3 Minute Monday
Hi friend,
“Caffeine equips us to cope with a world caffeine helped us create.” — Michael Pollan
Before we get started, I want to state up front that I like caffeine.
I’ve been taking it in one form or another for 16 years.
I also realise that many people are existentially attached to their caffeine consumption and will defend their right to enjoy 4 coffees a day with the fierceness of a threatened mother bear.
But after taking a break for 500 days, I think that I was taking a little too much, and you might be too, and I want to try and convince you that it’s not all fantastic.
You see, the goal is for you to use caffeine, not for caffeine to use you.
“If you can’t function without them, they’ve stopped conferring a benefit.
Be able to stop them and only use them when you really know you can crush.
On off on off is typically good enough for most.” — Alex Hormozi
Can you function without caffeine?
If removing caffeine from your life is tantamount to destruction of your energy, how can you say that it provides you a benefit?
You’re not enhancing your performance, you’re buttressing your existence.
Way too many people say “I need a coffee” when what they really mean is “I’m tired”.
The caffeine-reliant no longer even perceive energy levels, instead they have varying states of caffeine concentration in their blood and consume appropriately.
If you are permanently papering over the cracks of fatigue with caffeine, you never end up asking yourself questions like “why am I tired by 1pm every day? Maybe that suggests that there’s something else wrong with my routine beyond that beardy man forgetting my extra shot this morning.”
In the same way as alcohol covers up social insufficiencies so that people never focus on being genuinely confident, caffeine covers up energy insufficiencies so that people never focus on being genuinely energetic.
“But I have kids/get up early for work” I hear you say.
Humans have been doing this for millennia without any caffeine. You can survive with less caffeine.
“But I struggle to sleep.”
Yes, have you considered that the 500mg of stimulants you consume per day might be contributing to that?
“But I like the taste of coffee.”
Cool, me too, go decaf or low-caffeine.
I may have lost some of you in a fit of mortal rage already but my current approach has totally changed my relationship to caffeine, made it genuinely enjoyable again for me and provides a proper lift to my performance when I use it.
My protocol is is to limit consumption to 150mg (2 cups of coffee or one medium energy drink) per day, and to only have caffeine every other day at the most frequent.
If I have it one day, I have to take the next day off, and no caffeine after 1pm ever.
My tolerance seems to be staying pretty low which is great as I’m not having to chase the dragon with high dosages.
TL;DR – consider dialling your caffeine consumption down slowly to fix your energy problems and don’t send me death threats.
MODERN WISDOM
I do a podcast which has had 90 million+ downloads. You should subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
This week’s upcoming episodes:
Monday.
Baggage Claim – one of my favourite online movie critics details how modern cinema patronises women with their portrayals on screen and treats them like fragile idiots instead of robust adults. So good.
Thursday.
Dr Cassie Holmes – one of the world’s premier time and happiness researchers on how to manage your time to maximise life fulfilment and wellbeing in the short and long term.
Saturday.
Tim Harford – a statistician’s guide to not thinking like an idiot. Why did Sir Arthur Conan Doyle get fooled by a fake fairy photo? Why are people so easily lied to online? And how you can protect yourself.
THINGS I’VE LEARNED
1.
Some men watch lots of porn.
“In a 2020 survey of men across a range of Western European countries, respondents reported watching an average of 70 minutes of online porn a week, with 2 per cent watching more than 7 hours.
The average man, it seems, spends more time watching porn than he does showering.” — Louise Perry
2.
Pedestalising victimhood is not good for anyone.
“Shifting from aiding victims to aiding everyone who claims victimhood has led to an awful lot of charlatanism.
Shifting from doing good to looking good has led to an awful lot of virtue signalling.
Their interaction is now Western culture, at least online.” — James Cantor
3.
The Sorites Paradox.
The Sorites Paradox is a paradox that results from vague predicates.
Imagine a heap of sand, from which grains are removed individually.
With the assumption that removing a single grain does not cause a heap to become a non-heap, the paradox is to consider what happens when the process is repeated enough times that only one grain remains: is it still a heap?
If not, when did it change from a heap to a non-heap?
LIFE HACK
Global Entry to the USA.
Residents of the United Kingdom are eligible for US Global Entry cards.
A global entry card is like a speed pass for immigration and it also includes TSA pre-check so you’ll get through security more quickly on departure too.
It’s around $100 for five years.
If you’re American, get TSA Pre and CLEAR.
If you’re British, get Global Entry.
Big love,
Chris x
Never miss an episode by pressing Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
PS
I’m flying to Zambia next Sunday to canoe down the Zambezi River. Long story.
