Mindful Drinking: Time for a Mid-Year Tune Up?
Is it me, or are there a plethora of mindful drinking, consumption-reduction, “sober-lit” articles lately?
Three articles this week alone have hit the radar.
One is The Atlantic’s sobering read: America Has a Drinking Problem. Another is Morningstar’s piece on how to drink less through the pandemic. And even the New York Post discussed Why the hot new alcohol trend is cutting back — or even quitting.
So, with all these online stories swirling, I revisited the story I wrote for ABG in January, on How to Put Mindful Drinking on Your 2021 List. I decided to run a scorecard on how I’m doing with my own consumption habits.
In full disclosure, this is all rather terrifying to put on paper!
Be Healthier
6/10 – My yoga mat has been looking forlorn, and while I’m getting back into the groove of better eating habits, those pasta couch dinners STILL sneak in a little too frequently for my metabolism.
Drink Less
6/10 - I’m back in the professional tasting game, but finding I don’t have the temptation to have an extra glass after the tasting, so that’s a bonus.
Decanting into Half-Bottles in Order to Limit Consumption
8/10 – The reliable half-bottle decant method is still getting a solid workout. Still considering the purchase of a Coravin unit. This check-in may be the push I need.
Making a Plan to Drink Less
2/10 - Drinking less, yes, but making a plan? Big fail, so it’s a good reminder to put "making a list" back onto the priority list.
Adapting the “Better than Nothing Goal” Approach
4/10 – If intention counts for anything then I get an 11/10! But I’m still continuing to listen to the critical interior voice telling me that better than nothing is not good enough. So, I need to do better on being kinder. It’s a work in progress.
Sharing Goals in Public
9/10 – I’m planning to heavily cut back for July to a maximum of two glasses a day with two days off a week. You’re reading that right here – is that public enough?
Read More Mindful Drinking Resources
8/10 – Once I’ve finished “Burn Out” I’m tackling Annie Grace’s work The Alcohol Experiment , a study in how to cut back or cut out drinking in 30 days. I will report back. (Yes, that's TWO goals I've made public!)
Self-Compassion
4/10 – Still being way too hard on myself for not doing more, but there are lessons in that too. See “Better than Nothing” goal score above.
That adds up to a bare pass of 59%, so there is some work to do.
Now let me ask you. How is your scorecard looking? What boundaries have you managed to set or stick with since January? What may have slipped? And what do you need help with?
I’d love to hear how you are traveling and what you may need to keep things on the up and up. I’m going to need your support support to get through the next few weeks. Let me offer you mine.
Namaste,
Beck
What We're Reading:
Here's what has piqued our interest this week in the world of wine and mindfulness.
Pandemic Sobriety Study: 1 in 10 Give Up Alcohol, by Marie Montera for News3tv.com
Recovering from the economic crisis has required out of the box thinking. "We're begging for human interaction, to hear laughter of the kids, at the park to have an amazing time."
8 Questions to Ask Someone Other Than, "What Do You Do?" by David Burkus for the Harvard Business Review
If the conversation starts with work, it will likely end with work. And there's so much more to learn about a person.
6 Ways to Engage Kids and Teens in Mindful Walking, by Christopher Willard on Mindful.org
Here are six suggestions of out-of-the-box ways to to introduce mindfulness to youth.
The Fresh Start Challenge, by Tara Parker-Pope for the New York Times
Parker-Pope explores a ten-day challenge for rethinking what life looks like moving forward.
Meet the Community!
Here we meet some of the talented folks who make our community profession so dynamic.
Jee Park, Senior Vice President, Magrino (New York, USA)
Years in the Industry:
I've been working in the media industry as a professional for over two decades, however I started exploring broadcast news as a career when I was in high school. I interned at my local ABC morning show in El Paso, Texas and they ended up hiring me when I was in my senior year of high school. I was an inexpensive hourly employee who WANTED to go to work at 2.30 in the morning before my first class. It was a thrill for me to be part of a team and curating what made the local morning news. I learned a lot about being a team member and the importance of hard work.
I moved to New York City after attending Boston University and was hired for the Morning Show at CBS. I spent over a decade at the network covering everything from 9/11 to producing Bobby Flay, before shifting gears into PR and experiential event production.
Prior to joining Magrino, I worked for Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group which was exciting and certainly filled with delicious food. It truly taught me about always pursuing excellence as that is what Danny and the entire team pursued.
My Top Three Challenges to Wellness:
I traditionally have put my wellness at the bottom of the to do list, which is silly for being a cancer survivor. I think though many working parents can understand that the struggle is to put yourself first when there are so many other obligations, which at the moment, feel more important.
I have never been a good solo workout person and have always needed a class to keep me motivated. The pandemic obviously made that not possible, but in the past six months I have started working out more frequently at home using a workout app. It's been actually fun and I do notice that I'm happier once I work out.
I seem to run out of time — which is probably tied to my first challenge!
How I Keep It Together to Stay Well:
I have discovered that working out is key for me to feel sane. I have also rediscovered the importance of sleep. Being in morning television to then having newborns - there were many years where I literally slept only four hours a night, and I thought that was great.
However, I realize now that I am a much better human when I sleep more, and studies show that your brain really needs it to reset. If you want to promote long term brain health, it seems that sleep is key.
For fun, I love watching K-dramas. It's fun to watch and listen to a show in my native tongue and it does allow a bit of escapism.
What Inspires Me:
My community. That community is varied because none of us are JUST one thing in our lives...we are siblings, parents, colleagues, etc. So for me I have a number of communities I consider part of my world. I discovered a new community of mom friends during this pandemic in my neighborhood. This group of women have been incredibly warm, generous, and inspiring as we all struggled to keep our children safe, healthy (both physically and mentally) while juggling our careers during this pandemic. These were women I knew from occasional birthday parties, etc. However this pandemic really forced me out of my comfort zone and to make sure my kid could have some social life outside even if it was 10-degrees Fahrenheit - I needed to put myself out there. I got lucky. These women are strong, funny, and just awesome.
I have also been inspired by my colleagues and clients as we all dug deep to get creative and find solutions during this unprecedented time.
Finally, my children. They adapted to this past year of challenges and somehow managed to smile and laugh. For my husband and me, their happiness and safety are the two very important things for us. This year they probably adapted in some ways better than we did!
A Quote I Love:
“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” ― Mahatma Gandhi
You can connect with Jee on Instagram on @JWPactor
NEW Episode: The Fine Line Podcast
For select episodes of The Fine Line Podcast: Balancing Hedonism & Health, Cathy will be adding a short meditation or mindfulness segment to complement the theme of the podcast. For the latest episode, following the conversation with entrepreneur David Willette, she offers some suggestions around mindful movement, even when we've got all four corners of our feet on the ground.
The Fine Line Podcast is co-hosted by Lisabeth Danneels and Emily Gold. Even the sub-title (Hedonism & Health) indicates the commonalities with A Balanced Glass. Please check them out!
