30-day challenges to boost your self-improvement goals and enhance your life. Implement these daily challenges for 30 days and increase your wellbeing and happiness!
Key Information
- Short-term goals can be a great way to create positive change for anyone who feels stuck in a rut.
- Too many goals can feel overwhelming and become detrimental.
- A 30 day challenge is the perfect amount of time to implement the appropriate level of changes required to see genuine results.
30 Day Challenge Ideas Can Be the Start of a Healthy New You!
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When life feels stale it can be difficult to know how to shake things up for the better. But there’s a clear reason for that – and a simple trick to overcome the resistance to make changes that would contribute to improved wellbeing…
Being stuck in a rut is not about a single thing not feeling quite right – it’s often about a lot of different things. And so knowing where to begin with the scale of the required changes proves daunting1.
The simple trick? Just get started in one area.
Then, once you’ve accomplished that first goal, you can look at the next area of your life. (But don’t even think about that initially, or you’ll once again be flooded with crippling overwhelm.)
So, then, how do you choose the first thing to tackle, when there are so many projects you could identify?
Enter the 30 day challenge.
If you need a little handhold to kickstart that first foot forwards, one of the best ways to begin is with a 30 day challenge (keep reading for some inspiration for 30-day challenges you can try).
What is a 30 Day Challenge?
Similar to mini new year’s resolutions (except you can start at any time), a 30 day challenge is the idea of committing to a new routine or daily task for 30 days.
It can be with the intention of making positive changes or breaking old habits.
What passes for good luck is really an infinite number of little good decisions.
Richard Steinheimer
Interested in learning about how long it takes to form new healthy habits? This post about habit tracker bullet journal ideas shares the psychology of how habits work.
Why Do a Monthly Challenge?
With a 30 day challenge, you choose the new habit you’ll be working with (or against), and track your progress for one month, which is an ideal period – enough time but not too long. Why? Well, since the goal is only for 30 days, the time element is sufficient to help you get into a new routine with better habits, but crucially without it feeling too overwhelming.
In other words, 30 day challenges are a positive and fun way to motivate yourself to begin levelling up your life to be the best version of yourself!
Success is nothing more than a few disciplines, practiced every day. Failure is a nothing more than a few errors, repeated every day.
Jim Rohn
It’s a bitter pill to swallow, but the reality is that our lives are, for the most part, a direct result of our good and bad habits.
The good news is this means it’s within our power to make good choices and valuable adjustments at any time we choose to, creating positive small changes and our own good fortune. Consider your first challenge to be small steps towards a fresh start you can carry into the long term.
Good luck is the child of hard work, excellent choices, better decisions, and positive actions.
Dr TP Chia
Still need more motivation? Check out this Ted Talk on the subject by Matt Cutts.
Tips For How to Do a 3o Day Self Improvement Challenge Successfully
Set yourself up for success from the outset!
Before launching into some of the different challenges you might be interested in trying, here are a few tips to keep in mind…
1. Be realistic
Don’t attempt an unsustainable challenge that will be totally beyond you in terms of time, cost, energy, or ability.
For example, if you work long days, are studying hard right now, or you’re a busy parent, you will likely not be in a position to cook a new recipe from scratch every single night. But that doesn’t mean you can’t focus on healthy eating if you want to.
Perhaps you could instead aim to cut out heavily processed fast food or ditch alcohol or fizzy / sugary drinks.
2. Be enthusiastic!
Choose something from this list that gets you excited!
The idea is to find something you feel passionate about, so that you’re willing to commit and are more likely to see it through.
3. Be gentle with yourself
Sometimes real life gets in the way of our best intentions. It’s frustrating, but don’t allow one off day to destroy your hard work and progress.
If this happens, practice some self-compassion and the following day simply pick up where you left off. The most important thing is to keep going.
In other words, set yourself up for success from the outset!
Fall at the first hurdle and you’ll be reinforcing a negative message to yourself which can be harmful to your mental health2. On the other hand, at the end of the challenge when you’ve accomplished your goal, you’ll feel motivated to do another, and another.
