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People get SO excited when a new year is starting because they love the idea of a fresh start. And I’m not going to lie, I do too!
But I also believe that any time is a great time for a fresh start – a new month, a new week, even a new day.
The start of each new month is probably my favorite time though. We have 12 months each year. That’s 12 chances to achieve a big goal, 12 chances to focus on something different and improve our lives.
30 days can mean a lot when it comes to changing and growing!
And a monthly reset is so helpful when it comes to creating this change and growth. A monthly reset is a chance to start over and give yourself a new focus for the new month. It can help you be more organized, prepared, productive, and focused.
So, today I thought I’d share my 10 tasks to do as part of a monthly reset!
1- Review last month.
Reviewing the previous month is important if you want to have a more successful current month! This allows you to acknowledge what you did well and learn what you could do better.
Here are some ideas for reviewing last month:
- Evaluate your goals for last month
- Make a list of goals and tasks that you didn’t get done
- Check-in on your mental health and how you felt during the month
2- Choose an area of your life.
I like the idea of focusing on one bigger improvement for the month instead of trying to improve my health, my career, my relationships, and more. I mean 30 days can create big change but try to be realistic.
Take inventory of each area of your life and choose an area that you’d like to primarily focus on for the month. Here are areas to choose from:
- Physical health
- Emotional/mental health
- Relationships
- Career
- Finances
- Spirituality
- Social
3- Organize your month.
Planning and organizing for the month ahead will keep you on track with any tasks or goals that you’re working toward. When you’re organizing your month, keep your focus area (from #2) in mind.
Here are some tasks to help you plan and organize your month:
- Do a brain dump: list out everything on your mind for this month (things you want to improve, goals, events or appointments you have coming up, etc)
- Write out your goals: choose a manageable number of goals from your brain dump and write them somewhere you can keep handy to check in on them
- Create a master to-do: create a master to-do list filled with tasks you need to get done, and steps you need to take to achieve your monthly goals
- Fill in your calendar: write in the dates of any upcoming events, appointments, birthdays, and anything else for the upcoming month
Here’s an awesome planner to help out with this!
You might like: 5 Weekly Habits for a Better Life
4- Review your finances + budget.
This one is kind of boring for me (haha) but it can be important! Review how much money you brought in last month vs how much you spent. Would you like to try to spend less? Would you like to build your savings? Make any adjustments you need to make.
Also, be sure to make note of any different circumstances this month. Like, will you be getting overtime? Do you need to pay medical bills? Do you have car repairs you’ll need to factor in? Birthday gifts to purchase? Etc.
5- Create a meal plan.
Meal planning makes my life so much easier! I’m actually planning to try out HelloFresh or something soon to make it even easier, haha. Figuring out what to make for dinner, what ingredients I had to work with, and all of that stuff was frustrating.
Instead, I like to look through my favorite recipes and new one’s I’ve saved on Pinterest that I’d like to try. Then I make a grocery list of the ingredients I’ll need to purchase.
Here’s an awesome meal planner to help with this!
6- Choose a book/course/challenge.
It’s no secret that I’m a self-improvement junkie. Books, courses, and challenges, are some of the best resources when it comes to personal development!
I’m a huge bookworm so I usually read about 3-4 books per month – a balance of fiction and nonfiction. This is great exercise for my mind, and the self-help books I read give me great life advice too!
So try to pick out at least one book, course, or 30-day challenge for the month to work on your personal development. An even better idea is to choose a resource that will provide you with help in the area of life that you’re focusing on this month!
7- Decorate for the month.
Maybe it’s just me but I love decorating my home for each season/holiday/whatever. Sometimes (like for Halloween or Christmas) I go all out. But other times, it’s just smaller pieces of decor. I just think it’s fun and changes things up a bit. I don’t know how to describe it, haha.
But if this is something that might appeal to you too, here are some monthly decorating ideas to get you started:
- January: winter, snowmen
- February: Valentine’s Day
- March: St. Patrick’s Day, Easter
- April: Easter, spring
- May: flowers
- June: summer
- July: red, white, and blue
- August: sunflowers
- September: fall, leaves, pumpkins
- October: Halloween
- November: Thanksgiving, harvest
- December: Christmas
8- Deep clean your home.
I do a good deep cleaning of my home once a month. This is another weird thing about me but I love cleaning! Here are some ideas to help you clean and declutter each month:
- Go through your fridge and freezer
- Clean out your car
- Clean out your purse
- Declutter your wardrobe
- Toss out expired beauty products
- Clean out your workspace
- Toss out old papers
You might like: Spring Cleaning: 50 Things to Get Rid of Today
9- Get rid of digital clutter.
Physical clutter isn’t the only clutter to worry about! Digital clutter is bothersome too. I always feel so much better after I declutter my digital life.
Here are some ways you can do this:
- Unsubscribe from unwanted email lists
- Unfollow people who make you unhappy
- Remove apps you don’t use
- Delete unwanted photos
- Back up photos you want and delete them too
- Delete files you don’t need
- Clean out your voicemail
- Clean out your inbox
10- Treat yourself.
The beginning of the month can certainly be exciting, but it can also seem busy and maybe even stressful. An important part of every monthly reset is acknowledging what you’re doing well and rewarding yourself for a job well done! So treat yourself to something that makes you happy and motivate yourself to keep going.
What’s your opinion on doing a monthly reset? Let’s chat in the comments!
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You have some great lists here. I do have tons of digital clutter and I am working on that!
Nice! And I thought I was alone in the monthly excitement of planning! Not many people think of decluttering their digitals. I go through my phone pictures and delete the 20 unnecessary pictures of a lady bug fron different angles and choose the bedt ine to keep.
Reviewing your finances is so important, especially now with the high prices. I also do my tithing at the beginning of the month,
This is such a great list, I really love all of your ideas. It’s so important to treat yourself.
These are great tips that you listed here. I do love all your ideas; I do agree that you need to treat yourself once in a while. Take a moment to review your life, also your finances as well are important for all of us
This is such a really great post! I will surely gonna keep this in mind! Thanks for sharing this with us
Great article to read that will boost our well-being. Doing this stuff every month will create an amazing habit for ourself for a better us than before.
This is a great idea. I really need to implement some more organizational skills into my life. I’m a fly by the seat of my pants type person.
Such great ideas. I do almost all of these. It’s about time to do some deep cleaning, though. 🙂
One thing I should definitely do is a brain dump. My mind goes everywhere lol. It would definitely help me!