I know this sounds clickbaity, but I think I have finally found a simple trick to order my system to quit something permanently.

On the 27th of August I invited the most interesting person I know in Slovakia to come over and taste lots of Belgian beers. It was fun, one of the best evenings of 2021. I didn’t tell him about my plan. It would have killed the joy of tasting all the different beers. In the midst of all the fun I forgot to consciously drink the last beer I would ever drink.

On the morning of the 28th I sat down with a beer (one of my favorites) and consciously told myself: ok, so this is the last one I will ever drink. Then I kept the can. I want to have it on my shelf and be reminded daily: that’s the last alcoholic drink I drank in my life.

I have a ton of reasons for quitting, but that’s not what this post is about.

I was tempted to drink alcohol with Abram on Friday. But then I thought about the can in the picture. How meaningless it would become as soon as I would take just a sip. How ridiculous and ashamed I would feel if I had to take it down. Because what would be the point of keeping it on display if I relapsed even once? Then I did the same for dairy and chocolates and candy. As you can see in the picture.

I quit coffee on the 1st of July, before I had this idea, so I didn’t keep the last jar of instant coffee or the last filter or the last coffee stained cup.

One more thing:

The dates I quit things are not random. I charge these quitting times emotionally by linking them to historic events that mean a lot to me.

I quit coffee on the first day of the battle of Gettysburg.

I quit alcohol on the day of the Slovak National Uprising.

This makes it utterly impossible for me to forget when I quit. And it’s like I LOVE those dates, so I don’t want to relapse and tie my quitting attempts to some other date.

This second trick is not for everyone perhaps. Though you could quit on the birthday of your spouse or something if you don’t feel an emotional connection to historical events.

I believe the first trick could work for many people. Perhaps it’s nothing new, but it’s new to me.