What Are Some Good 30 Day Challenges?
This post shares a big list of fantastic ideas for challenges but essentially, the best 30-day challenges meet the following criteria:
- Focused on forming a good habit, or breaking a bad one
- Not too time consuming
- Based around something you feel strongly about
- Focused on achieving a new goal
- Something sustainable
Beyond these elements, 30-day challenges can be anything that inspires you!
85 Inspiring 30 Day Challenge Ideas
The following 30 day challenge ideas are broken up into categories organised around health, wellbeing, and productivity.
Good luck – and have fun!
Wellbeing & Happiness 30 Day Challenge Ideas
Increase your life satisfaction with these thirty-day challenges designed to bring you mindfulness and pleasure.
1. Journal
I’m passionate about journaling, because it can be whatever you need or want it to be. It’s a powerful tool with benefits that include promoting good mental health and wellbeing3.
- Need to get organised? Journal.
- Want to let off some steam? Journal.
- Interested in mindfulness? Journal.
- Feeling creative? Journal!
Why not try these beginner journal prompts to get started?
2. Write a gratitude list every day
Your levels of positivity and baseline happiness will increase.
As a specific form of journaling, this one goes hand in hand with the last, and is especially powerful for fostering a positive mindset. Because when you stop focusing on the things you could complain about, you’ll naturally begin to notice a shift in emphasis towards the good things you appreciate instead.
Keeping a gratitude journal that you write in every day will help nudge along this transformation, helping you to experience the magic of reframing.
So that, even when your circumstances don’t change, your levels of positive thinking and baseline happiness will increase4.
3. Pay a compliment every day
How often do you think ‘I love that dress / bag / haircut’ – but not actually say it out loud? It can prove challenging if you’re not naturally outgoing, but no matter how shy or introverted you are, this is something I recommend you try. Nobody will ever be anything other than delighted when you pay them a genuine compliment.
4. Practice yoga for 15 minutes
Spending a little bit of time going through a yoga flow forces you to focus on the present moment, because it can be physically and mentally taxing to make your body do what’s being asked of it.
Yoga requires concentration, strength, and balance. You need to be totally engaged with your practice if you don’t want to topple over, making it a fantastic form of mindfulness and a great way to reconnect with your body.
5. Spend time in nature
Nothing helps to recalibrate a frazzled mind or tense body like daily walks, soaking up some nature and fresh air.
Try making time to indulge in this pleasurable activity everyday, whilst knowing that it’s also providing huge health benefits.
6. No screen time after a designated time
Switching off your mobile or TV after, say, 9pm, is a great way to gently encourage your mind to unwind and prepare for sleep.
For those who enjoy reading before bed, a note about the Kindle Paperwhite: a USP for this clever product is its ‘backlight’ – except it doesn’t have a true backlight at all.
Instead of being backlit like mobile phones, the bulbs in the clever device are actually positioned around the sides of the device, meaning that their emitted light does not shine directly into your eyes, creating a much softer light whilst still properly illuminating the screen.
So why not make this into a reading challenge?!
7. Practice positive affirmations
Backed by science, positive affirmations can be hugely beneficial. Practiced in the right way (yes, there’s a wrong way too!), they can help you to notice and quit negative self-talk, and also increase confidence and self-esteem.
8. Read for 20 minutes before bed
This makes a lovely nightly routine – ritual even. And if you’re concerned about the cost involved, consider borrowing for free from your local library!
9. Random acts of kindness
You may be wondering if this one is on the right list, but studies have shown5 that being kind can actually improve the benefactor’s own life satisfaction!
10. Declutter
This may not seem like a happiness task, but many people buy into the philosophy of ‘tidy home, tidy mind’.
Personal Growth Challenge for 30 Days
Personal development is not all about joy. In fact sometimes it can be very uncomfortable! Try a 30-day self-improvement challenge to stretch and grow.
