“Randy, is it a good idea to quit on January 1st?” My standard answer isn’t what everyone wants to hear: “I don’t know. It depends. What I do know is that a hard thing is going to be hard no matter when you do it.”And while I have plenty to say about the pros and cons of picking January 1st as your sobriety date, I’m approaching the question from a different, more personal angle this year. I’m conducting my own experiment. Meaning, I’m picking that date to quit a thing. Specifically…I’ve handed in my resignation and will not be renewing a contract that’s provided financial security for the past few years.Watch the video for this episode on YouTubeNow what?The ol’ reliable Voice of Fear says: “Hey, you tried this before and it didn’t go so well. I don’t think this is a good idea. You better try and get that gig back. Beg, present new facts, manipulate your way to return into the Arms of Safety. I’ll help!”Ah, the familiar and the safe. Another question that I’m asked as often as whether to quit on January 1st is: “Why would I choose to stay the same and pick what’s familiar when I know it’s not healthy? Especially when I know that the option of ‘going for it’ and moving forward is the right thing to do?”Well, the unknown is scary. So, the Voice of Fear makes a lot of sense. It provides practical advice that overrides those nagging intangibles like hope, faith, and possibility—even in the face of an obvious chance to change for the better. Unfortunately, this kind of practicality can also serve as the cement that solidifies a cycle of addition into perpetual incarnations.What’s better, really?What’s better, really? A cycle of safety and familiarity or jumping into the unknown and creative possibility.What’s different and what’s the same?Chances are, if someone’s picking January 1st as their target date to quit something, they’ve tried this before. And if they’ve tried it before and are doing it again, that means the previous attempt(s) were unsuccessful.We’ve got to acknowledge this and put all the cards on the table. What are we dealing with here in terms of prior failures—whether perceived or objective? Because don’t set up your January 1st quitting plans thinking that this time willpower will overpower the Voice of Fear. That’s a nightmare doomed for collapse. In one form or another, it’s probably what you tried (and failed) before. One reason is because it’s what I call the “Me vs. Me” scenario. Meaning, we have my willpower fighting my Fear. Ugh. Nothing but struggle. That’s exhausting and, chances are, this is one answer to the question: “What’s the same?”So, let’s set up a different plan and one more likely to meet with success. If you’re quitting, here’s a map of the territory.I start with the model that’s worked for the last couple of decades with myself and my clients. It’s also the one I use in The Sober Shaman’s Path of Recovery. This model is based on the first of my 3 Principles for dealing with addiction, which states: Addiction affects the whole person: mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical. Pretty simple. Each of these four aspects of the whole person offers its own perspective on the issue, speaks its own language to describe the situation, and will employ its own medicine to deal with imbalances. That in mind, let’s apply them to our January 1st quitting.Here’s the Checklist of the Four Medicines and how we’re going to use them to support success:Mental It’s not complicated. People try to change for

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