Five thousand dollars.
For a high-performing entrepreneur, that number can represent many things: a new marketing campaign, a down payment on equipment, a team retreat. It's significant, but not insurmountable.
And it's the price of admission to our Freedom 45 program.
This article is going to do something most programs won't: we're going to put that $5,000 at the center of the conversation and analyze it from the only perspective that matters to a true operator—Return on Investment (ROI).
Is IAMACOMEBACK worth $5,000? The honest answer is no. It's worth multiples of that, but only if you understand how to properly calculate the equation. Most men get it wrong. They look at the $5,000 as a "cost" and weigh it against the immediate, tangible pleasure of their current habits.
This is a flawed analysis. It's the thinking of an employee, not an owner.
An owner, a true leader, understands that the most important investments are not in things, but in capability. They analyze not just the upfront cost, but the cost of inaction. They measure the return not just in dollars, but in reclaimed time, restored relationships, and recaptured market share.
So let's do the math. Let's conduct a brutally honest ROI analysis of what it truly costs to remain where you are, versus what you stand to gain by making a decisive move.
The Direct Cost: What You're Already Spending
Let's start with the obvious. How much are you spending on alcohol right now?
If you're a "moderate" drinker—let's say a couple of bourbons a night, maybe a nice bottle of wine with dinner, a few beers on the weekend—you're probably spending between $300 and $600 per month. That's $3,600 to $7,200 per year.
But that's just the direct cost. The money you hand over at the liquor store or the bar. And even at the low end, you're looking at recovering your $5,000 investment in less than two years just by eliminating the purchase price of alcohol.
But here's where most people stop their analysis. They think, "Okay, so I save $5,000 over two years. That's a wash." And they walk away, convinced that the program isn't worth it.
This is where they make their first—and most expensive—mistake.
The Hidden Cost: What the CDC Won't Tell You
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that excessive alcohol use costs the United States approximately $249 billion per year. That breaks down to about $807 per person in direct and indirect costs [1]. But here's the critical insight: 72% of that cost is lost labor and lower worker performance [1].
In other words, the real cost of alcohol isn't what you spend at the bar. It's what you lose in productivity, clarity, and execution.
For the average American, $807 per year might not sound catastrophic. But you're not average. You're a high-performer. You're an entrepreneur, an executive, a business owner. Your hourly value isn't $25 or $50. It's $200, $500, maybe $1,000 or more.
So let's recalculate.
If alcohol is reducing your cognitive performance—and research shows men consuming 36+ grams per day experience cognitive decline equivalent to 1.5-2 years of aging [2]—then the real cost isn't just $807 per year. For high-performers, even modest performance degradation translates to significant income loss.
Let's run the numbers:
| Annual Income | Conservative Performance Impact | Cost Over 5 Years |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $15,000/year | $75,000 |
| $250,000 | $25,000/year | $125,000 |
| $500,000 | $50,000/year | $250,000 |
| $1,000,000 | $100,000/year | $500,000 |
Suddenly, that $5,000 investment looks very different, doesn't it?
But even this calculation is incomplete. Because it assumes that your performance loss is linear. It assumes that removing alcohol simply restores you to baseline. It doesn't account for what happens when you unlock the next level of performance—the level you've never accessed because you've been operating in a fog.
This is what we call Opportunity Cost. And it's the most expensive line item on your balance sheet.
The Return: What the Numbers Actually Show
Theory is useful, but let's look at the actual returns from real clients who made the $5,000 investment.
Kevin K. — The High-Performer's Multiplier
Kevin was already successful. He was running a business generating $850,000 in annual revenue. He wasn't out of control. He was just operating at what he thought was full capacity.
Within one year of completing the program, his business revenue doubled to $1.7 million.
ROI Calculation:
- Investment: $5,000
- Return: $850,000 increase in annual revenue
- ROI: 17,000%
- Payback period: 2.1 days
Kevin didn't work more hours. He didn't hire a massive team. He simply removed the cognitive fog that was capping his performance. "I didn't work more," he says. "I worked with more precision and clarity."
Jesse C. — The Revenue Goal That Was Always Out of Reach
Jesse owned a gym and had been trying to hit $50,000 per month in revenue for years. He would get close, then plateau. He blamed the market, the competition, the economy. Everything except the one variable he refused to examine: his nightly drinking.
After completing the program, he hit his $50,000/month goal.
