Sometimes the most difficult part of dealing with drug and alcohol addicition is re-instilling the belief that we can change. Frequently, especially if a person has been to several drug or alcohol rehabs, they feel there is no point, because they can’t change. This is precisely the reason I am spending a lot of time on this aspect of addiction treatment. Compelling reasons cause people to change, even ones with longstanding addiction. Finding a purpose greater than yourself in your work is often one of these compelling reasons. They can form a foundation for a tipping point shift, where abusing drugs or alcohol will never occur again.

So assuming you have found such a dream and goal in your life that the thought of doing this dream for a job makes the hair tingle on the back of your neck, how do you start to pull it off. What is the next step. Think of the questions we finished with in yesterdays post. The answers to these last questions are starting to form the basis of your plan to find meaningful work in your life.
Examine these skills, talents and education and order them in priority of which you think is the most important to acquire, to the least. Look at the skills you need to acquire and start to form plans with steps and TIMELINES starting with your number 1 priority.

For example: If you wish to run your own business and your first priority would be for you to have better leadership skills:
Check the library and internet for information
Look for courses at your community college
Find someone who has the skills you desire and ask they how they did it
Look for positions of employment where they would train you

Come up with an Action Plan:

Write a detailed description on the steps you will take to acquire this skill e.g..
I will take out 2 library books about leadership by May 1 and will have read them both by May 30
I will ask 2 business owners how they acquired their skills by June 15
I will enroll in one business management course by Aug. 15
I will apply for 5 junior management training positions by Sept. 15

You have to start plan realistic steps and follow through on them. Small steps followed through on will set up a positive addictive cycle. More success leads to more effort and more tasks attempted and completed. Sometimes we like to think addiction is a special “problem”. My drug addiction is unique and requires unique and specialized drug or alcohol treatment. It doesn’t matter how special or difficult a problem is, sovling problems is a skill and as such needs to be practiced and used. Finding meaningful work may be a difficult problem. If you follow the steps I suggest and follow through, you just might suprise yourself and in the meantime, you will be much futher along in dealing with your addiction and taking yourself off the list of those headed for another visit to drug rehab.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 26th, 2005 at 3:37 pm and is filed under Drug Addiction, Drug Rehab. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.