10 Habits to Win Every Single Day | Divya Toshniwal |

No one ever wants to lose; we all want to win. Whether it is a conversation, a negotiation, a deal, a game, or anything else. Winning gives us the rush of happiness hormones and the feel-good factor about our lives. We wait for big opportunities to win and celebrate success but the truth is winning is not a one-time thing, it is a habit. 

My dad always says, just make sure that every day when you wake up just think one thing - "How can I be the best version of myself today?" and if you can do that every single day, you will win every day. You will not have to wait for big opportunities in life and you will win every day. 

I try my best to follow his advice and here are some of the habits that you can inculcate in order to win a little every day :

Make your bed

Making your bed once you get up reduces your feelings of laziness and actually starts your day. Once the bed is made you will probably restrain from falling on it again. It is appealing to the eyes and makes you feel good about your room. This is especially important if you are a stay-at-home person. It will improve your productivity immensely.

Hydrate, Exercise, and Go in the Sun

Have some water first thing in the morning, especially if you are one of those deep sleepers who do not wake up in the middle of the night to drink water. Even if you are not a hard-core workout person or do not have enough time in the mornings, just do some stretches to get your body moving. The next most important thing is to open the curtains and let daylight fill your room. If there is not enough sunlight entering your room, I would strongly suggest you move out and absorb some.

Take a Shower and Dress- Up 

Taking a shower wakes up your body and your mind. It is the first step to a productive day. The next is to dress up well. Dress-up for success. Wear clothes that make you feel confident about yourself and make you feel active and not lazy.

Prioritize 5 Most Important Tasks

It is important to prioritize the most important tasks in your day. Most of us just start the day without organizing our to-do list and end up forgetting one or more of the urgent and important tasks that needed to be done the same day. This task can be personal or work related. You can schedule it for yourself the previous night too. Invest in a planner, I strongly recommend. 

Read 

If you really want to move ahead in life you cannot skip this. You need to keep reading and keep learning. Even if it is just 10 pages a day. Reading gives your perspective. It amplifies your imagination. It helps you learn different things in different ways. It helps you build opinions and it gives you enough material to connect with the people. This is next on the list.

Connect With People

By connecting with people, I don't mean gossiping with your friends or going on exploring, liking and commenting on social media. Connect with people who are smarter than you. talk to people who are working in the same field as you. Learn from them and from their journey. Talk to someone who is more experienced in life than you are and learn some life lessons. Learn from their mistakes in life. Connect to people who have a completely different approach in life than yours and learn what worked for them and what didn't.

Zone -Out

Go for little breaks all through the day. Take a break from work, from chores, from entertainment and from everything that you suppose you should do on a break. Take a 5-10 minutes break at least thrice a day when you do nothing. Nothing means absolutely nothing. Don't listen to music, don't read, don't talk, don't go through your phone. Just do nothing. Give this time to your brain to just zone out. 

Initially you may feel bored and that it is just a waste of time but eventually your focus will increase, you will be more mindful and most importantly you will be able to listen to that inner voice that you have been suppressing for a long time.

Indulge in a Hobby

Do something that helps you connect with yourself and makes you feel happier. This has nothing to do with your work or daily chores. Just indulge in some hobby, be it learning a new art technique or a musical instrument. It may be taking quite long walks or just dancing to the latest tunes. You may love to crochet or take self-defense classes. Take out 30 minutes a day just for yourself , for a hobby that you choose.

Have A Fruit 

In an experiment done on college students, 50% were given a fruit to eat while the other 50% were treated with a meal of Burger and Fries. They were then given a simple math problem to solve. The students who ate the fruit took 8 minutes on average to solve the problem while the students who ate fast food took 20 minutes on average to solve the same problem. Eating healthy can be a life changing factor in your winning story.

Trust Your Intuition

How many times have you felt you knew something better but made a decision against it?  Have faith in your inner voice. We all make the mistake of letting our brain and other people's opinions take control of our decision. But don't forget your decisions make your destiny and hence you need to take them on your own. If you feel a certain way you do not always have to explain it to the world or defend your decisions. Trust your intuition and have confidence in your decisions.

Bonus Habit: Be Grateful 

At the end of the day, take a diary and a pen to write down what you are grateful for in the entire day. When you emit positivity about your day that is the message you send out to your subconscious mind and hence it helps you see things more positively and brings about further positive circumstances in your way. Your brain secretes more of happiness hormones and helps you have a good night's sleep.