James Good

Day 31 >Game-free: 31 days >Gaming videos: 31 days Journal Getting back on the morning journal again. Also shifting my wake-up time back a while (6:45am from 8am). I've got a lot of work I need to do, and I need that uninterrupted quiet time in the morning to get this done. In the short term my work hours are going up a lot, but I know from experience it's not sustainable long term. Today I'm going to be reaching out to some people, getting started on my website, plan out my content, do a whole load of organization work, work on my social media, and go through some courses I've been doing. It's a pretty packed day, but my GF is going to be away most of the day if not until tomorrow, so I'm going to dial in and get as much done as I can. No time for cravings here.

Day 30 >Game-free: 30 days >Gaming videos: 30 days Journal Taking a break from work to write this journal, as I didn't have time to do it this morning. Well, I say I didn't have time. I just didn't feel like it. I guess I'll start with the big news: After this month (in 3 days time) I'll no longer be working with Game Quitters. I mentioned in some videos and posts that I'm taking a different direction with my work and focusing on freelancing, and after a discussion with Cam we came to the decision that it's best for us to part ways. This also means there won't be any more podcast episodes after these current ones have been scheduled (2 more weeks of episodes). I'll still be around on the forums, so that won't change. However, I'll no longer be doing any writing, videos, marketing stuff, social media and so on. What am I doing instead? I'm going all in on myself. I think I'm at a necessary stage in my journey, where I'm ready to move on and take my path into my own hands. I want to create my own businesses, and really earn my income. It's going to be incredibly difficult, sure, but I don't think I can get to where I want to be in the future if I continue trying to work for a company. I've got big goals. I'm going to be focusing my business on search engine optimization (SEO), writing, and maybe podcast related services such as audio editing. As well as providing consultations in each of these areas and maybe even personal coaching on the side. So, if you have a business or know anyone with a business that could benefit, let me know! 😉 My first step is to replace my income. My current monthly earnings are $0, so that needs to go up. I have enough of a savings buffer that I can last 2 months fairly easily, which will be ample time to get things going. I'll keep you all up to date with the ins and outs of it here and on my YouTube channel, so don't forget to subscribe if you're interested in learning more about mindset, online business, freelancing, money and travel! Peace.

Day 29 >Game-free: 29 days >Gaming videos: 29 days Journal Not going well from a social media/meditation standpoint. Well, it is and it isn't. On the one hand, it sucks that I'm not following through with it, but on the other, as far as I can tell it's having next to no actual effect on my productivity, my work, my habits, sleep or anything else. The only negative is that I'm missing out on the positive. I think I might be trying to take on too much at once, with the gaming detox and no videos on top of social media and other daily habits it's just too much pressure to keep on top of it all. I'm taking off the tracker for them, and I'm just going to focus on the gaming detox for now, and if I feel like meditating I will. If I spent 30 minutes a day on social media then so be it, that's better than 3 hours. I just have to make sure it doesn't get out of control. That being said, the gaming detox is actually going really well. I'm in that midpoint section where the cravings disappear and you take more time and effort in doing hobbies, as limited as it is right now with the quarantine. But yeah, I'm really happy with the progress I've made. Peace!

@Erik2.0 Thanks, me too! And yeah there are some moments like that in the series, but it's more about the twists that are going on and constantly evolving throughout the series that make it interesting. Was worth watching and got pretty tense at the end of the second season!