11. Find and shadow a mentor
This is may prove tricky because it involves identifying the right person, putting yourself out there by reaching out to them, and hoping they’ll be willing to help you out!
Even if you’re unable to have contact with them every day for a month, you may be able to agree to a weekly Skype or email catch up. Remember, they’ll be flattered that you deem them worthy of mentoring you, so be brave and ask!
12. Go to bed an hour early
Adequate sleep is essential for good health. Not getting enough can affect every area of our wellbeing, from physical health, stress, and energy level, to memory, productivity, and happiness.
If you’re not getting enough sleep, try this for a few weeks and notice how much better you feel after 30 days!
13. Explore your spirituality
What does spirituality mean to you? If you can’t reel off an answer easily then that’s even more reason to take part in this self-care challenge!
Spirituality is an important component of overall wellbeing, so becoming familiar with different philosophies is a great way to learn more about your own spirituality on a journey of self-discovery.
Pro tip: Religion and spirituality are not the same thing! So it’s worth exploring even if you don’t follow a faith.
14. Create a vision board
- How would you like your life to look in five or ten years time?
- What would be your dream job?
- Where would you love to live?
Create a vision board of the things you aspire to and then make goals to bring them within reach.
15. No complaining
Start a revolution!
This may be more difficult than suggested at first glance, because having a bit of a moan is a bit of a bad habit for most people. But consciously avoiding complaining will make you feel better6.
Not only that – it will make others around you feel better too. And over time, people will be drawn towards the positive new you. You’ll start a revolution!
After all, we all know the best people to spend time with are those who lift us up instead of dragging us down!
16. Mentor somebody else
What are you an expert at? We’re all skilled at something that we could teach others. Perhaps a specific person you’d be able to help immediately springs to mind.
Offer to mentor them; it will benefit you both.
17. Practice inner child work
Do you have any hang ups from your childhood? Studies show that nearly half of us (around 40%) are insecurely attached.
If this is something that may affect you, inner child work could be very healing.
18. Practice shadow work
This one is no picnic, but if you’re willing to get out of your comfort zone then shadow work is highly valuable and can help you to overcome self-sabotaging behaviours so you can enjoy a more peaceful and successful life.
19. See a therapist
Even the most ‘together’ people have stuff going on and could benefit from the opportunity of having professional guidance to deal with past traumas. And many therapists also have therapy, often citing a positive personal experience as their reason for going into the field in a professional capacity.
20. Take an appraisal of your relationships
It’s very easy to lose sight of the fact that we’re allowed to leave any relationship that doesn’t serve us.
Take a critical assessment of the relationships in your life and how you could improve your social health, perhaps by implementing stronger, healthier boundaries.
If you identify any that are draining and no longer bring you any joy, give yourself permission to allow them to fizzle out.
Challenges For 30 Days of Increased Productivity & Less Spending
These 30 day challenge ideas will leave you feeling more organised and with a little more in your pocket!
21. Start your day 20 minutes earlier
Whatever you’re making that extra time for, make it count.
Whether it’s a coffee in peace, time to write a to-do list, a quick blast of physical activity in your preferred form, or an extra long shower – those 20 minutes could set you up for the day.
Whatever you’re making that extra time for, make it count and you will not regret this one.
22. Social media detox
As a professional blogger, for the longest time I felt compelled to spend hours of my day on social media. It became incredibly draining, both in terms of my time and energy – it made me miserable.
You don’t owe anyone pieces of yourself.
Finally, I quit.
I still have my accounts, but I do not currently give very much of my time or attention to them. And I can hand on heart say it’s one of the best decisions I’ve made for my productivity (and my overall wellbeing).
For some industries social media use is considered non-negotiable. However, it’s not harmed me yet and the take home message here is:
You don’t owe anyone pieces of yourself. If you need a break, take it. And don’t feel guilty!