ROI Calculation (Conservative):
- Investment: $5,000
- Estimated annual revenue increase: $120,000+ (assuming $10k/month increase sustained)
- ROI: 2,400%
- Payback period: 15 days
Jesse's insight: "It wasn't about alcohol. It was about waking up." The program didn't just help him quit drinking; it helped him close the gap between his potential and his performance.
Craig E. — The $100,000 Marriage
Craig's ROI isn't measured in business revenue. It's measured in what he didn't lose.
He had blacked out and told his wife to pack her bags and leave with the kids. He doesn't remember saying it, but she does. His marriage was on the brink of collapse. His relationship with his children was fractured. His multiple businesses were suffering because he was mentally and emotionally absent.
The program saved his marriage. And if you've ever been through a divorce as a business owner, you know the cost: legal fees, asset division, alimony, child support, and the emotional toll on your children. Conservative estimates put the average cost of a contested divorce with business assets at $20,000 to $100,000+, not including the indirect costs of business disruption and lost productivity [3].
ROI Calculation (Conservative):
- Investment: $5,000
- Return: $50,000-$100,000+ (avoided divorce costs)
- ROI: 2,000%
- Intangible return: Restored family, reclaimed leadership, mental clarity
Craig's assessment: "This program, honestly—it's the real deal."
Dr. Orange — The 130-Pound Tax
Dr. Orange was a successful physician who had ballooned to 416 pounds. He was "comfortable, complacent, and lazy." He wasn't being the father or husband he needed to be, but he convinced himself he could fix it on his own.
After completing the program, he lost 130+ pounds and completely transformed his health, his relationships, and his self-respect.
The financial ROI here is harder to quantify, but consider this: obesity-related health care costs in the United States average $1,861 per person per year [4]. Over a 10-year period, Dr. Orange would have spent $18,610 on obesity-related health issues—assuming no major complications like diabetes, heart disease, or joint replacement surgery, which would push that number into six figures.
ROI Calculation (Conservative):
- Investment: $5,000
- Return: $18,610+ (avoided health care costs over 10 years)
- ROI: 372%
- Intangible return: 130 pounds lost, restored family relationships, reclaimed self-respect
Dr. Orange's guarantee: "If you follow the program like it's meant to be followed, I absolutely guarantee you you're gonna stop drinking. You're gonna gain control of your life."
The Verdict: Is It Worth $5,000?
Let's summarize the ROI analysis:
| Client | Investment | Measurable Return | ROI | Payback Period |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin K. | $5,000 | $850,000/year revenue increase | 17,000% | 2.1 days |
| Jesse C. | $5,000 | $120,000+/year revenue increase | 2,400% | 15 days |
| Craig E. | $5,000 | $100,000+ (avoided divorce) | 2,000% | N/A |
| Dr. Orange | $5,000 | $18,610+ (avoided health costs) | 372% | N/A |
The average ROI across these four clients is 5,443%. The average payback period for those with measurable business returns is 8.5 days.
But here's the critical question: Is this typical, or are these outliers?
The honest answer is that these results are typical for men who do the work. The program has a structure, a system, and a community. It requires daily execution, brutal honesty, and the courage to confront the man in the mirror. If you show up, follow the system, and refuse to lie to yourself, the returns are not just possible—they're predictable.
But if you're looking for a passive solution, a magic pill, or a course you can consume without changing your behavior, then no, it's not worth $5,000. It's worth nothing. Because you won't do the work, and you won't get the results.
So the real question isn't "Is the program worth $5,000?" The real question is: Are you worth $5,000?
Are you worth the investment in your own capability? Are you worth the time, the effort, and the discomfort of becoming the man you know you're capable of being?
Because if you are, then the ROI isn't just measurable—it's inevitable.
Book a call with our team today and let's run the numbers on your situation.
References
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024). Data on Excessive Alcohol Use. https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/excessive-drinking-data/index.html
- Sabia, S., Elbaz, A., Britton, A., Bell, S., Dugravot, A., Shipley, M., ... & Singh-Manoux, A. (2014). Alcohol consumption and cognitive decline in early old age. Neurology, 82(4), 332-339. https://www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WNL.0000000000000063
- American Academy of Certified Financial Litigators. (2024). Divorce Cost Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.unbiased.com/discover/banking/money-and-divorce-statistics
- Finkelstein, E. A., Trogdon, J. G., Cohen, J. W., & Dietz, W. (2009). Annual medical spending attributable to obesity: Payer-and service-specific estimates. Health Affairs, 28(5), w822-w831. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.28.5.w822
