The most underrated quit alcohol guru for men

I’ve read almost every piece of quit-lit there is, yet the first book I ever consumed on ditching alcohol still stands as my favorite today.

I believe it’s really helpful to hear voices similar to your own when you’re trying to do something difficult.

Whether you’re trying to achieve a positive goal or cut something destructive out of your life, having someone describe the process in a way that just clicks in your brain is incredibly valuable.

Hearing a voice like yours can build your confidence because it shows someone has fought the same battle as you and made it out the other side intact.

That’s one of the reasons I continue to write on this platform about this topic.

Every time I read a comment from someone saying they’ve gone through the same thing I have or that my words have inspired them to keep pushing through their quit alcohol journey, it encourages me to keep going.

For me, that voice of inspiration belongs to one Craig Beck.

I truly believe he is the most underrated quit alcohol guru, especially for men trying to shake their alcohol addiction. His audiobook remains my quit-booze bible.

Back to that in a moment.

Men and alcohol

For some reason this week, I seem to have gotten onto the theme of the unique societal pressures men face around drinking.

As males, we encounter a lot of sober shaming.

Because we’ve all been taught that drinking ability is an accurate measure of strength and manliness, it makes it that much harder to reject it.

At sporting events, parties, etc., if you don’t drink, you are often seen as, at best, a weirdo, and, at worst, weak (when in reality you should be seen as strong for sticking to your guns despite crazy amounts of outside pressure).

One of the best things about Craig is that he systematically, forcefully, and confidently breaks down why everything men have been taught about alcohol is certified, Grade A bulls**t.

He does so by peppering in a lot of personal anecdotes that guys can relate to, from pressure to drink at work to dealing with male peers to trying to be a good husband and father.

In listening to his work, I could identify with a lot of things I’d encountered in my own life.

A different voice

A lot of the leading voices in the new sobriety movement are women, and I think that’s awesome.

I’ve listened to all their work too (I actually consume all my quit lit in audio form), and I’ve taken away something useful from every one of them.

Annie Grace in particular is a true pioneer.

I always slip back to Craig Beck’s stuff when I need a reminder of why I’m doing this, however.

As I wrote in this piece, The one priceless book that kicked off my quit alcohol journey, I happened upon his work at the exact moment I needed it.

This was back in 2019, and I was leaving a weeklong vacation in Las Vegas in much worse shape than when I arrived.

The big reset

I know, that’s not unusual for Las Vegas, but this was a relatively quiet trip with my wife and I was deeply annoyed that I was coming back to my regular work and parenting life feeling completely washed after I was supposed to be recharging.

It was on that trip that I finally accepted I was reaching an age where there would be actual health consequences if I didn’t get alcohol out of my life.

I started Googling around about the health drawbacks of drinking and the benefits of quitting, and the search engine kept sending me to Craig’s website.

That site pointed me to his book, Alcohol Lied to Me, which had a compelling title indeed.

Effective delivery

I like to consume self-help content in audio form, so I tracked down the audiobook I thought would have the most value.

I settled on the Quit Drinking Complete Collection (which is built around Craig’s hit book Alcohol Lied to Me and has a run tie of around eight hours) and spent my entire travel day back from Vegas listening to it.

That find launched me on my current sober path.

I immediately cut my alcohol intake by a good 60–70% (and actually got through an entire wedding sober a week later — a truly shocking achievement at the time) and then quit completely by the time COVID rolled around.

When I did another reset last summer (as with a lot of people, the pandemic was a big setback for me), I went back to the book that started it all to get things going again.

Craig’s approach is similar to the Allen Carr Easy Way method, which is to simply present the facts in a no-nonsense way and systematically tear down all the myths around alcohol so that you have no desire for it when you’ve finished.

One of the things that makes Craig unique, however, is his voice.

No, like his actual VOICE.

Craig is a former radio host in the UK and, as such, his voice has a certain natural authority.

I used to work in the print media, and I was always impressed with the way the radio guys could carry a room.

In order to connect with people, they have to train their voices to be powerful and charming and to project supreme confidence.

They also have to present facts in an interesting way to hold people’s attention without the benefit of visual stimuli, which Craig is a master at.

His description of alcohol as “attractively packaged poison” hooked me right away.

My forever go-to

I’ve probably listened to the Quit Drinking Complete Collection a dozen times over the past few years, even when I was in extended periods of not drinking.

If you’re thinking about quitting or just want an entertaining listen, I’ll leave my affiliate link here to the exact audiobook box set I’m referring to.

I rarely make product recommendations, but this book literally changed my life and I think it could help a lot of men who are trying to make their way toward an alcohol-free existence.

If you’re new to Audible, you can listen to it for free by signing up for the service using this link.

If you’re a guy and you still haven’t found a quit alcohol guru whose voice really speaks to you, definitely give Craig’s work a try.

If you do, I’d love to hear from you in the comments about what you thought!

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