrow
3) It is unhealthy
Duh. Those are obvious and everyone drinks knowing those consequences. But there is a reason even worse than all of those combined. And it explains why people drink even though it ruins their tomorrow.
So why do people drink?
If you ask people why they drink, you’ll hear two reasons repeated again and again over any other:
1.) To blow off steam
2.) To have more fun
What does that really mean?
It means they’re cheaters.
It is a bullshit quick fix. It temporarily cures the symptom, not the problem.
Life have you stressed out? Work not going well? Significant other pissing you off? Yeah, don’t focus on fixing the root causes of the problem, just grab a drink!
Not feeling fun? Drink. Feel uncomfortable out? Drink. Trouble being funny? Drink. Too nervous to go for a kiss? Grab another.
Know this: as long as you are drinking you are getting better at nothing. Your life isn’t getting better and you aren’t becoming a better version of yourself. You might feel good in the moment (you might even wake up next to someone the next day), but in the long run, you still have all the same problems and insecurities you had the day before.
All the alcohol does is temporarily mask your brain from the problems you have in your life or the fact that you are not as funny, confident, and happy as you’d like to be.
Maybe something you ought to work on?
But no, most people will spend their entire lives using alcohol to compensate for their problems or their crippling, yet unacknowledged social anxiety. And even those with no trace of chemical dependency will become its slave.
Are you doing this one thing to make a great first impression on anyone you meet?
Unfortunately, most people aren’t. This one simple fix can drastically improve the quality of your first impressions so people are eager and excited to see you again. It takes less than four minutes to read and is 100% free.
5 thoughts on “Why Do People Drink: The Lifelong Hangover”
great post
Well said!!
What would you advise to a college student, especially if they are in a fraternity? I’ve recognized that alcohol is holding me back from achieving my goals but it seems inescapable in my current environment. When I don’t drink I get berated by friends. Advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you.
So I’ve dealt with the same thing. Dudes definitely respond to conviction. So if you’re saying no 3 times, then allowing them to tease you into doing it, they’ll keep it up. But if you go in knowing that the entire damn fraternity can cheer your name and it’s not happening, you’ll answer with a stronger conviction.
If they ask why not, say the truth, something like, “Because I don’t need to drink to have fun. And I’m tired of feeling like I rely on alcohol to be social or talk to girls. I don’t want to be the guy who needs to feel buzzed before he can have a good time, so I’m not drinking.” If they push you, you can respond with something like, “Look man it’s not happening. If you want to have fun and do shenanigans, I’m all for it. But if you’re just going to sit here and insist that I drink to be like everyone else, I’m going to go hang with other people.”
Okey but you are missing out on a point here though. You are making it seem like drinking a beer or a glass of wine every now and then is a bad thing.
I’m busting my ass off on my personal goals and I love it. I’m surrounded by people who share the same values as me, help me push further and we are really achieving stuff here.
That being said, I love to get totally smashed once in a while and not focus on all my goals and what I want to achieve. Life is not all about that. To me life is about growing and learning as much as possible, while loving the present time.
Drinking can stop you from achieving your goals and you are totally right about that. But the greatest party’s I had where always the one’s I had a drink in my hand. Not so much that I puke the whole bar over or I can’t even stand up anymore, but just the right amount that I enjoy the taste of the drink and it just simple makes me feel good.
Your making it seem like people will be a totally different person when they grab one beer after work. Maybe that’s the case for you, but I have never seen that happen before.
Same goes for drugs, why are people so obsessed that this is a horrible thing. I mean have you ever been to a festival in Europe while on some sort of drug? I used to go really sober but after I went to one and I tried a drug, it was a whole new experience for me and it really was one of the best days of my life and since then I highly recommend people to do it once or twice a year.
Alcohol and drugs can ruin your life and your goals, I could not agree more.
But if you just control yourself and don’t over do it, I promise you, these things will definitely add something to your life. There is a big difference between getting wasted every night and grabbing a beer every know and then.
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