The Monthly Routine That Will Reset Your Life

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Last Updated on September 20, 2023

Looking for the best monthly routine to finally get your month in check? Here’s a 12-step guide to hitting the “reset” button on your productivity and organization!

Routine tasks that aren’t frequently necessary can easily fall by the wayside if you don’t have a monthly routine laid out. 

It’s like how we save the most thorough cleaning for “spring cleaning” time, and usually that consists of all the things we’ve been putting off because we don’t remember to do them on a monthly basis!

But creating a monthly reset for yourself will keep your life on track and instill regular habits in your routine. 

If you want to feel refreshed each month and hit the “reset” button on your life and organization habits, here’s some ideas for creating a monthly routine that you didn’t even know you needed!

What is a monthly reset routine?

Think of a monthly reset routine like a little ritual to start the 1st of the month on the right track. This sets the stage for the rest of your month, and you’ll be feeling super organized by doing so!

Your monthly routine can be the chance to reflect on the previous month, set new monthly goals, and take care of big monthly tasks. It’s all about being intentional with your month, so that you can make each one better than the last!

Monthly Routine Examples

Your monthly routine can look like tackling a little of everything in your life, or it can be more narrowly focused on getting one area of your life in order. If you choose to focus on one goal at a time each month, here are some examples you can try!

1. Reflection and Goal Setting Routine

Use the 1st of the month to think about all things goals! Personal goals, professional goals, relationship goals…anything you could use a check-in on. You can try monthly tasks like these:

• Reflect on last month’s highs and lows. What challenges did you face and what did you achieve?
• Set new goals! Think about where you want your career to go, what things will make you feel fulfilled, or anything else you care about working on.
• Create an action plan where you map out the corresponding habits you’ll need to add into your routine to reach your goals.

2. Self Care and Wellness Routine

If you’ve been in go-go-go mode the past month, maybe this month you need to make a change to prevent yourself from burning out. This is SO crucial, considering nearly 3 in 5 employees are significantly impacted by work-related stress. You can try…

• Scheduling all your health appointments. Annual check-ups, specialist appointments, therapy, psychiatry…everything you need!
• Plan out some new self care hobbies to try. If you want ideas, you’ve gotta check out my ultimate list of self care hobbies to help you choose!
• Plan a workout regimen for the month. Name specific activities, muscle groups to focus on, cardio vs. weightlifting, etc.

3. Home Organization Routine

We all know how that household clutter just endlessly piles up! Let’s nip that in the bud this month by using your monthly routine to…

• Deep clean all areas of your house. Declutter everything you can possibly think of! Just take it room by room.
• Do an “audit” of your closet. Toss out things you haven’t worn in a year, or that don’t fit!
• Schedule any needed maintenance and take an inventory of things that need replacing. Lightbulbs, batteries, air filters, etc.

4. Money Management Routine

Managing your finances is important in more ways than one. The obvious is building good financial habits, but our financial wellness can even play a big role in our mental wellness!

In a survey, 86% of people reported that their financial situation made their mental health worse. Take your finances seriously by doing things like…

• Tracking last month’s expenses and setting a new budget.
• Monthly investing in your retirement funds, or any other funds you may have.
• Updating any savings goals you have for the month or year.

Why you need a monthly reset routine

We tend to take our activities and obligations day-by-day or week-by-week, but often neglect setting those monthly tasks in place. So big monthly cleanups don’t always happen! But they should. 

Certain tasks can be forgotten about for months. Whether it’s physical or mental clutter, this can add up and make us not feel so great 😕

Benefits of keeping a monthly routine

• Better goal setting – because you’re reflecting on the previous month and seeing how you can improve the next
• Strong organizational habits – a monthly routine is ALL about organization! This will help you build healthy habits.
• Increased productivity – since you’re evaluating what needs to be done and making an action plan for how to do it, you’ll be far more productive
• Opportunity for self care – yes, keeping a monthly routine is a fantastic form of self care! When you do the work to get your life in order, your mental health flourishes

The Best Monthly Routine to Reset Your Life

Wondering “what should I do for a monthly reset?” If you want to tackle a little of everything each month, below is the routine for you. Follow these steps for the best monthly tasks to add to your routine!

Don’t forget about this monthly routine! Pin it to come back later!

How to Create an Effective Monthly Reset Routine

Step 1: Do a brain dump

If you’re unfamiliar with the term “brain dump” it’s where you sit down and write out all the thoughts that come to mind. 

These can be things that are bothering you, things you need to do, upcoming events, everything!

Just let your thoughts flow and write with no restraint. After you’ve done so, you can organize your thoughts into a few different categories, like these:

• Things you can do now (or within the next few days)

• Things you can do this month

• What you can put on hold and let linger on your “master to do list” for a while 

If your mind still goes blank when staring at an empty page, my ultimate brain dump trigger list will get those thoughts flowing!

Step 2: Do a full blown cleaning of everything!

This means having a dedicated day out of the month to catch up on laundry, vacuuming, sweeping, and maybe cleaning things you might normally forget like cleaning the oven, cleaning the microwave, dusting fans, etc.

