By James M.
Draw a line, remain honest with
yourself, and have your goals and dreams clear in front of you, all the time.
Partying is not inherently evil. Just like video games aren’t. However both can
be used as tremendous time wasters, and thus life ruiners. You have to assess
what you want out of your life. If partying will get in the way, then I suggest
that you keep it to a minimum. For those of us that want it as a regular part
of our time diet, then I have some more tips for you. I’m not passing on this
knowledge out of intuition. I know because I made the mistake of ignoring all
of the tips I’m giving you now. I would “cross the line” just before work, or
during. I was without a goal or purpose. And worst of all I frequently lied to
myself about having an issue at all.
Draw
the line. This is important, because it is the difference between an addict
and a partier (sorry for the seriousness). Showing up to work stoned is not the
end of the world, just possibly a poorly thought out decision, depending on
your circumstances. But being wasted, plastered, baked, ripped, torn,
up-for-three-days-manic, “oh Zeus please strike my creative cortex with a flash
of brilliance that will keep me home from work today” sort of mind set is crossing
the line. At least it is for me. There is no defined line, except the one you define for yourself. If you think
being extremely intoxicated at work is acceptable, then who am I to judge. The
thought is that having a line that you never cross is an asset that will keep
you in the clear. It’s like wearing certain cloths at appropriate events. You
wouldn’t show up to a funeral with your pajamas on, and you wouldn’t show up to
work with your club fit on. The First Rule of “getting down”, is knowing when
to get up. Having Self discipline is no easy task, but so worth it.
Practical tips:
-Make an alarm on your phone. This
will be when you have previously decided (under NO influence) the moment to
stop drinking, smoking, drugging, raving… what ever, and go home! Drugs are a
special case. Sometimes the effect lasts quite a while. Be aware of this. Also give yourself a time to be in “work mode”.
During this time you will remain sober and focused (again, within your own
guidelines. I’m not your mother). I don’t care if all you can think about is
getting off work. That’s natural, and controllable. Just please make sure you
are responsible, punctual… all that jazz.
-Your “line” is probably going to
change over the course of your work-party spree, as you learn more about what
you can handle. I am a big fan of tweaks. Maybe you realize you can sleep in a
little later and still make it to work on time, or that the alarm you set
before is not going so well. The sweet spot is whatever works, so don’t stick
stubbornly to one way when there is a possibility it could be improved.
Be
honest with yourself. There will be a time when you are
drunk/tired/well-off and having so much fun, you look down at your phone, and
oh bummer, its already time to call it quits. But I just started!! I know I
know, its sucks having your cake and eating it too. This is when you will have
to summon the power of trust. That is, trusting you. You set that alarm yourself!
Don’t you think you are a trustworthy person? If you don’t listen to you,
how can you ever expect anyone else to? Trusting you stems from being honest with yourself. So you say “naaaah I can
drink till 4 am, I don’t have to be at work until 8 am”. Ok, try that on for
size. Hmmm… What’s that? You showed up to work on time, but you still smell like
alcohol, and you have a restless hangover that would cripple superman. Hey, if
you can function normally, your job doesn’t suffer and the boss is ok, by all
means, 4 am all week baby. But for the normal human being, that’s a little
much. (Did I mention you got only a few hours of sleep? That’s hardly
sustainable, for more than a few days, trust
me) Point being, be honest, be realistic.
Then when the time comes and you question a past decision you made, (and
it isn’t obviously incorrect) you can safely say, “I trust myself”, and follow
your own lead.
Practical Tips:
-Plan ahead! You will be among the worlds most
brilliant minds if you do this one simple thing. If by nature you’re a “go with
the flow” sort of person, then plan a time when you can safely be blasé.
Lastly, have clear goals. If partying is killing your dream, then it isn’t
for you! But if partying does mesh
with your life goals and ambitions, then ROCK ON. In Dr. Maxwell Maltzs’ book
The New Psycho Cybernetics, he explains how the human brain is like a laser
guided missile. It is locked in on a target, and must constantly correct
itself. It literally makes thousands of mistakes, and still nails the target, within maybe a few feet (who cares? It’s
explosive!) If a laser guided missile has no target, it is a large dumbbell.
Don’t be a large dumbbell. Find your goals and dreams. Excuse me for the
cliché, but it’s so true. This will also help you in making the decisions of when
to party, and when to work (your line).
Are you going to have time to build that business if you always spend time
watching the games and BS-ing with friends? If so, how much? Maybe your goal is
not completely life encompassing yet. Maybe you just want to move to New York or something.
Move out, get a car. The idea is you tailor your partying time according to how
much your goals can afford you. If
you party all the time, then expect to reach none of your goals (unless they
have something to do with partying!)
Practical tips:
-Find out what you want. It doesn’t
need to be a Life-goal, as I said before.
The main thing is to have one, and to work toward it.
-Don’t miss out on fun to do
nothing. When you decide a bash with friends is too lacking in productivity,
make sure you actually fill those spare hours with something that is!
-Write down your goals, think on
them, and solidify them into your cranium constantly.
-View your mistakes as learning
opportunities to make you more awesome.
Yours Truly,
James M.
Next Blog Preview:
Gen Y: The Positive Skeptic by Matthew L.
No comments:
Post a Comment
My thoughts are...