Drink Differently to Improve Productivity

Are you one of the many Americans who drink to relax after a long, hard day at work? You’re not alone, and you already know it’s not a great habit. But you might not realize how much a drink affects productivity the next day.

September 14 is National Sober Day. I’m not going to tell you to give up alcohol and get sober, because not everyone needs to. On the other hand, it is important for business owners to know why it can be a problem for productivity.

Alcohol has been a huge part of human development, but not the way Americans drink

It looks like humans invented beer, or at least alcoholic beverages, before they invented bread. In some places it was safer to drink alcohol because there was bad bacteria in the water or some other reason the water wasn’t safe to drink.

But before mass-produced alcohol was a thing, there wasn’t quite as much alcohol in the brew by volume or percentage. (Kind of like the difference in marijuana between when Gen Xers were in college, and the powerful stuff you can buy now.) 

Natural fermentation, which is what older civilizations relied on, produces drinks with lower concentrations of alcohol. Even so, ancient societies often mixed their wine with water. Romans, while they drank plenty of wine, would consider you a barbarian if you drank the stuff straight.

Another big difference between Americans and other societies that drink is how we drink. Many of us use alcohol to relax, so we have a drink or three at night in front of the television or other screen. There’s even a whole “wine mommy” thing going, which: UGH.

Other societies use alcohol mainly as a social lubricant. Alcoholic drinks are common with meals. These countries also tend to have fewer problems with binge drinking and violence. Your European colleagues might be worried about you if you told them you were drinking a healthy glass of wine in front of the TV.

In other nations, people tend to eat with others, whether family or friends. The food absorbs the alcohol, and they build social connection over the meal. It’s a whole different vibe, and one that’s healthier and less dangerous than the way we drink on our side of the pond.

Crossfit and binge?

It cracks me up how many professionals I know who get up early to get their Crossfit or other intense gym session and religiously train their bodies come home only to booze it up. To be fair, I myself did two sprint distance triathlons and ran two half-marathons during my drinking days. (I didn't drink during the events, but definitely did so afterwards!)

No matter how strenuous your sweat session is, it doesn’t counteract the effects of alcohol on your brain or the rest of your body. We Americans tend to think in binary terms. Some types of food are “good" and some are “bad”, and exercising is “good” (even when it veers into orthorexia) and drinking is “bad”. 

So you're “good” in the morning with exercise and “bad” at night with booze, and that balances out, right? 

Obviously drinking too much is a problem and leads to health issues, and I think (hope) everyone knows that. But what if you’re just having a casual glass of wine at the end of the day, how bad can it be?

More recent studies have shown that alcohol isn’t that great for health anyway. But alcohol too late at night does cause problems with sleep. You might drop off to sleep more easily, but later on at night is when it typically causes problems.

Getting enough sleep is critical for productivity. It gives your executive function systems a chance to rest and recharge. At the same time the rest of your brain is very busy while you’re sleeping: removing toxins, strengthening learning and muscle fibers, and so on. (You can read more about the benefits of sleep on productivity here.)

That’s why alcohol is bad for productivity, even when you’re not drinking during work hours. Though if you work all the time or don’t separate work from non-work then you ARE drinking during work hours. Booze interrupts your sleep and leads to poor quality snoozing, which has a knock-on effect for the following day.

Other ways to relax that will promote productivity

The bigger issue isn’t with alcohol, or even the companies pushing to make money off us through booze and all the “fun” “wine mom” accoutrements. It’s with the culture that produces frazzled Americans who really need to rest and refresh themselves and either don’t have time to do it or feel guilty about it.

Partially it’s because we think working too much is a virtue and that rest, which is vitally important for performance, is for the lazy. Plus, many have accepted the fact that because we now have the ability to work all day (since we can access email and work apps on our phones) that we should do so. 

Working all day isn’t good for your health, either physical or emotional. So being smart about work instead of simply adding on more hours of toil promotes better health and productivity.

You don’t have to give up alcohol. You can if you want, but it’s not necessary. Instead, think about drinking in a healthy way. 

Sitting down at the table with your partner and kids, or going out with your friends and having a drink with your meal. Maybe that’s not every weeknight, but that’s OK too. 

What other ways are there for you to relax? Ways that (unlike drinking by yourself or with a spouse in front of a screen) will keep you healthier and more productive? In other words, besides drinking, what’s fun for you that you can do after work?

Enjoyable hobbies or activities that you like, reading a book you enjoy, taking an after-dinner walk around the neighborhood with your family and/or pets. Even, yes, a bath with some luxurious bubbles or soaking material, a pleasant candle, and maybe a cup of herbal tea.

Or you could try volunteering, maybe somewhere the family/friends can join you. If it’s just another obligation, it’ll be hard to stick to. But if it’s something fun you enjoy, then it can be a good after-work treat.

Whatever it is, make it easy to do. Grabbing a drink from the fridge and settling down in front of the TV is easy, so make sure your activity of choice is easy too. If you like crafts or handiwork, make sure you can quickly access the project you’re working on. 

Maybe it sits on the table during the day so you can just pick it up as soon as you sit down. If you hide it out of sight, or have to work to get all the pieces out and ready, it’ll be harder to do.

Passive consumption, which is what you;re doing when you’re watching screens, is not good for your brain. It’s not so much relaxing as it is numbing, which is usually a signal that something is awry. 

If that’s the case for you, take some time when you’re not exhausted from work to think about it. See if you can identify what the underlying issue is. 

That’s what you need to solve for. Binging shows and drinking alcohol doesn’t solve anything, though they’re both fine in moderation. But if you could dive into the root of the problem, you might be able to see how you get to the life you want instead.

Recap (tl;dr)

Drinking at night to relax prevents you from improving productivity. You’ll benefit from finding other ways to relax and recharge after work.

If you’re overwhelmed with everything you have to do as the owner of a business, I can help. Click here to book your free consultation.