My books are full of fabulous strategies to beat alcohol. But there is one thing that is so much more important than anything else. It's the one thing that you must do. 

What is that? 

You need to have a focused goal.

I don't mean a wish or a vague idea. That will never do. Alcohol will take advantage of any wriggle-room you allow it. If your plans aren't sharply focused, you will likely fail. But if you have a sharp focus, you can do this easily.

So how do you know if you have a vague wish or focused goal? 

Easy.

A wish has only a What.

A focused goal has a What, a When, and a How.

For example, if you decide you want to cut down, that is a vague wish.  But if you want to cut down (What) starting tomorrow morning no-fail (When) by an exact number of units of alcohol (How) that is a focused goal. 

If you want to stop drinking for a month (What) starting right now (When) by reading “The 10-Day Alcohol Detox Plan” a chapter per day and applying what the chapters say (How) that is focused.

If you plan to take a year off drinking (What) starting on the first of January (When) by reading "Alcohol and You" and attending Smart Recovery online meetings for social support (How) that is focused.

Keep repeating to yourself what your focused goal is. Repeat your focused goal while you are looking in the mirror in the morning. Talk to yourself about it while you're waiting for the traffic lights to change.  Enter it in the diary on your phone as a daily item, so it pops up as a reminder every morning when you turn on your device.

Doing this will not only remind you of your goal, but it will also help to reprogram your subconscious mind, so your brain helps you, rather than firing out thought-bombs. 

(If you don't know what thought-bombs are, go to “The 10-Day Alcohol Detox Plan”, scroll down to "Read a Sample" and enjoy.)

All the best,

Lewis.