Day 28 >Game-free: 28 days >Gaming videos: 28 days >Social Media: 0 days >Meditation: 0 days Journal Yesterday was an amazing day from a productivity perspective. I basically made use of two things: Deep Work and Focus Batching - which is something I just made up yesterday but I like the name of it. If you want to learn more watch the video I did, which sums pretty much everything up: In terms of everything else that's going on, not sure what to say really. My mornings have deteriorated somewhat, although I'm still maintaining a few of my typical habits. The problem is that I don't want to start work straight away, I need a little 'warm up' time, and that's usually filled by meditation and journalling. However, it's becoming a habit to check coronavirus stuff, which just leads to more Reddit and Twitter use. I guess the only silver lining is that I'm not wasting my entire day on them, I'm finding it easier to stop when I want to instead of just going through them for hours on end. It's 9:45am at the moment, and I like to start work at 10am, so I guess it's not all too bad, and maybe it's not having an effect at all. I do know that I'd rather not spend so much time on them, especially in the morning, but its almost become habitual to the point where I feel like I can't avoid it. I'm not going to use any social media for the rest of the day, and I'll try to do an update post later on to see how I get on. One thing I definitely need to do is stop watching this zombie Netflix show - Kingdom - before bed, as it keeps me alert. In the past I was reading my book as the last thing before bed, but now I tend to read my book and then watch the show with my girlfriend. My poor morning routine is probably a direct result of my poor bedtime routine, so maybe I should focus on fixing that. All in all, though, things are going really well outside of the problems I mentioned here. My mental and physical health are in a good place, I'm feeling positive, I'm spending a lot of time learning things and while I wish I wasn't in self-isolation, things could be going a lot worse. Hope you're all doing well! Peace.

@Captain_Pilz Oh wow, thank you! That means a lot. I'm glad it helped We really take for granted those things that gave us structure, don't we? And yeah, I expected myself to be a lot better off than I am at the moment after 5 years of quitting gaming, but I'm not, so we just have to keep going until we're where we want to be! Stay strong.

Day 27 >Game-free: 27 days >Gaming videos: 27 days >Social Media: 0 days >Meditation: 0 days Journal Even doing this journal feels like a chore this morning. It's crucial that I sort this out before it gets worse. My habits, my feelings, my routine, my diet, everything. They're just going to get worse and worse unless I fix it. Got a big work day today and I need to dial in my focus to get it all done. If I do get it all done it'll be great. I'll have accomplished so much and had one of the most productive days in a while. Had my green tea, doing my journal, taken some focus pills (Gorilla Mind Rush), and I'm ready to get cracking. I'm not even concerned with showering or exercising this morning. I can do it later. For now I need to ride this wave of productivity that I can feel building up as I'm writing this for as long as possible. One of my friends e-mailed me back and it genuinely made my day. It feels like a much richer connection than sending a message on social media. On top of that they're also someone who I look up to a lot from a business perspective, and he suggested we get on a call to talk about what I'm up to and what my plans are. I can't wait! Go message some people you haven't spoken to in a while, you never know what'll happen. In terms of my own work, I'm currently in the market research phase. Asking clients what they look for in freelancers, what their problems are and so on. Asking my competitors some questions too. I'm not selling anything just yet, but this is a phase I've neglected in the past but am now putting the most effort into. It's a great opportunity for me to build some more connections, see what works and what doesn't, figure out my angle of attack, and really make my work as impactful as possible. From a purely work/mentality standpoint I feel fantastic at the moment. I'm refreshed, excited, and eager to get started. My problem right now is the personal/physical stuff. My diet, sleep, routines and so on. Can't maintain this so that's what I'm going to be focusing on in the coming weeks! Also, I made a video yesterday talking about what I'm doing now that my social media detox is over, and it's probably one of the most value-filled videos I've created so far. If not the most. Give it a watch, a like, or anything else - I really do appreciate any support! Thanks for reading!

Day 26 >Game-free: 26 days >Gaming videos: 26 days >Social Media: 0 days >Meditation: 1 day Journal Social Media Welp, there goes my streak. I was going to be lenient on myself and not count it, but one of the first things I did after waking up was scroll through Reddit/Twitter. My routine went out the window due to me being tired and not bothering to workout. I didn't meditate, but at least now I have my day planned, I'm sipping my green tea, and I'm doing my journal. Some normality has returned I suppose. I didn't spent hours on social media, which is something I guess. I think in total I spent around 10-15 minutes, split between the two platforms. What started as me visiting the sites once a week or so to check messages, soon became me checking Twitter Explore + Reddit to get Coronavirus updates, and this inevitably led to me breaking the streak. Ugh. The problem is, like gaming, I wish that they could be a balanced part of my life. I just don't know when, or if, I'll actually get to that point. Gotta keep going I guess. Sleep Thought I slept well last night, or at least similarly to the night before, yet I woke up feeling exhausted. I wonder how much of an impact my diet had on it. The days before I woke up feeling great had been healthier, but yesterday I snacked on some sweet treats + Rtiz crackers. My girlfriend brought them home after doing a grocery run, and I got a bit pissed off. She knows I'm 'on a diet' and I'm not eating sweet things. But right now I'm trying so hard to avoid gaming, social media, and whatever else that resisting two of my favourite snacks is almost impossible. I told her not to bring shit like that back again or else I'm just going to throw them in the bin. Probably going to be a short post today, not a huge amount to talk about. Just keeping on keeping on. Peace.

