15 Cheats to Win Each Day

Goals. Resolutions. New Days. We’ve all got these initiatives and goals in our lives.

But there’s a problem. In order to achieve anything, you must overcome your greatest enemy: yourself. More specifically, your aversion to being productive.

We all start off well-intentioned, but quickly we’re distracted. We’re behind. We’re overwhelmed.

You want to be more productive? Want to win each day? Try these 15 cheats.

Start the night before. Too many people start their days off exhausted because they didn’t sleep. Therefore, prepare well for the day to come.

• Set a limit. You won’t get enough sleep binge watching Netflix or playing games on your smart phone. So set a limit to your consumption before bedtime.
• Make a plan. How can you win the day if you don’t know what winning looks like? Create an achievable to-do list. Without one, you’re going blind.
• Read. It’s amazing how quickly your eyes get tired when reading a book. You may as well learn something while tricking your eyes.
• Shut it down. When its time to go to bed, turn off the lights and call it a day.

Start the day off right. Many people treat their morning routine like the McCallister family rushing through the Chicago airport. There’s a better way.

• Get up early enough to enjoy the routine. Is that an hour before departure? 2 hours? Only you know what you need to get done to leave but create margin for an enjoyable experience.
• Engage your mind and soul. Listen to a podcast while in the bathroom. Begin with a time of prayer and a Bible study. If your mind and soul are out of whack, your day will follow.
• Move like Jagger. You don’t have to go to Refit or a dance class, but exercise even if its for 15 minutes. Get moving. Jump start your metabolism.
• Fuel your body. I never miss breakfast. Only you know your diet, but regardless, help your body out and eat something that is health to fuel your winning day.

Structure your day to win. If you’ve ever watched a professional athlete practice, they don’t have their phones in their hands. They aren’t multitasking. They are focused and disciplined to get better. They are structured.

• Plan your day. I use Google calendar to schedule appointments, phone calls, even set tasks. Plan out your day and stick to it. Otherwise, the tyranny of the urgent will wreak havoc.
• Ditch your phone. Smart phones are the biggest time killers. Sure, they’re handy, but e-mails, notifications, text messages, social media, etc. are all there to get you stuck. Hide it. Shut it off. Just put it away for set period.
• Say no, so you can say yes to winning. If you’re going to win the day, stick to the plan. It’s so easy to say yes to your phone, your email, your coworkers, or a host of other distractions. Schedule time for these interruptions. During those breaks, deal with them.
• Have a team. Sometimes, a team approach is best. You can’t do it all. I can’t do it all. Sometimes to win the day, it means delegating. Equip. Delegate. Empower.

Celebrate. People know what’s rewarded gets repeated, but often we accomplish and move on. Stop that. Celebrate appropriately the small wins. Then when you see every box checked off at the end of the day, celebrate like you won the day. Oh wait, you did!

What would your best day of winning look like?