“I’m so used to doing it with one hand.”
I pictured my coaching client, with one arm tied behind his back doing some fancy Bruce Lee training in his DIY garage gym.
After all, he’s got his sh*t together as the COO of a venture-backed SaaS company and just an all-around great human.
“Playing with your kids with two hands just a different experience,” he continued. “When you put the beer down, get down on all fours and really get into Candy Land -they react very differently. They can tell you’re with them.”
His shift from 1-handed parenting to 2-handed parenting was the result of many failed strategies around cutting back COVID consumption. (It turns out that “quarantinis” aren’t so cute after six straight months.)
The 4 pm daily beer has become an easy ritual to break up the monoty of our Groundhog Days. (To the point that the US government got involved, recently changing their guidelines for men’s daily consumption.) And my coachee and I were looking to break that habit.
The first attempt involved removing all the booze from his house. That never works.
The next attempt involved a daily log answering one question: What is it that you’re running from?
Nope.
What worked? A good old session of Battleship with a 6 year old. A reminder that being fully present with the people you love most is one of life’s greatest gifts.