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Alcoholism and Recovery
Feeling thankful for all that I’ve accomplished over the last 2 years:
- Gave up alcohol
- Started my own company
- Had my first $100k month
- Bought a Tesla
- Found like-minded friends
- Got stronger in the gym
- Found mental peace
But I didn’t get here w/o hardship.
[THREAD]
- Gave up alcohol
- Started my own company
- Had my first $100k month
- Bought a Tesla
- Found like-minded friends
- Got stronger in the gym
- Found mental peace
But I didn’t get here w/o hardship.
[THREAD]
I don’t really talk about this much here, but I faced a lot of challenges in college.
Most of them were self-inflicted, and started with that “A” letter word we’re all so fond of.
Alcohol.
Yeah, I had a drinking problem.
And it very-nearly destroyed me.
Most of them were self-inflicted, and started with that “A” letter word we’re all so fond of.
Alcohol.
Yeah, I had a drinking problem.
And it very-nearly destroyed me.
It’s a bit crazy how normalized drinking is in our social culture.
I can’t think of any one thing that can so successfully crush ambition and drive more quickly than alcohol.
At least, that was the case for me.
It caused me to completely loose myself for a while.
I can’t think of any one thing that can so successfully crush ambition and drive more quickly than alcohol.
At least, that was the case for me.
It caused me to completely loose myself for a while.
I’ll never forget in 2017 when I had my first “look-myself-in-the-mirror” moment.
What had happened to me?
Prior to college, I was a straight hustler.
Learning SEO, building niche websites, making thousands of dollars a month in passive income in my teens!
What had happened to me?
Prior to college, I was a straight hustler.
Learning SEO, building niche websites, making thousands of dollars a month in passive income in my teens!
From 2013-2018 my only goal in life was to drink.
And you know what the funny thing about alcoholism is?
It’s progressive.
It gets worse.
From 2013-2015 it was all fun and games.
From 2016-2018 it was a form of self-medication.
And you know what the funny thing about alcoholism is?
It’s progressive.
It gets worse.
From 2013-2015 it was all fun and games.
From 2016-2018 it was a form of self-medication.
I was broke.
I was suicidal.
I had burned bridges with nearly everyone in my life.
I was about to fail out of college.
To say that 2016-2018 was a rough time in my life is an understatement.
It was my rock bottom.
It’s honestly a miracle that I’m still alive from it.
I was suicidal.
I had burned bridges with nearly everyone in my life.
I was about to fail out of college.
To say that 2016-2018 was a rough time in my life is an understatement.
It was my rock bottom.
It’s honestly a miracle that I’m still alive from it.
But it’s during these times of intense hardship that you’re forced to do the self-reflection that helps you make the changes necessary to alter the course of your life.
So it’s for that reason that I have no regrets!
Yeah, alcoholism sucks.
But boy did I learn a lot from it.
So it’s for that reason that I have no regrets!
Yeah, alcoholism sucks.
But boy did I learn a lot from it.
I ended up dropping out of college because, to be honest, I wasn’t in the right mental state to finish.
I legitimately would’ve failed out if I continued taking classes.
I moved back home, and eventually got the help I needed to get sober in December of 2018.
I legitimately would’ve failed out if I continued taking classes.
I moved back home, and eventually got the help I needed to get sober in December of 2018.
Getting sober was, by far, the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
What a journey that was.
It was essentially a cycle of relapsing, facing my demons head-on, and trying for it again — because why the hell not?
My life wasn’t going anywhere with alcohol in it.
What a journey that was.
It was essentially a cycle of relapsing, facing my demons head-on, and trying for it again — because why the hell not?
My life wasn’t going anywhere with alcohol in it.
The amazing thing about getting sober was that drive and ambition I left behind in my teenage years started to come back!
Suddenly I wanted to build again!
I wanted to create something!
And I finally had the mental clarity and drive to do it!
Suddenly I wanted to build again!
I wanted to create something!
And I finally had the mental clarity and drive to do it!
During my attempt to get sober during most of 2018 — which was filled with endless relapses — I was working a standard 9-5 job making $40k/year.
6-months into my sobriety, during the summer of 2019, I decided to make the jump to online business.
6-months into my sobriety, during the summer of 2019, I decided to make the jump to online business.
I had been laying the foundation of the business for several months, had a few paying clients, and was willing to bet on myself.
Sobriety had given me the self-confidence to do so.
So I did it.
With no degree and pretty much no outside support, I quit my job.
Sobriety had given me the self-confidence to do so.
So I did it.
With no degree and pretty much no outside support, I quit my job.
I don’t care what anyone tells you, making money is not easy.
It’s one of the hardest things to do.
It’s a fucking journey, riddled with lots of ups and downs — sort of like the road to sobriety.
It’s one of the hardest things to do.
It’s a fucking journey, riddled with lots of ups and downs — sort of like the road to sobriety.
In the recovery community, we have a mantra that we recite:
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”
I’m not a religious man, but I took that to heart in my business journey.
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”
I’m not a religious man, but I took that to heart in my business journey.
I worked hard.
I focused on what I could control.
And everything I couldn’t control, I let go.
It’s a lot easier to deal with the failures of online business when you stop taking everything so damn personally!
I focused on what I could control.
And everything I couldn’t control, I let go.
It’s a lot easier to deal with the failures of online business when you stop taking everything so damn personally!
And, man oh man, were there a lot of failures.
But in a sense, it wasn’t really unfamiliar territory for me.
I was pretty used to failure.
At the time, that’s honestly how most people saw me.
A failure.
But in a sense, it wasn’t really unfamiliar territory for me.
I was pretty used to failure.
At the time, that’s honestly how most people saw me.
A failure.
It goes without saying, but I failed a lot during the beginning of my online business journey.
Hell, I still fail!
But I see failure as a small bump in the road — something that’s meant to be overcome, not something that’s meant to stop you from traveling that path.
Hell, I still fail!
But I see failure as a small bump in the road — something that’s meant to be overcome, not something that’s meant to stop you from traveling that path.
Eventually, that persistance began to pay off.
I started having the successes I mentioned at the top of the thread.
$20k months.
$50k months.
$100k months.
I started having the successes I mentioned at the top of the thread.
$20k months.
$50k months.
$100k months.
But you know what the best part is?
That success wasn’t just limited to business.
It started to bleed into other areas of my life too.
The lessons I learned from sobriety & business ultimately allowed me to become a better person, a better friend and a better mentor.
That success wasn’t just limited to business.
It started to bleed into other areas of my life too.
The lessons I learned from sobriety & business ultimately allowed me to become a better person, a better friend and a better mentor.
With that said, this thread is long enough.
I mostly wrote it for myself because I wanted to get my story out there, but I sincerely hope you got something out of it.
My journey was a difficult one, but as I learned first-hand, hardship is usually a prerequisite to growth.
I mostly wrote it for myself because I wanted to get my story out there, but I sincerely hope you got something out of it.
My journey was a difficult one, but as I learned first-hand, hardship is usually a prerequisite to growth.
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