Being a loser can help you win in life.

“What a loser!” This is a common refrain when someone seems unable to move on from what they perceive as a failure. Losers are looked down upon because they allow circumstances to define them. Let’s talk about a different kind of loser – the kind that loses to gain more in life. The kind that you would love to be.

Most of what clutters your life exists only in your head. Imagine the immense benefits of freeing up even a small part of your mental space by losing some of the clutter that crowds out your better thoughts, feelings, emotions, and ideas. The kind of clutter that makes you think, ‘Why on earth did I spend so much time on that? And for what? It means nothing to me today.’ Then why spend so much time on thinking about others or things you can’t control? Try reliving happy memories instead. Start losing your mental clutter today.

A major head-occupier (as I call the things we need to lose) that gets in the way of life is procrastination. Putting things off means you are losing what can never be experienced again – this moment. Countless studies have explored procrastination and concluded that even a tiny step taken every day towards the life you want to live will help you get there. Have a great idea? Turning it into reality means taking that first step. Otherwise, the idea dies inside you, yet another victim of procrastination.

When you seek instant gratification, you lose out on long-term benefits. Eating junk food now will lead to health issues and reduce the quality of your life in the years to come. Spending on depreciating consumables today means you have less money down the line. Instead of seeking instant gratification, ask yourself, ‘Will this help me live the life I want to live? How does it benefit me?’ The only person stopping you from achieving fulfillment is you.

Like many, you may find it hard to rid yourself of toxic relationships and environments. Do you choose to wallow in a swamp of toxicity because you are reluctant to step out of your comfort zone? This leads to more misery and denies you the present moment. Grab any opportunity that allows you to free yourself from poisonous energy. Losing toxicity helps you travel light through life.

Addiction to social media means you are living a virtual life, not a real one. When was the last time you called your friends instead of yearning for more virtual followers and likes? When was the last time you told your parents you loved them? Lose your addiction to social media and mindless browsing. Focus on real people.

The endless media critiques, analyses, dire predictions, and terrible human suffering you see on television cause unnecessary stress and depression. Unnecessary because you can’t do anything about most of what you see but still feel strongly about them. Limit television to news updates once a day, for an hour at the most. Want to make a difference? Donate to a cause instead of worrying about world events you can’t control. The experts on television do that for us.

Lose the urge to overthink. Take people and life at face value. If someone asks you a direct question, give them a direct and truthful answer. If people meander, never quite touching upon why they are acting the way they are, quit trying to understand them. Don’t tie yourself up in knots trying to analyze what they might be thinking about you or read into every gesture or what you did last week that might make you appear bad.

When you continue losing negative energy from your life, you can live life as it is meant to be lived: joyfully and with the clarity that life is finite. When you recognize this, you will focus on maximizing your time doing the things you love, rather than doing things that others expect you to be doing. You will become more self-aware and understand how wasteful it is to spend time holding tight to things that add no value to your life.