23. Cook double portions every day and freeze half
On those days you come home and feel too exhausted to cook, or realise you forgot to shop and the cupboards are empty, it’s a blessing to enjoy a home-cooked meal that can simply be heated up. And, with a bit of meal planning, it’s such an easy fix!
24. Tidy before bed
Because there’s nothing nicer than waking up to a clean and tidy house!
Bonus points for making lunches and getting the kids’ homework and school bags ready for the following day too.
25. Start an accountability group
Reach out to others in your industry or niche and start a group where you’re able to bounce ideas off each other and help to keep each other accountable.
26. No shop-bought coffee / lunch
It’s so easy to get into the habit of picking up a pre-packed sandwich or coffee each day, especially if it’s your favourite drink or you’re running late. But those little luxuries add up – significantly!
Depending on where you’re shopping and what you’re buying, you could save around £250 a month by not buying coffee or lunch for a month. That’s £3,000 annually. 3k! And that much money could legitimately pay for a holiday.
So why not leave the credit cards at home, and choose a healthier lunch – and a healthier wallet?
27. Create a grocery budget and stick to it
For anyone fortunate enough not to need a grocery budget, it’s very, very easy to slip into bad habits that can cost you a fortune.
Making a rigid budget and sticking to it, is a simple way to save a little (or a lot) each month.
Bonus: it makes shopping easier too, because you don’t have to overthink what you need!
28. No-spend month
How often do you buy something on a whim? If this is you, then implementing a no-spending challenge (except for basic groceries and bills) is well worth trying. You’ll be surprised by how much you could save!
29. Only shop second-hand
If no spending at all seems too unrealistic, how about trying to stick to second-hand purchases only instead?
30. Pocket change savings challenge
There are many different ways you could challenge yourself to save, but this one is fairly self-explanatory and very simple.
Anytime you need to use cash and you’re given change, instead of putting it back in your purse, stick it in a jar at home instead. All of that loose change gets saved up and by the end of the month you have a nice little kitty!
30 Day Challenge Ideas For Improved Relationships
Invest in your loved ones with these challenges for 30 days of deeper relationships.
31. Hug partner / children every day
Hopefully this is something most people already do anyway. But it’s easy to slip into bad habits, and yet this is truly powerful.
Harlow’s infamous rhesus monkey experiment demonstrated how vital affection is to the healthy development of attachment in children, and we now know that those deprived of nurture in childhood can be left with lifelong complications.
Studies also show regular tactile contact with loved ones can reduce stress and support better cardiovascular health7.
We need four hugs a day for survival. We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance. We need 12 hugs a day for growth.
Virginia Satir, family therapist
You don’t even need much time for this one, so the effort to reward ratio is huge!
32. Call a family member / friend
Taking a few minutes each day to touch base with a loved one is a valuable use of your time, helping to reaffirm connections and improving your mood and theirs.
33. Read together every day
This one is specifically for parents with young children. It’s such a special bonding time, and also really valuable for children’s cognitive development.
34. Pay your children / partner an authentic compliment
Telling your children why you think they’re amazing is a great self-esteem boost for them.
Likewise, letting your partner know that you still think they look or smell good, etc, can go a really long way to keeping the warmth alive in your relationship.
35. Make time to play
And not just with children! Even if you don’t have kids or grandkids, we should all make time to be playful – it can have many benefits for adult relationships8.
36. Eat at least one daily meal together
It’s well-established that eating meals together is a great way to check in with loved ones and promotes good relationships with healthy food and with each other.
While it may be unrealistic to manage every meal as a family due to other commitments such as work and school, making time for breakfast or dinner as a unit is a powerful way to reinforce family bonds and carve out a little quality time.
37. Go to bed together
Similarly to above, making sure to retire to regularly bed at the same time as your partner is important to the integrity of your relationship.
38. Tell your partner / children why you appreciate them
Tell your loved ones something you cherish about them every day!
This should be almost reflexive, but of course we’re often so busy we don’t think to do it. Yet it could have a hugely positive impact on our most important relationships.
