Grey's Anatomy - Shonda Rhimes

‘Make a plan. Set a goal. Work toward it, but every now and then, look around; Drink it in 'cause this is it. It might all be gone tomorrow.’ – Meredith Grey

Today is my 24^th Birthday – Well, my 24^th ‘Alcohol-Free’ Birthday if I’m being honest and I’m glad to say that it’s 8,766 days on from 5^th January 1994 – the day that changed my life. ‘Big Deal’ you might say, but cutting out the booze really did save my life, plus cutting out the 40 cigarettes that accompanied my daily drinking.

Don’t worry, I’m not going to drone on about quitting smoking and drinking. Instead, I’m writing about the ‘Process of Change’ that took place and how I went about it to clean up my act. You see I made a ‘Resolution’ – more of a personal ‘Revolution’ perhaps but a simple one made to myself and no-one else. ‘New Year’s Resolutions’ are now seen as ‘dated’ and having negative connotations but in 1994 they still had a place in our culture – even if they were always broken or forgotten by the end of the first week of January. They were really seen as a bit of fun.

My ‘Resolution’ the hard-core, cold-turkey, un-cool, pre-social-media ‘Personal Revolution’ wasn’t. It was carved deep into granite and has survived everything life could possibly throw at it. Lots of opportunities to fail with the usual celebrations and hard times associated with… Marriage, Childbirth, Divorce, Life-Threatening Illness, not to mention 24 x Christmas, New Year’s Eves and Running Successes – yet it’s stood up to the test.

But it hasn’t felt like a test, and that’s where folk go wrong in my opinion and fail. The Meredith Grey quote above, from the Season 5 finale of the brilliant hospital drama ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ sums it up perfectly. You see, I made a plan, set goal (just one day of sobriety at first) and never looked back – only around, and still do every day thinking just how lucky I’ve been over the years not drinking or being distracted from my dreams.

The ever growing 8,766-piece jigsaw is still work in progress and I’m going to keep on adding a piece daily for as long as I live. If my calculations are correct, I’ll get to 10,000 days on May 23^rd, 2021. It’s a Sunday so I’ll be running a marathon somewhere ‘drinking in’ that particular life-goal.

So, my question to you is how’s your New Year’s Resolution(s) holding up? Need pointing in the right direction? Let me know if you'd like me to help you.

You never know, it might just become a life-proof rule and one day and be like mine, enjoying a ‘Silver Jubilee’ Celebration this time next year…

Rory Coleman - rory@colemancoaching.co.uk - 24 Years' Alcohol Free

1,007 Marathons - 245 Ultras - 14 Marathon des Sables - 9 Guinness World Records