Gaining the upper hand through being an opportunist

micro wins | MAJOR GAINS

I’ve seen out in the world there to be many types of people as there are many ways they achieve success. Some are meticulous thinkers who strategize every detail to reach their goal, some are “wingers” who go with the flow of what life brings them and some are hybrids containing bits and pieces of many elements.

But I’ve seen few who are “opportunist”, who hold value and capitalize on what most others wouldn’t value and capitalize on. In turn they shamelessly outwork, outmanoeuvre and outsmart their circumstances.

They don’t hold the same standards as the rest of society who believe in operating a certain way, they’re disrupters, unorthodox, unprecedented and unstoppable. They take every tiny gap, grab every loose ball and seize every moment and every opportunity to push their goal forward even when it seems too small to care about, unusual to do or even dirty to the common eye.

They understand the difference between first and second place can be like a 100m sprint where usually 0.1 seconds determines the winner and the smallest upside leads to the largest outcome.

In NFL (American football) they utilize the “downs” system where a team will get 4 attempts (downs) to carry the football at least 10 yards forward before being penalised and needing to turn the ball over. If they are successful in getting at least 10 yards into the enemy territory, they are instead rewarded another 4 (downs) to try reach the next 10 yards until they reach the end zone for a touchdown.

Because of this feature, teams spend every waking second strategizing ways to gain even the tiniest of yards (micro wins) to reach another 10 yards and receive bonus tackle lives (MAJOR GAINS). Life can sometimes resemble this, granting us these checkpoint opportunities where even the most seemingly minute wins actually grant us major gains in reaching our goals.

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Having the mindset of an opportunist, one who sees the upside in every moment, will prepare you to accomplish the micro wins of your life and receive the major gains because of it.

So here’s a few tips in chasing these micro wins | MAJOR GAINS:

1.   Keep moving | Change it up

Don’t stay the same and fail to adjust to what the world now needs from you, always look to surprise your opponent and yourself and keep the people guessing.

2.   Reframe how every situation you’re in can advance your goal

With a positive and creative attitude will come positive and creative results, take the time to reflect and think outside the box even in the tedious and mundane circumstances, you’ll be surprised how this will differentiate you and make you stand out amongst the herd.

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3.   Small is fine | Simple is fine

No need to demand the most glamorous, extravagant ideas to be an opportunist. It can be as small and simple as merging 2 tasks e.g. appropriately asking health advice from customers or clients you deal with at work. While others may find it peculiar, they also don’t gain that extra 10 yards and eventually reach the end zone!

4.   Believe every penny counts
An opportunist mindset is one that takes advantage of any opening as they present itself. Realise life is a journey and you need to be in it for the long haul and with that comes the need to believe every seed you sow counts and will reward you a harvest in the future.

Photo by Fancycrave on Unsplash

So what area of your life can you begin to act as an opportunist, what can you begin to try to do differently or re-frame, what micro wins could result in major gains for yourself?

Begin to ask yourself and intentionally look out for the opportunities that no one else does, as your breakthrough could be right around the corner!

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