39. Start a ‘happy jar’
A couple of years ago our family started an annual project, starting on new year’s day. We keep a glass jar and a stack of rainbow coloured paper beside it.
Each time we have a great day out, or even a special moment which might be really touching, or hilarious – we jot it down and pop it in the jar.
Over the course of the year we end up with a rainbow coloured jar filled with beautiful memories, and on new year’s eve, we empty the jar and read them all out. There are many which would have been forgotten over time if we’d not written them down!
40. Slip a love note into pockets or lunchboxes
This is a lovely and simple act to let your loved ones know you’re thinking of them each day, even when you’re not with them.
Health & Fitness Challenges For 30 Days
Feel more energised with a 30 day fitness challenge focused on your overall health and fitness levels.
41. Drink 10 glasses of water
While it’s technically possible to drink too much water, it’s highly unlikely! And the simple practice of keepign yourself properly hydrated is very valuable.
Drinking enough:
- Regulates body temperature
- Helps prevent overeating
- Keeps our organs functioning properly
- Improves sleep quality, cognition, and mood
- Helps keep the immune system in peak condition
Staying properly hydrated is so important to our health, yet so easy to let slide.
42. Walk or cycle to work every day instead of driving
If the distance is not prohibitive, then this is a fantastic new challenge for your health, your carbon footprint, and your pocket too!
43. Sleep for 8 hours
Of course you can’t simply decide to sleep for a certain length of time. But you can give yourself the best possible chance by improving your daily routine to allow adequate time in bed – minus the electronic distractions!
44. Stop eating after designated time
If you’ve ever tried to cut back on mindlessly snacking in the evenings, then you’ll know this can work a treat.
Pro tip: Try brushing your teeth straight after your last meal!
45. No added sugar
The high amount of sugar in processed junk food is shocking. Your body will thank you for checking labels and only consuming naturally occurring sugars for an entire month.
46. Walk 10,000 steps
Walking 10k steps is the equivalent of roughly 5 miles. It shouldn’t be too difficult to achieve, but it is for many of us simply because we have such busy lives! Yet for sedentary people, it can have a hugely beneficial impact on their health.
47. Eat 5 portions of fruit / veg
Did you know that we should actually be shooting for ten portions of different fruit and veggies each day? That makes five suddenly seem a lot more achievable!
48. No alcohol
Depending on your lifestyle this could be relatively easy or significantly trickier. But having once been teetotal for a year, I can confirm that it’s more than possible to go out and still have fun, sans alcohol.
Your pocket and your liver will also thank you.
49. Workout challenge
While you’re switching up your diet to be more healthy, why not also consider a workout challenge?
There are many options, such as the 30-day plank challenge, ab challenge, squat challenge, or flexibility challenge. You might even be able to do the splits by the end of it!
50. Create a morning routine
This is a really great challenge for anyone who finds their mornings are rushed and stressful.
Starting your morning off in a much more mindful, intentional, calm, and organised new way sets you up for a great day by helping you put your best foot forward instead of leaving the house already feeling frazzled. Plus it can help you to be more productive too.
You could get up a little earlier to make time for 15 minutes of:
- Stretching
- Journaling
- Meditating
- Watching the birds in the garden with your first coffee
- Morning snuggles with your children
If you’re looking for inspiration, why not grab yourself a copy of the super popular book Miracle Morning, by Hal Elrod?
Pro tip: If this challenge works well for you, keep it going beyond 30 days!
Blog / Business / Social Account Challenges for 30 Days
Invest in your profession or vocation with these business-related 30 day challenges.
51. Listen to a business-related podcast
Why not treat yourself to a daily catch up with your favourite, or a new one every day, and see what you can learn or how you can be inspired?
52. Sign up for a course
If you’ve been thinking about committing to a specific aspect of your business, use this time to sign up and dedicate one month to completing a new course. You’ll be so glad you did by the end of it.
53. Spend one hour learning
Not sure where to focus your energies? How about brainstorming a range of areas you could be more informed about, and spend one hour each day educating yourself?
