Do you take advantage of planning out your months and setting goals? I used to just live out my months on a whim and hope for the best. However, recently I have been doing a few things that have helped me have a more productive and successful month! Here’s what I like to do at the beginning of each month.
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5 Things To Do At The Beginning Of Each Month
1. Set goals
At the beginning of each month I like to set goals for myself. There is no better feeling than accomplishing a goal. There are a few areas of my life that I like to set goals.
Finances: I am always looking at ways to better my finances. As someone who struggled with debt in the past, I am always trying to pay more debt off each month. Working for myself online also allows me to continually find new ways to increase my income. I also like to make savings goals. (how much money I want to save that month.)
Here are some helpful money saving posts:
Health: I try to set goals for my health every month. Whether it be “workout for 30 minutes 3x a week” or “drink water everyday and don’t drink any soda.” These are just health goals I like to make for myself to make sure I am exercising and making healthy choices.
Personal: I find personal goals to be very important. It’s important that I am checking in with myself mentally throughout the month. I might set goals like “have a mental health day once a week.” Or “practice positive affirmations every morning”. Maybe the month before my mood wasn’t the best and I wasn’t feeling great mentally or maybe I had a bad habit I want to try to let go of. It’s important for me to make sure I am keeping up with my personal goals.
Here are some posts related to self-care and well being:
Other areas you can set goals for:
- education
- Career
- Relationships
2. Declutter
A great way to live a more minimalistic lifestyle is by decluttering at the beginning of each month. I notice my home becoming cluttered so easily. Life can get busy, we don’t always have the time to do a declutter. However, finding the time to declutter at the beginning of each month helps me start each month with a clear mind, and feeling more motivated than ever.
Somethings to declutter:
- shoes
- Clothes
- Closets
- Expired products
- Fridge
- Cabinets
- Shelves
3. Reflect
At the beginning of each month I like to reflect on my previous month. Did I reach my goals? Is there something I can do differently to reach my goals? What worked and what didn’t work? What wins can I celebrate? I like to use this planner to write down my monthly goals. I can easily refer back to my goals at the end of each month to see what I accomplished and what I still need to work on.
PAUSE & Grab 44 Journal Prompts For Shadow Work
4. Set a budget
Feeling financially stable is important for me especially since I used to live pay check to pay check and don’t want to have to live that way again. At the beginning of the month I like to set a budget.
I do this by figuring out how much money I need for bills. Then I take the income I make and subtract how much I need for bills. With the remaining income I like to also subtract a set number to put into my savings account.
The number that is left over I divide by 4 which is how much I can spend each week. I take an estimate of what I’d spend on food/essentials and gas. The remaining is how much I can spend on luxurious/non essential items.
I always make sure to put away money each week into my savings as it’s important to have a savings account for emergencies.
5. Set a monthly challenge
Another thing I like to do at the beginning of each month is set a monthly challenge. It’s almost like goal setting. I take my most important, BIG goal and turn it into my monthly challenge.
Here is an example: Organize the house
Let’s say my big goal is to organize my house. I then turn this goal into a monthly challenge. I create separate goals for each week that will help me accomplish my one big goal.
Week one: organize the bathroom and kitchen
Week two: organize the bedrooms and closets
Week three: organize the living room and storage spaces
Week four: organize home office
I hope you found these 5 tips helpful! Let’s make this month a good one!!
Thank-you for the great advice
You are very welcome!