Sexual energy is what propels men to greatness. It's what made men move mountains, build skyscrapers, and create incredible works of art. Men without sex drive are generally lacking in testosterone, and testosterone is the life blood of a man. It keeps you motivated, driven, energetic, and always hungry for more. Gaming + porn addicts are severely lacking T. I love this attitude. I think you've got two options: Find a woman Create Considering the first option is unlikely given the current situation, I'd recommend funnelling all of that energy into something epic. It doesn't matter what. Just create something. Art, a business, anything. You might be tired and that's fine, the energy comes and goes. Michelangelo was described as a slob. Da Vinci went days or weeks without creating any art, and then all of a sudden he'd retreat to his studio and create the freaking Mona Lisa. He probably thought it looked like shit at the time, but he didn't let the energy go to waste. I know it's not going to apply to your situation completely, and there's obviously hurdles such as working and exercise and all of that stuff. But this is one of my favourite posts from you and I think the progress you've made recently, even if you might not think it, has been awesome. Keep it up.

Day 25 >Game-free: 25 days >Gaming videos: 25 days >Social Media: 12 days >Meditation: 1 day Journal Meditation I meditated today! I did 10 minutes and it was a mess (I've forgotten how difficult it is when you're just starting off) but I'm glad I got it done. Peace of mind, self-reflection, clarity, focus. All of those things are needed right now (and forever I guess). I wish it was quieter while I was doing it, there's a ton of construction work going on in the hotel and bird calls happening outside, but I suppose that's the whole point. It was certainly a challenge to stay focused anyway. Also, I just realised this is the first day I'm starting my journal at pretty much 9:40am which is exactly the time listed in my ideal schedule. Admittedly things are a little different because I'm not going to the gym or eating breakfast but yeah. Feels good. Sleep I slept like a baby last night, and I think that's playing a big part in why my mood is so good this morning. I woke up a couple of times to go to the toilet, but apart from that it was great. I woke up refreshed, energized, and ready to go. Didn't really change much, so I'm not too sure what caused it. Gym I realised that the crate I get delivered to my room full of water (20x1L bottles) is great for rudimentary exercises. My workout this morning was: Pushups to failure *pick up the box* Bent-over rows Squats Lunges "Bench" press *puts down box* Jumping jacks Plank Then repeat 3 times without a break. I was sweating like a nun in a cucumber patch after it was done but it felt great. I haven't done any circuit/HIIT style training at home, mostly due to having absolutely no equipment. I was limited to just pushups, dips, and ab work, which is way to chest/shoulder/tricep heavy. But at least now I can get some back work in. Feels good. Coffee Another change I made this morning is to forego the coffee and replace it with green tea. It's so easy to get high-quality green tea here, and I'm using some my girlfriend brought back from China a couple months back. I think I'd rather drink tea than coffee, and I really love the zen culture around certain types of tea. I could see myself making that a part of my day in the future. I've done coffee detoxes before and I always feel a lot better afterwards, so while this isn't strictly a coffee detox I'm going to see how it goes. YouTube I released a video yesterday about my photography journey, and if anyone's interested in taking it up there's some great tips in there for you, especially during quarantine where you can do so much with just your smartphone! Video:

@Amphibian220 Yeah I have to listen to something with as little (what's the word?) jankiness? ups and downs? surprises? I don't know. Basically if it keeps changing a lot and there's vocals or instruments, it's so hard for me to concentrate. The only exception is if I listen to a single song for the entirety of my work session. That seems to go pretty well. It also messes up my Spotify recommendations haha. It's difficult for me to slow down too much, I have to make money next month, but I'm not going into it at 100mph and overwhelming myself. I'm being smart about separating my current work with my future plans and so far it's working out well.

