30-Day Get Organized Challenge
At the beginning of the year, I challenged myself to get organized. I set goals in all areas of my life, created specific tasks to accomplish those goals, and then got to work on achieving those goals. I am nearly halfway through the year and can’t believe how much I’ve accomplished.
I created a 30-Day Challenge which has ignited my productivity. I thought I’d share that challenge with you today. You can download a FREE pdf calendar to get started.
30-Day Get Organized Challenge:
Day 1 – Review the Previous Year
Day 2 – Select a Word of the Year
Day 3 – Select a Bible Verse or Quote for the Year
Day 4 – Set Family Goals
Day 5 – Set Financial Goals
Day 6 – Set Friendship/Community Goals
Day 7 – Set Relationship Goals
Day 8 – Set Personal Growth Goals
Day 9 – Set Professional Growth Goals
Day 10 – Set Physical Goals
Day 11 – Set Spiritual Goals
Day 12 – Set Home Organization Goals
Day 13 – Create a Vision Board
Day 14 – Select Calendars for the Year
Day 15 – Add Birthdays/Anniversaries to the Calendar
Day 16 – Select a To-Do List Format
Day 17 – Select Books to Read
Day 18 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Family Goals
Day 19 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Financial Goals
Day 20 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Friendship/Community Goals
Day 21 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Relationship Goals
Day 22 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Personal Growth Goals
Day 23 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Professional Growth Goals
Day 24 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Physical Goals
Day 25 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Spiritual Goals
Day 26 – Create Specific To-Do’s to Celebrate Birthdays/Anniversaries
Day 27 – Create Specific To-Do’s to Read Your Book List
Day 28 – Create Specific To-Do’s to Help Others
Day 29 – Create Specific To-Do’s for Self-Care
Day 30 – Celebrate and Get to Work
Day 1: Review the Previous Year – Your first challenge is to review all the amazing things that happened this past year in your life. Contemplate family changes (births, weddings, deaths, vacations, etc.), financial successes (savings, business, investments, etc.), friendship/community (new neighbors, organizations, etc.), relationships, personal growth, professional growth, physical changes (health, weight, meal planning, etc.), spiritual goals and more.
Day 2: Select a Word of the Year – Have you ever chosen a word for the year? I have done this for the past 2 years. It helps to give your life focus and perspective throughout the year.
If you have no idea how to go about selecting a word, here is a great short podcast with a coaching exercise and meditative music for doing so thanks to @artistsforjoy on Instagram. Check out the link below:
Plus, you can get a FREE list of 200 words from @theuncommonnormal post listed below:
List of Word of the Year Ideas
Day 3: Select a Bible Verse or Quote for the Year – Do you enjoy finding a Bible verse or quote to give you focus throughout the year? Today’s challenge is selecting a verse(s) or quote that will be best for you. If you completed yesterday’s challenge to select a word of the year, you might want to find a Bible verse representing that particular word. If you want to take this challenge a few steps further, consider writing out the verse on a notecard and displaying it somewhere you will see it often. Take time to memorize your verse in the days ahead.
Day 4: Set Family Goals – What kinds of things might we want to consider in the realm of family for this year? We might want to restore broken relationships, plan family vacations, discuss educational goals for the kids, plan ways for the family to stay healthy, distribute household chore responsibilities, etc. What creative things do you find important as you discuss family goals?
Day 5: Set Financial Goals – What financial goals do you have for the year ahead? You might want to consider saving goals for large items like a vehicle, vacation, house, or home remodel. What about items you could sell to ease the monthly expenses? Don’t forget to contemplate future needs like retirement accounts, college funds, or life insurance.
Day 6 – Set Friendship/Community Goals – Making connections with friends and within our community is important for our mental and emotional stability. We need to remember that these goals are just as important as the ones we have already started setting. Consider ways you’d like to connect with friends you haven’t seen in a while, organizations within the community you’d like to join, or neighbors you’d like to get to know better.
Day 7 – Set Relationship Goals – Today we’ll consider how we can move our relationships in the right direction this year. Contemplate role changes, expert advice needed, counseling opportunities, books to read, discussions to have, or time dedicated to communication.
Day 8 – Set Personal Growth Goals – It’s important to plan for continued growth as a person. When we become stagnant in our personal growth, we become bored or complacent. Consider ways to grow your skills, talents, mindset, attitude, or knowledge.
Day 9 – Set Professional Growth Goals – It’s hard to believe we’re nearly 1/3 of the way through our Get Organized Challenge. I hope this is helping you feel prepared for the year ahead. Today’s focus is on setting our professional goals. Is there a promotion you want to achieve, business goals you have in mind, or skills you want to improve? You might want to consider sales goals, coaching opportunities, or seminars to attend.
Day 10 – Set Physical Goals – This goal must be one of the top resolutions made each year. I think almost everyone thinks about losing some weight after all the delicious food we’ve eaten over the holidays. Think about goals surrounding exercise, meal prep, flexibility, pain control, etc.
Day 11 – Set Spiritual Goals – What kinds of spiritual goals do you like to consider for your life? Some like to consider prayer time, Bible reading, journaling, meditating, other Christian books, fasting, etc.
Day 12 – Set Home Organization Goals – Who doesn’t need to set goals in this area of life? I find by the time I finish going through the house, I’m ready to start back at the beginning again. If you plan to move in the year ahead, you might need to set more aggressive goals. Do you want to plan a garage sale when you’re done downsizing or simply donate items to a local thrift store?
