Stanley F. Bronstein – Personal Development BlogPersonal Development Blog of the Founder of the Achievement IQ Movement and Creator of the Laws of Positioning

Abstinence – Any self-restraint, self-denial, or forbearance.

Moderation – Avoidance of extremes or excesses.

Abstinence And Moderation Are Two Sides Of The Same Coin

That coin is restraint.

The only difference between abstinence and moderation is the level of restraint.

Abstinence is taking it to an extreme.  The point of today’s postiAng is to suggest that just because abstinence is an extreme, it’s not necessarily bad.

For example:

A person has a history as an alcoholic (or at least someone who likes to drink a lot).  Some people should say that all that person needs to learn how to do is to drink in moderation.  After all, if they would simply drink in moderation, they would have no problem.  Their drinking would never get out of control and everything would be just fine.

But, just suppose that person has an extreme personality.  They have a demonstrated history of doing things to extremes.  For them, when it comes to alcohol, there may be no such thing as moderation.  Instead, it may be an all or nothing proposition.  When they do NOT drink, there is no problem.  When they have one teeny tiny drink, it leads to another, then to another, then to another and then to another.  Next thing you know, they’ve had too much to drink.

So for that type of person, I ask you which is better.  Drinking in moderation or totally abstaining from drinking?  Then I want to ask you a second question.  Which is easier for the person?

Abstaining Is Sometimes The Key

In the example shown above, I think abstaining is not only better, but it is probably also easier.

Giving something up completely removes the temptation.  Asking a person to moderate their behavior frequently requires an even greater level of self-control than giving something up entirely.

I realize that may not make sense, but it is true.  That’s why Alcoholics Anonymous teaches its members to totally abstain from drinking.

These Same Principles Can Apply To Other Areas As Well

Another place where this principle applies is in the area of weight loss. The only difference is that one cannot totally abstain from eating. HOWEVER, they can learn how to abstain from certain foods; to abstain from the ones that have given them problems in the past.

Some Recommended Reading

Laws Of Positioning #24 – Position Yourself To Be Disciplined

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