About a year ago, something changed. Drastically.
It seemed to happen overnight. Like a switch had been flipped.
Out of nowhere, I was plagued by anxiety. It was constant, night and day. I couldn’t sleep. My insides were all knotted up. It was impossible to relax.
I was in a constant state of nervousness. Like something bad was about to happen. There was no way I could continue living my life like that.
It drove me crazy, and I had no idea what to do about it.
That’s the second time in my life that’s happened. The first time was about 20 years ago. I went to the doctor and walked out with a prescription for Xanax.
This time, I wanted to find the culprit rather than just take drugs.
Enter the “elimination diet.” I started cutting out foods and drinks until I found the problem. No drugs. No doctors. Just a little natural curiosity.
The problem was so darn simple.
How I escaped the sudden plague of anxiety
Long story short: The problem was caffeine.
Caffeine? Really?
Yup.
I used to be a guy who could drink a cup of espresso right before bed and sleep like a freakin’ baby. It never used to bother me. Then suddenly, it did.
Since then, I learned that decaf coffee isn’t that bad. 🙂
I know, I know…I’m 42 now. Things change as you get older. Fine, I get it.
But if it weren’t for my natural curiosity, I’d probably be on prescription drugs right now, dependent on pharmaceuticals.
F that. I don’t want drugs. I want answers.
This reminds me of that time about 10 years ago when I stood motionless in my garage. I reached up to punch the garage door opener, but I suddenly stopped.
I just stood there and took note of what was sitting in my garage.
On the left was my brand new Cadillac CTS.
On the right was my supercharged Corvette convertible.
And in the middle was my Yamaha R1 sportbike.
At that moment, something struck me (metaphorically, of course!).
I owned all these expensive toys, but I wasn’t happy. Something was very wrong.
And I knew there was no way I could live the rest of my life spending all that money on shit that wasn’t making me happy. I just couldn’t do it.
I understand now what was happening: Those toys were the pharmaceuticals I was using to mask my unhappiness.
I was on the corporate treadmill. I was a robot. The commutes. The corporate mission statements. The performance reviews. The endless meetings.
Rinse, repeat, rinse, repeat.
It was excruciating. Those golden handcuffs were beginning to hurt. Big time.
Slowly, I started putting the pieces into place. I made huge changes, and each change brought me one step closer to my goal of quitting my job.
First, I sold the damn Corvette.
It was fun to drive, but that sucker quickly turned into a money pit.
Then, I traded in the Yamaha sportbike for a cruiser. That dropped my monthly insurance payment from about $210 (yes, a month!) to $25.
Score.
Around this time, I met my soon-to-be wife. Another score.
We talked about our future every night after dinner. We saved 70% of our combined tech salaries. We started building wealth fast.
It’s funny what happens when we stop using pharmaceuticals to mask legit problems.
We stop the “Everything’s fine” charade and start fixing shit.
I bet on myself. It paid off. I quit my job nine years ago.
Millionaire Habit: Don’t mask your problems with drugs or alcohol because those two substances will make them worse. Every time. Admit to yourself what isn’t working, then set your mind to fixing it.
Until next week,
– Steve
