PERSONAL SPECIAL .....To make winning a habit, set yourself smaller goals

To make winning a habit, set yourself smaller goals

When boxer Mike Tyson was preparing for his comeback fight, after spending time in jail, he fought many bouts against weaker opponents to boost his confidence. It’s a strategy that can help not only boxers but anyone trying to become better in their field.

Consider a student who is weak at maths. Trying to solve the tougher questions first will undoubtedly frustrate them. Instead, if they start with the easiest questions, the tougher ones will seem less daunting.

Clinical psychologist Ian Robertson, who has written the book “The Stress Test: How Pressure Can Make You Stronger and Sharper”, recommends setting small, achievable goals for yourself to become a winner. “Set goals for yourself that challenge you, but are neither too big, nor too difficult, nor too easy,” he says in an interview. The underlying idea is, “success breeds success,” and regularly succeeding at small tasks can get you into the habit of winning. Robertson calls it the “winner effect”: If you win a competition, you’re more likely to win a subsequent competition.

The most important thing is to set clear and specific goals, and then attack them with self-belief and self-confidence, says Robertson. Winning, he says, changes your brain, making it more receptive to hormones linked to motivation and aggression.

He also says you should aim to better yourself, instead of beating others, because, “there’s always going to be someone better than you.” So, if you can run a kilometre in 5 minutes, try doing it in 10 seconds less. That’s winning, too.

TOI25NOV18