Basically just a day, once a month, where you can deep clean it all!

Step 3: Organize desks, drawers, files, etc. 

Now that the cleaning is out of the way, it’s time to organize the things you might not always think about!

Things like kitchen drawers, desk drawers, file cabinets, bathroom drawers, supplies under the sink, etc. can go unnoticed.

I know that when I don’t schedule a monthly organization time, I can easily go several months without organizing some of these things! Especially drawers, because those are tucked away so I’m just not thinking about it. 

If drawers are also an issue for you, I recommend getting a drawer organizer like this! Seriously, you’ll wish you had gotten one of these ages ago.

Step 4: Utilize a monthly whiteboard calendar 

Having that visual reminder right on your wall is the perfect way to make sure your monthly routine stays in place!

Personally, I tend to get caught up in the weekly view of my planner more than a monthly calendar. So having a monthly calendar on the wall will help you shift your attention to that monthly routine instead!

And let’s be honest, whiteboard wall calendars are way more enjoyable (AND easier to edit, AND last forever!) compared to a paper wall calendar. 

This glass dry erase calendar by Sugar Paper is the absolute CUTEST! How classy does this look? Imagine how motivating this would be on your wall!

Step 5: Journal to reflect on the past month

This is the BEST way to check in with yourself and see how your life is going. Maybe you’ve gotten back into some bad habits in the past month due to stress. Or maybe this past month was on a high note for you! 

Either way, evaluating the past month will give you the insight you need to make the next month a better one. 

When reflecting on the past month, I recommend journal prompts like:

• What got you excited and why?
• Are you happy with how you spend your free time?
• What do you love about this time in your life?
• Which were your biggest obstacles? 
• What’s something new you learned?
• What was your biggest win?
• How would you like next month to look like? 

Psst…here’s even more self improvement journal prompts you’ll love.

Keep a journal that you turn to EVERY month to reflect on! If you really want to step it up, you can challenge yourself to do weekly or daily check-ins too! But at the minimum, reflecting once a month is a great way to start. 

It can also help to have a journal specific to something you’re trying to achieve, like improving your self care. I actually have a printable Self Care Journal for Busy Women with prompts and activities conveniently bundled for creating the perfect self care plan that’s unique to you!

Don’t wait until you’re on the brink of burnout. Grab it below!

The Self Care Planner You Need for a Routine That Sticks

Life too hectic for self care? Not with The Busy Woman’s Self Care Journal!

Made by a busy woman, for busy women, the goal of this journal is simple: to make an effective self care plan that works for your unique needs. No matter how crazy life gets!

Get step-by-step guidance to create your personalized self care plan by…

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GET THE SELF CARE JOURNAL

Step 6: New month, new books!

A great way to boost your self growth each month is to gather some new reading materials! It’s always nice to get a fresh start with new personal development books, especially. 

A few book recommendations I have to target specific goals…

• Atomic Habits by James Clear – the best, most practical approach to goal setting and habits that I’ve ever tried! If your goal is increased productivity, this one’s for you.
• The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D – this explains all the ins and outs of trauma and what it does to the body and mind. A lot of shocking things can happen that I had no idea about! If you’re working through trauma right now, you need this book.
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson – if you’re a hardcore realist who hates toxic positivity, this is your book! This teaches you how to prioritize the things that really matter and let go of what doesn’t.

Step 7: Clean things you might normally forget about

A GREAT example of this is things like makeup brushes (am I the only one that can go months without cleaning them if I don’t remember to? Oops.) 

If not makeup brushes, there may be other personal items that you don’t clean as often as you should. This also applies to things around the house, like small crevices, or wiping down the inside of cabinets, etc. 

Step 8: Write out monthly goals

Consider new goals in each area of your life. For example, social goals, workout goals, reading goals, business goals, spiritual goals…the list goes on!

Or, if you’re already used to keeping track of your goals (and good for you!) then it’s not a bad idea to revisit what you’ve written down in the past and adjust these goals as needed. Remember, as our priorities change, so can our goals!

If you’re not sure where to start, these New Month Journal Prompts for Goal Setting can literally made for monthly goal setting!

Step 9: Choose ONE area of your life you’d like to improve this month

So, after evaluating those goals in different areas of your life, it might not be practical to accomplish, or even focus, on them all in one month.

To make things more manageable, choose just one area that you would especially like to improve in and let that be the focus this month. 

For example, if you notice you haven’t been socializing as much as you’d like, work on prioritizing your social interactions this month. 

Not sure which area of your life to focus on? Start with your mental health! Talking to an online therapist seriously changed my mental health and it can help you too. I always recommend Online Therapy because it’s a comprehensive, effective online therapy toolkit at an affordable monthly cost. Get 20% off your first month at the link below!

Step 10: Set intentional unproductive days

Set a minimum of THREE days per month where you allow yourself to be completely unproductive on purpose. 

Why? Having this time for yourself will greatly reduce the chance of burnout that you would otherwise be prone to by working hard 24/7. It’s not a flex to have “no off days,” I promise.