54. Pitch every day
If it applies to any element of your business, you could pitch a new idea every single day.
It could be for a collaboration, a paid project, a guest post, etc. There are so many possibilities, and by the end of one month, you should hopefully see some worthwhile results!
55. Start a new business
Have you been contemplating starting a new side hustle? Take this time to get it off the ground!
Spend a designated length of time each day dedicated to your new project, and start making inroads. By the end of the month you may not be up and running (though you might!), but you’ll definitely have made significant progress.
56. Update accounts spreadsheets
Hands up if you hate doing your accounts!
Instead of leaving everything to the last minute, you could take ten minutes each day to update your income and expenses spreadsheets, and make your life so much easier come the end of the tax year.
57. Organise an Instagram challenge
If you’re an active Instagrammer and have an engaged audience, why not organise a challenge you can do alongside your community?
Or, if you’re still growing, this is still a great way to get people involved if that’s a priority you want to work on.
58. Update a blog post every day
This is a vital part of business for a blogger, but often difficult to find time for.
Having a challenge dedicated to doing this for one post every day is an excellent way to refocus and begin to build a routine that includes this important task.
59. Share an old blog post every day
Another important aspect of blogging that can be easily forgotten!
If you have a lot of evergreen content then sharing old posts is crucial to driving that all-important traffic.
60. Spend one hour connecting
If social media presence is part of your business strategy (and it probably should be these days, whatever industry you’re in), then one hour each day is time well spent connecting with your community.
Creative 30-Day Challenge Ideas
Find a creative way to get inspired and nourish your soul for 30 days.
61. Take a photo
Love photography? Take a photo a day and watch your skills improve!
62. Spend 30 minutes drawing
If you’re more of an artist, why not block out some time for drawing, sketching, or painting instead?
63. Watch a TED Talk
If you’ve been hiding under a rock, TED Talks are ‘influential videos from expert speakers’, on a host of different topics, and they’re a great place to learn and get inspired about new ideas.
64. Spend 30 minutes journaling
I know I technically already mentioned journaling, however it’s here again because it’s so versatile!
You could dedicate time to writing, doodling, lettering, the list goes on!
65. Start a knitting project
Or learn how if you don’t already know. It’s a great way to have some quiet chill time, whilst also being creative.
66. Do a jigsaw puzzle
This is a perfect one to do alone, but alternatively it’s also a lovely activity to do with a child or partner, and a great way to carve out time for a relaxed chat to reconnect too.
67. Work on a poem or creative writing
If you enjoy creative writing but don’t often find the time for it, this might be the challenge for you!
68. Dance for 15 minutes
Think you can’t dance? All the more reason to let loose and enjoy moving your body to your favourite music! It’s an excellent way to release endorphins, so go for it.
Bonus points if you get the whole family involved.
69. Post a reel to Instagram or TikTok
If you enjoy creating videos then challenge yourself to make a new one every day for a month and (hopefully!) watch your follower count soar!
70. Learn a new skill
Spend a little time every day and after one month you’ll be starting to get the hang of it, and perhaps have a new hobby to enjoy!
Suggestions include:
- Learning a foreign language
- Playing chess or another skilled board game
- Crocheting
- Playing a musical instrument
- Lettering / calligraphy
Self-Care 30-Day Challenges
Prioritise your wellbeing with a daily self love challenge – 30 days of you! Because self care is not selfish and rest days are important too.
71. Meditate for 15 minutes
Carving out time for some calm and quiet reflection is so restorative at the end of a chaotic day!
If this is new to you, try meditation apps to guide you.
72. Take a bath
If time permits, a bath with a good book every evening for 30 days is a luxury that will leave you feeling revived and energised the following day.
73. Moisturise your whole body
We all know we should do it, but how often do we? Spending time moisturising your body can help to:
- Hydrate skin
- Improve circulation
- Relieve dry skin
- Retain youthful appearance of skin
- Reduce acne
74. Spend 15 minutes listening to your favourite music
For this challenge, why not dig out your teenage favourites and indulging in a little nostalgia?
