AI, Alcohol, and the Art of Letting Go
How to combat artificial inflation, the dangers of sobriety, and why Mozart is my favorite office gadget
How to Lower Your Prices When the World Raises Theirs
Most businesses respond to rising costs the same way: they raise prices.
There’s another option.
Artificial inflation can be offset by leverage — not margin squeezing.
The simplest version looks like this:
Learn how to use AI well
Teach your team how to use it
Teach your clients how to use it
That’s how you create profitable loss leaders. Not by racing to the bottom, but by increasing output without increasing cost.
If you’re thinking, “I don’t own a business,” that’s usually not true. If you sell your time, skills, or judgment, leverage still applies. You may just be underusing it.
Don’t raise prices by default.
Raise leverage first.
Upgrade Your Tools, Upgrade Your Time
Workspace upgrades are everywhere right now. But the point isn’t nicer desks or trendier gear. It’s attention.
Every item in your environment either sharpens focus or quietly bleeds it.
A new mouse won’t give you a new mind. But the right tools can reduce friction — one of the most reliable killers of good work.
A better question than “What do I need?” is this:
What do I need to avoid faster?
For most people, that list includes:
Your phone
Apps that claim to “boost productivity”
Extra monitors (yes, really)
What actually helps:
A simple notepad (digital or paper)
Music that doesn’t compete for attention
A few living things in the room
The goal isn’t optimization.
It’s fewer unnecessary interruptions.
Sobriety, Status, and What Replaces It
Alcohol use is declining, and it’s not just about health. It’s about control.
In a culture that numbs itself, choosing clarity has become a kind of status signal. Sobriety isn’t framed as loss anymore — it’s framed as discipline.
There’s something good in that shift.
There’s also something missing.
Alcohol and togetherness have always been linked. Remove one, and you don’t automatically get the other.
Scott Galloway once noted that loneliness impacts health at a level comparable to smoking fifteen cigarettes a day. When you strip away the social lubricant without replacing the social structure, something breaks.
The absence of the poison doesn’t necessarily mean you’re well.
It may just mean you’re unmedicated.
Clarity matters.
Connection does too.
Letting go isn’t about subtraction alone. It’s about being intentional with what fills the space afterward.
Leverage, focus, and clarity all work the same way.
They improve when you remove what doesn’t belong.
If you’re thinking about leverage, focus, or how your work is actually structured, that’s usually a good conversation to have out loud.
