what I learned from being 3 months sober
As of October 4, 2023, I am 3 months sober!
Okay, Robespierre, that's great but what does that have to do with me and my career? EVERYTHING.
Okay so you made it this far without losing interest ... and now you're hooked because either 1) you quickly thought wait - what?! or 2) you find it shocking that someone will choose a platform like their blog to talk about their relationship to substances or and how that has anything to do with career building.
Here is something I have learned about writing extensively to build my brand in the last 8 months - telling your story means being open, being authentic, and being able to connect the dots for why any of this matters. As many of you know I took a big risk and set sail for the open world again of finding out what else is out there for me when it comes to my career. This time has been filled with a lot of self-reflection and a lot of recalibration. I've worked in Advertising for the last 8 YEARS and as we all know in this industry, alcohol and substances are commonplace. Happy Hours are filled with more booze than one could ever consume, hung-over days at the office where we feel like death, and weekends filled with so much consuming just to end it with the "Sunday Scaries". This is not a healthy way to live life. Since going dry for the last three months I have found more focus than ever before with the direction I want to take in life. This is not to say I will go dry forever BUT what the last three months have taught me is that it is MUCH harder to just figure out who you are without the need of watering down who you are - BUT with this difficult choice comes the overwhelming amount of calm and ease I now feel when I walk into a happy hour and can just speak openly and with intention to whoever it is I choose to engage with. I'm not sharing this to say that everyone should go dry - it's definitely not for everyone or the faint of heart. I'm just saying that in this long journey we call a career I think it is important to take time and evaluate the things around you and the things you do. Is what I'm doing helping me get to my goals? Or is it just holding me back?
