It has been a month since my last cigarette and it has been a month of feeling good.

I expected that it would be more difficult to kick the habit than it has proven to be. In fact, it has been so easy that I am beginning to question why such a big deal is made about quitting, and why I didn't do it sooner.

One thing that delayed my decision to quit was fear. The fear that I would be reduced to a clammy mess at the hands of the dreaded Nicotine Withdrawal Symptoms, trembling quietly amongst myself in a corner somewhere. The fear that I would not be able to cope without the habitual comfort of the landmark cigarettes that punctuate the routine in every smoker's life. Where had this illogical fear come from?

The messages of anti'tobacco campaigners are largely negative in tone, and anti'tobacco advertising generally shows smokers or potential smokers what not to do. For years anti'smoking campaigns have been telling smokers that they risk afflictions like lung cancer, heart disease, and stroke. They have warned of the harmful effects of passive smoking, and the danger smoking poses to children, both born and unborn. These are all valiant reasons for quitting smoking, but are a world away from the concerns of young smokers. To begin with, very few young people dwell on the prospect of death and long'term illness. Why be concerned with the end of life when you probably have twice as long to go as you have been here already? It is illogical to use such threats to stop young people from smoking.

One particular message that does not reconcile with my own experience is the message that smoking is terribly addictive, and hard to kick. Anti'tobacco advertising has drummed this message into our heads for years, and whilst it has probably prevented many from taking up the habit, it does little to help people stop smoking. After seven years of smoking, I was convinced that I was completely addicted and quitting would require a huge investment of willpower. For a long time there was no right time to quit because I thought that everything in my life would come crashing down without the comfort of my addiction. The excuse that it was too hard was too easy to fall back on. I wish I knew then that quitting is neither a huge disruption to your life and can be a pleasurable experience.

What directed me to try quitting was the increasing awareness that smoking does not have much of a future. Our generation will be the last in the first'world to accept smoking socially. For many smokers this is a painful reality to confront because we grew up in times when smoking was cool. The tough kids at school snuck out for cigarettes at lunch time; our older siblings smoked; our Hollywood idols smoked. But for the next generation smoking will be a badge of social inferiority. This was rudely demonstrated to me walking home from work some months ago. I lit up a cigarette on the short walk from the train station to my flat. On the way I passed by a group of school children aged in their mid'teens. As I walked by one of them pretended to cough, clutching his throat and wheezing. The rest of the group laughed. I was enraged at being ridiculed. I felt self'conscious and weak. They should have asked me for a cigarette to take into a back alley and bum'puff, but here they were poking fun at my fast expiring habit.

As well as this, smoking in pubs and clubs is all but prohibited, which rules out the most pleasurable smoking moments, and it was costing me a fortune. At around $10 a pack, I was burning between fifty and seventy dollars each week.

My experience has taught me that the motivation to quit was not heavily influenced by awareness of the long'term effects of tobacco use, but by more immediate social and financial concerns. One new trend in anti'tobacco advertising is emerging which shifts the focus away from serious long'term effects like lung cancer and heart disease, towards short'term cosmetic concerns such as impotence, yellowed teeth and premature ageing of the skin. Young people have a hard time connecting smoking with a disease that they might get in thirty years time, but identify with the fact that they will have a mouth rimmed with foul yellow teeth in six weeks time.

As well as targeting visible concerns that smokers can easily identify with, anti'tobacco advocates should consider using positive messages to encourage smokers to fearlessly step into a nicotine free world. Some often used slogans that are supposed to discourage people from smoking might be in need of revision. "Smoking is Addictive" might become "Smoking is not THAT addictive"; or "Smoking Kills" might become "Smoking kills tomorrow, but you can quit today". I think you get the idea. The old messages have served their purpose. There is not a prospective smoker in Australia who doesn't recognise that cigarettes will probably cause an early death. But the motivation to encourage people to stop needs to reinforce the simple fact that it is actually not that hard. Now I've just got to stop biting those nails!