75. Give yourself a hand or foot massage
As well as preventing dry and cracked skin in the winter months, treating yourself to a massage is a sensuous experience that can increase feelings of wellbeing.
76. Compliment yourself every day
For some this will be easy, but for many it will be very challenging. Which is why it’s so valuable.
Take some time to look at yourself in the mirror objectively, as though you’re standing before a friend, and give yourself a genuine compliment. Every day. For a month.
77. Learn a new word
This one may not be for everybody, but it’s perfect for fellow logophiles.
Bonus points if you manage to work your new word into a sentence on a daily basis!
78. Start each day with a homemade smoothie
Who doesn’t love a homemade smoothie? Who regularly makes the effort to chop the fruit and blend one up? Buying pre-prepared frozen fruit and it makes the task so much quicker and easier.
79. Replace your daily coffee with green tea
If you’re dependent on your caffeine hit, this may not be quite so challenging as you fear, and it could also be a really healthful change.
Green tea contains caffeine, just significantly less than coffee. It also:
- Contains antioxidants
- Has fat burning properties
- May improve brain function
- Reduces the risk of some diseases
- Improves blood flow
- Reduces cholesterol
Drinking three to five cups each day is optimal for associated health benefits.
80. Take 10 deep breaths in and out before getting out of bed
Swing your legs out of bed, but then pause to mindfully take a deep breath in and out ten times, before rising to face your day!
And five challenges which may seem too difficult to keep up for 30 days!
Personal Monthly Challenges
These ideas have been selected as those I’d personally struggle to achieve; for you they may look quite different.
81. No makeup for a month
Naturally, if you don’t ordinarily wear makeup, then this is not for you because it’s no challenge at all.
But if it’s something that upon examination you feel compelled to do, it could be a great way to break a habit that you should have a choice over rather than feeling obligated about.
82. No TV
If by the end of the day, relaxing in front of the TV is about all you’re good for, this challenge will definitely push you outside of your comfort zone. Try reducing the time you watch to just an hour each evening, doing something more productive with the rest of your downtime.
83. No caffeine
If the thought of cutting out caffeine makes you cringe, it may indicate a dependence.
If you suffer with headaches, anxiety, irritability, heart palpitations, insomnia, or intense thirst then it could be a worthwhile challenge to try.
84. Do something scary every day
This could mean a thousand different things depending on the kind of person you are.
Perhaps speaking to strangers makes you anxious. Maybe driving somewhere new seems too hard. Or it might be that you don’t feel confident to put forward your ideas in meetings.
Whatever you know is holding you back, try making this your challenge of the day. After a month, the thing you’re scared about will have begun to feel like second nature.
85. Live without a smart phone
There’s recently been a wave of stories of people ditching smart phones in favour of simple handsets which can only make and accept calls, and send and receive messages. It sounds liberating!
While reducing screen time seems perfectly doable, losing internet access altogether is another ball game. But, for anyone whose work is not dependent on a smart phone, it could be a breath of fresh air.
Use the above ideas for an easy go-to – or perhaps you’ve been inspired to come up with your own challenge? Either way, small things, simple things, have the power to make a huge difference in your life.
Sources
- Keep It Simple: The Dangers of Goal Overload & How To Avoid It
- Moberly, N. J., & Watkins, E. R. (2010). Negative affect and ruminative self-focus during everyday goal pursuit. Cognition and Emotion, 24(4), 729–739. doi: 10.1080/02699930802696849.
- Smyth JM, Johnson JA, Auer BJ, Lehman E, Talamo G, Sciamanna CN. Online Positive Affect Journaling in the Improvement of Mental Distress and Well-Being in General Medical Patients With Elevated Anxiety Symptoms: A Preliminary Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR Ment Health. 2018 Dec 10;5(4):e11290. doi: 10.2196/11290. PMID: 30530460; PMCID: PMC6305886.
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