Last week I shared four of seven tips to help you stress less and accomplish more in 2024 from Mark Batterson’s book, Win the Day.  As promised, I’ve got the last three for you this week.  But first I want to set up why we need to “win the day.” We each have 24 hours in a day to make an impact and what we do in this set of 24 hours determines what success or failure we’ll have in the future.  

How many times have you said … “One day when….?”   I confess, I used to say it a lot.  

One day when I get my dream job, I’ll be happy.

One day when I have more time, I’ll volunteer.

One day when I have more money, I’ll be more charitable.

One day when I get married, I’ll focus on others.

One day when ….

You fill in the blank.  The phrase “one day when” is a trap my friend.  TODAY is the day.   This is the only day we have, and we need to make it great so we can have options and a better future.  I want to encourage you to STOP saying one day when... and start focusing on having a ONE DAY WIN.  Win today.  Make the decisions TODAY that allow you to WIN THE DAY and when you stack enough one day wins together, you will have created the life you’ve dreamed of.

Here are the final three tips to help you WIN THE DAY.

1. Cut the Rope: Playing it safe is risky.

I believe it’s risky because it often leaves us stuck exactly where we are instead of helping us get to where we’re meant to be.  This is about taking calculated risks.  The keyword there is calculated.  Do your homework.  Don’t just jump in the deep end without taking a swimming lesson.  You can’t keep doing the same things and expect a different result.  That’s the definition of insanity.   Each of us is just one decision away from a totally different life.  “We think of failure in negative terms, but failure isn’t all bad.  It's often the thing that introduces us to the adjacent possibility by opening us up to options we would have never considered otherwise,” Batterson writes.

 2. Wind the Clock: Time is measured in minutes; life is measured in moments.

Mark describes it this way in the book.  You’ve got to bury dead yesterdays and imagine unborn tomorrows, if you want to win the day.  I love how that sentence makes me feel.  Well, actually I love the second half of that sentence.  It’s not easy to bury the past and move on but it is necessary if we want the opportunity to fulfill our potential. It boils down to this.  We’ve got to make the most of EVERY opportunity and enjoy the journey even when things aren’t going the way we’d like.  It goes back to what I shared last week about flipping the script.  We’ve got to see the positive in every challenge that comes our way.  Focus on the lesson not the problem.

3. Seed the Clouds: Sow today what you want to see tomorrow.

This is about being proactive.  If we want to lose weight, we can’t eat junk food today.  If we want a new job, we can’t sit around hoping one will fall in our lap.  We’ve got to research and apply for our dream job TODAY or work toward developing the skills we need to prepare for that future job.  When I decided I wanted to go from running a television production department to being the CEO, it took me 10 years to develop the necessary skills.  I had to learn programming, sales, fundraising, engineering and operations. That happened very intentionally.  It wasn't easy, but I loved that journey because I love learning and being stretched.  Life begins at the end of our comfort zones.  We just have to bond with being uncomfortable.

Here's another example. If you want to buy a house, you’ve got to stop wasting money and save money TODAY.  If we want to be physically stronger, we’ve got to exercise TODAY. Today is the gift that we’ve been given.  What are you going to do TODAY?  Remember whatever your dream is, it’s likely not going to happen in a day, but each day that you make the decision to make the right choices, gets you one day closer.

What happens if you screw up today?  If you've got seven days of wins under your belt and you make a few mistakes. Don't sweat it. You can decide it won't happen again tomorrow and you go right back to making the choices that help you Win the Day my friend. I hope that after reading this you’ll never say ONE DAY WHEN again and you’ll always focus on the gift that is today and you get a ONE DAY WIN.  These tips can help you get an entire week of ONE DAY WINS and if you stay focused before you know it, you’ll have a month of One Day Wins and then you will have developed the habits that can help you WIN THE DAY…every day or at least most of the days.

I'm honored to be a part of your leadership journey. Thank you for prioritizing your growth and taking the time to read my blog.