Feeling overwhelmed to the point of drowning in everything that you’re doing is never a good feeling. Please make sure you avoid that by taking necessary time off (at least on the weekend) a few times a month!

Step 11: Change the background on your computer and/or phone

Sometimes, it’s the little things that can make the difference in feeling refreshed too! 

I personally like to switch up my computer background for each new season, usually with a summer theme, or a fall theme, etc. But doing this every month might be an even better idea. 

It’s just nice to have something a little different to look at each time you get out your phone or computer!

Step 12: Review your expenses

Haha, I know, the not so fun part of that monthly routine. Nonetheless, it’s important to get an idea of where you’re at with managing your money.

I use a monthly budget spreadsheet to keep track of all my monthly expenses, using categories, so that I can understand where I might be spending too much unnecessary $$$ and adjust my spending habits accordingly the next month. 

I’ve found it to be a big help, so I highly recommend fitting this habit into your monthly routine!

Click to finally create the self care plan that’s personalized to YOU!

What activities should you include in a monthly reset?

Think of a monthly reset like a way to refresh and re-organize your life. If this is your ultimate goal, you should try monthly reset activities like…

• Reflection and review – and not just your monthly goals, but even your short and long-term goals! Those tend to fall by the wayside, but a monthly check-in will keep you on track.
• Goal setting – based on your reflections, choose monthly goals that align with your bigger goals. Break down areas like your personal growth, relationships, career, and mental health into achievable, realistic goals this month!
• Deep cleaning – a deep clean once a month is never a bad idea! Make sure you tend to those pesky areas of your house that you love to avoid.
• Make those appointments – whether it’s doctor’s appointments, therapy, car maintenance, and everything in between…just schedule ’em now. Set them and forget them!
• Opportunities for self care – life gets busy. There’s always those months where we neglect self care more than we should. Use something like a self care planner to create a more effective self care routine you’ll actually stick to!

When should you do a monthly reset?

There’s no one right answer for this, but you can do a monthly reset any time! If you caught this post in the middle of the month, don’t fret.

Whether you choose to do your monthly reset at the start of the month, at the end of the month, or mid-month doesn’t much matter.

HOWEVER, what does matter is that you are consistent and stick to the same time of the month each month! It’s going to be much easier to make your monthly routine a real habit when you’ve established a regular routine.

Base your decision off of how your typical month goes. If the first week of every month is hectic chaos, you’re better off doing your monthly reset later in the month!

Monthly Reset Questions to Ask Yourself

If you’re not sure what the heck to prioritize each month, it helps to ask yourself questions that will guide your monthly routine to where it needs to be.

1. What bothered me the most last month?
2. What do I not want to repeat this month?
3. What worked well last month, and how can I apply it to this month?
4. What are my long-term aspirations, and what goals can I set that align with them?
5. What skills do I want to improve on this month?
6. Where do I want to give more of my focus to?
7. Where should I give less of my focus to?
8. How can I improve my mental health? What habits will get me there?
9. How can I manage my stress better?
10. Am I giving enough attention to my relationships? (Romantic, social, etc.)
11. How can I make spending time with friends or loved ones a priority?
12. Are there any spending habits I have that make me feel stressed or worried?
13. What can I do to improve my financial situation?
14. What can I do to advance my career goals this month?
15. Was productivity a struggle for me last month? Why?
16. How can I maintain a healthy/positive mindset during challenges?
17. What fun activities do I want to add to my life?
18. What hobbies or adventures will I regret not doing?
19. How can I make time to relax in the midst of my busy schedule?

Monthly Reset Goals

Think of goals like the guiding force behind how you want to structure your monthly routine. Here are some examples of goals you can focus on this month!

1. Self Care Goals
   • Add 30 minutes of a relaxing activity every Wednesday
   • Do a weekly hobby that lights me up with passion
   • Set a specific goal for my hours of average screen time (i.e: 4 hours per day)
2. Relationship Goals
   • For friends: Schedule hangouts every Saturday
   • For romantic relationships: Have a designated quality time/date night each week
   • For family: Call your parents to re-cap your week with them every Sunday
3. Productivity Goals
   • Do a 15-minute clean up of something in your house every night before bed
   • Re-evaluate your daily/weekly/monthly planning system (i.e: you’re using Google Calendar, but is that system working well for you?)
   • Set specific target dates for work-related accomplishments

Final Thoughts on Your Monthly Routine

The best part of creating a regular monthly routine is that you can truly feel refreshed each month. 

Hitting that “reset” button and catching up on tasks like these will help you start off the month strong and get into a groove of regularly checking in on different areas of your life. 

Changing how you approach a new month by getting organized, planning out goals, and reflecting on the past month while you get ready for the next month are all fantastic ways to reset your life!

FREE Monthly Reset Template

Are you ready to hit the “reset button”? Grab this monthly reset checklist below that will help you take control of the chaos and actually get organized each month! Get it sent straight to your inbox!

Wanna feel refreshed each month? Hit the “reset” button on your life with this checklist for the monthly routine you didn’t even know you needed! Helps you check off monthly tasks crucial to your wellbeing + space to set monthly intentions!

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