I Quit Every Vice. Here's How.

Summary

Brandon Carter describes how he quit cigarettes, alcohol, recreational drugs, and other habits he considered harmful. His central message is to rely less on willpower and instead shape your environment and routines to make helpful choices easier.

He frames dopamine as a system that drives wanting and anticipation, rather than simply pleasure. In his account, rewards can lose their appeal as they become familiar, while quick, novel rewards can encourage people to seek more. He contrasts this with “here-and-now” chemicals—such as serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphins—which he associates with enjoying what you already have.

Key Strategies and Ideas

• Think about the aftermath of a temptation. Before acting, ask how you are likely to feel afterward or the next morning. Carter suggests recording how good you expect an activity to feel, then comparing that prediction with how you actually feel afterward. Repeating this may help correct overly optimistic expectations.
• Recognize the pull of novelty and repetition. Carter says familiar rewards can become less satisfying over time, potentially prompting people to seek more intense or novel versions.
• Consider abstinence instead of moderation for difficult-to-control habits. Carter says that, for him, avoiding certain foods and substances altogether reduced cravings compared with periodically indulging and then resisting renewed cravings.
• Add friction to habits you want to avoid. Make unwanted actions less convenient: remove tempting foods from the home, put your phone in another room, delete gambling apps, or spend less time with people and in settings associated with habits you are trying to change. He uses the story of Ulysses and the Sirens to illustrate planning ahead rather than relying on in-the-moment restraint.
• Reduce friction for habits you want to build. Prepare what you need in advance. For example, he describes a busy client sleeping in workout clothes so it is easier to start exercising in the morning.
• Notice when a vice may be substituting for another need. Carter characterizes substances or behaviors as stand-ins for things such as relaxation, confidence, connection, comfort, or hope. He recommends paying more attention to relationships and improving the parts of life that may be driving those cravings.
• Redirect motivation toward longer-term goals. He argues that the same drive to pursue rewards can be directed toward fitness, work, or parenting. He contrasts these slower, lasting pursuits with rapidly available rewards such as scrolling, porn, or alcohol.

Carter also shares his personal experience with using a nicotine patch for focus. This is presented as his own example, not as a general recommendation.

Presenters and Sources

• Presenter: Brandon Carter
• Book discussed: The Molecule of More by Daniel Z. Lieberman and Michael E. Long
• Other person mentioned: Jen Caesar, as an example of reducing friction to exercise while managing a busy schedule
• Story referenced: Ulysses and the Sirens from The Odyssey