Yo! Great to see you back on the forums. It's good that you've caught it now. I was in the exact same position as you a few years ago. Spent the last 8 months of my degree playing video games. I extended all my deadlines and my thesis as much as I could because I was just too depressed or didn't care enough to do them. I lost my girlfriend, I failed out of uni 95% of the way to the end, and I still kept gaming. I'm 5-6 years into the gaming addiction journey and I've only just started a new detox (3 weeks ago) that I'm pretty sure is going to be my last. You're strong mate, you've got this. (also don't get me started on D&D I miss it so much lol)

We'll have a new article out in the coming weeks, but this is all we've got so far: https://gamequitters.com/how-many-people-are-addicted-to-playing-video-games/ We also have these statistics based on a large study we ran a few years back:

Day 24 >Game-free: 24 days >Gaming videos: 24 days >Social Media: 11 days >Meditation: 0 days Journal Girlfriend got back from the wedding ceremony at around 00:40 last night. I stayed up until around 00:15 waiting for her but gave up and basically passed out. When she came back she thought it was a great idea to turn all the lights on and go for a shower (Thai people are pretty insistent on showering 2x a day) and so my sleep was basically fucked. I couldn't seem to fall asleep again for the rest of the night. I'm sure I did, but it was mostly just dozing in and out. I'm not blaming her for it, but waking up this morning was really tough. Didn't get out of bed until maybe 9:30am, and really couldn't be bothered to meditate. Which is a bad excuse, I know. But I'm so damn tired, and it just killed my motivation to do anything. Instead of journaling while having my coffee just watched some YouTube videos. I found myself wanting to just check on Twitter, Reddit, Facebook and everything else. I actually did go on Reddit to check the coronavirus sub but that was a mistake. What a shit storm social media is right now. Need to avoid it completely, as even a few minutes is enough to make me hate it. So yeah, no meditation this morning. Maybe I'll do it later in the day. I finally finished The Last Kingdom series of books - 12 in total. They follow a fictional character, Uhtred, who finds himself caught up in the forging of England by Alfred the Great and his heirs. It's pretty much all historically accurate, although he starts making up a lot more stuff as the books go on. Most of the battles are real battles that you read about online, and it's offered an incredible insight into the history of England. We don't get taught it in schools, and to think that we were so damn close to becoming ruled by Danes is fascinating. Seriously, it was so close you wouldn't imagine. Anyway, I started reading 2 more books yesterday. I'm re-reading The Checklist Manifesto and I've started Shantaram. Shantaram is a beast of a novel, tracking the mostly true story of a heroin addict turned prison escapee turned smuggler in India (and a lot more). I'm only a few dozen pages in so far but the writing is incredible. It's so vivid and easy to read, I really feel like I'm walking the streets of Bombay with him. I can't wait to read more, although it's going to take a long time to finish, but it has been on my list for a while. I'll attach my full reading list if anyone's interested: One of the annoying things about coronavirus is that I was supposed to have a bunch of podcasting gear arrive last week, so that I can make some big improvements to my studio and subsequently my podcast quality. Its put a hold on the start of Life After Gaming, but oh well. Not much I can do about it except delay a little bit. In the grand scheme of things it's not a huge concern. I sent some emails out yesterday to people I was in contact with on social media, whom I longer keep in contact with (due to me quitting social media). It felt nice just to reach out and see how they're doing, just for the sake of asking. Something I've neglected in the past, especially when I used social media, was building up relationships and creating a network of like-minded business-oriented folks. So, I thought by keeping in touch with them via email it'll go a long way to maintaining and improving the friendships I had in the past, and potentially lead to exciting opportunities in the future. Peace.

Been through the survey. Seems safe, private, and you can omit personal information if anyone in the community is concerned about that aspect. A word of caution: Just be aware that a lot of the survey requires you to think about your feelings surrounding video game use and what happens when you imagine yourself playing it. If you think this is something that could easily trigger you into having urges, cravings, or even relapsing it's best to avoid the survey altogether. Hope you get some valuable data.