Day 13 – Create a Vision Board – It’s time to have some fun today and create a vision board for inspiration on all the goals you’ve set for the year. Find some old magazines, newspapers, or junk mail and cut out phrases and pictures that inspire you. Use all the goals you’ve set for the year as a starting point.
Day 14 – Select Calendars for the Year – Today is the day to finalize what kind of calendar you plan to use for the year. You could go with the old reliable printed calendar (many businesses give these out for free), day planners, desk-size calendars, or online calendars (like Google or Microsoft).
Day 15 – Add Birthdays/Anniversaries to the Calendar – For many years, we have been sending family birthday cards/letters to let our loved ones know we are thinking about them. Very few people send real mail anymore! In previous years, we have designed our own yearly letter for birthdays and anniversaries. Think of ways to wish people “Happy Birthday” or “Happy Anniversary” this year. Get more creative than sending a simple message through Facebook.
Day 16 – Select a To-Do List Format – We’re halfway through our Get Organized Challenge. We’ve been busy setting our goals, but now we want to create an action plan to accomplish those goals. For today, take time to consider how you will manage your To-Do List. Some like the standard paper lists, but at times, the list may become one longstanding list with nothing really getting done. Microsoft has a To-Do list that can be broken down into different categories. You could create lists for each of the goals you set. I prefer to use the Google Calendar and then create specific tasks to be accomplished each and every day. What way will you plan to organize your to-do’s that we’ll be creating over the next several days?
Day 17 – Select Books to Read – As an author, I do more reading than I do writing. I try to read books from different genres at all times. I also like to support local authors. As you consider books to read, think about the goals you’ve previously set for personal growth, professional growth, relationships, and also an area we haven’t covered yet – self-care (in other words, fun books!)
Day 18 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Family Goals – Today we’re going to create specific To-Do’s for the Family Goals we set. Break the goals down into the smallest steps possible and then assign them due dates. Try not to overwhelm yourself by setting To-Do’s that will require several days or hours to complete. Simply make one phone call, plan one part of an event, or organize one stack of family photos.
Day 19 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Financial Goals – Today we’re ready to get specific about our financial goals. Determine amounts to set aside each week towards savings or purchases to be made. Are there meetings to schedule with a loan officer or future financial planner? Get them all on your schedule and set specific due dates for all of them.
Day 20 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Friendship/Community Goals – Let’s work on creating specific To-Do’s for our friendship/community goals today. We should consider signing up for a community organization, scheduling a get-together for friends, or volunteering for events in the community.
Day 21 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Relationship Goals – Let’s get set to add specific To-Do’s for creating better relationships this year. Then add due dates for each specific To-Do you create. One easy thing you can do right now, or get it on your To-Do list, is to sign up for my weekly Relationship Pit Stop email.
Day 22 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Personal Growth Goals – When we fail to plan growth in our personal lives, we become stagnant. We can push ourselves to learn new skills, gain additional knowledge, or break poor habits. Practice in life skills may not make us perfect, but it will result in progress.
Day 23 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Professional Growth Goals – Let’s get busy contemplating specific action steps to grow professionally this year. Consider steps like researching seminars, conferences, etc. to learn and grow. Also, consider job promotions and what you can do to solidify that by the end of the year. How about hiring a coach in your professional field?
Day 24 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Physical Goals – Today we’ll work on getting specific about our physical goals. We may want to consider meal planning/prep, specific days to go to the gym, amount of steps to get in during the day, etc.
Day 25 – Create Specific To-Do’s to reach your Spiritual Goals – Today, let’s add specific To-Do’s in our calendar relating to our spiritual goals. Do you want to set aside time each day for Bible study, meditation, or prayer? Consider Bible Studies you want to complete this year, books to challenge your faith, or church groups you want to lead or join.
Day 26 – Create Specific To-Do’s to Celebrate Birthdays/Anniversaries – Let’s get into the details of planning some special recognition or parties for birthdays and anniversaries this year. Do you need to purchase cards and stamps? BTW, the post office has really neat birthday stamps. Do you need to reserve a table at a restaurant? Do you need to plan a special birthday or anniversary party for someone in the family?
Day 27 – Create Specific To-Do’s to Read Your Book List – I absolutely love reading! I currently have a stack of 6 different books sitting in front of me that I am in the midst of reading. My main plan is to have books from different genres that I am reading at a given time – devotionals, Bible studies, fiction, non-fiction, expanding knowledge, self-growth, etc. Many people enjoy being a part of book clubs.
Day 28 – Create Specific To-Do’s to Help Others – Over this past month, we’ve put in a lot of time planning to get our life organized. Today, it’s time to think about others. How will you plan to invest in the lives of others this year? Make specific plans and get action steps on your To-Do list.
Day 29 – Create Specific To-Do’s for Self-Care – Over this past month, we’ve put in a lot of time planning to get our life organized. Today, it’s time to think about others. How will you plan to invest in the lives of others this year? Make specific plans and get action steps on your To-Do list.
Day 30 – Celebrate and Get to Work – It’s time to celebrate! If you participated in this month’s challenge, you should be ready to make this year successful because you are prepared. Now, get busy working on your list and creating a productive life!