Want to Change Your Life? Try a 30 Day Challenge.

Nobody is perfect. Nobody does everything they want to all the time. It’s not possible. What is possible, is to slowly form new habits to make yourself happier and get closer to your dreams. One of the best way’s I’ve tried to form a new habit is a 30 day challenge. For 30 days you commit to something that gets you closer to your goal. I’ve done a number of these and I almost always continue the new habit after those first 30 days. Even in the situations where I didn’t, those 30 days did bring a new perspective to my life which was long lasting.

So why 30 days? 30 days is long enough to establish your routine but also short enough to seem manageable. We can do almost anything for 30 days and once we realize how easy those 30 days were, it’s much easier to continue our new routine for longer. One warning I will give is to not overload yourself. Trying ONE new habit/routine for 30 days is do-able. Trying more than one is not recommended. If you overload yourself the habits will be harder to keep and you will most likely not be able to make it all the way through the 30 days. Don’t set yourself up for failure. One thing at a time is the way to go as Leo Babauta of zenhabits recommends.

Here are a bunch of 30 day challenges that could be worthwhile in anybody’s life and create positive change.

Try it! Pick one and do it once a day for the next 30 days. See what happens!

A 30 Day Challenge to Change Your Life

1. Exercise.
2. De-clutter 1 item.
3. Get 8 hours of sleep.
4. Don’t spend money on anything not a necessity.
5. Floss.
6. Don’t drink alcohol.
7. Don’t eat fast food.
8. Eat something good for you (1+ veggies).
9. Don’t eat something bad for you (junk food?).
10. Eat all the leftovers.
11. Don’t let food go bad.
12. Meditate.
13. Remove negative influences (don’t listen, watch, or read anything negative).
14. Social media hiatus (no Facebook, Instagram, Twitter).
15. Smile.
16. List 3 things you are grateful for.
17. Write for pleasure 1 hour.
18. Read for pleasure 1 hour.
19. Do nothing for 1 hour (Sometimes we are at our most creative with planned downtime).
20. Set aside 1 hour a day to do you favorite hobby.
21. Take a walk.
22. Dance.
23. Play.
24. Talk to a friend (in person, via email, via social media, over the phone).
25. Write down 5 ideas.
26. Wake up early.
27. Laugh.
28. Learn something new.
29. Don’t complain.
30. Meal plan.
31. Bring your own lunch.
32. Start the day with a glass of water.
33. Start the day with a smile.
34. Tell someone you love them.
35. Track your spending (save every receipt and write everything down).
36. Track you sugar intake.
37. Help someone.
38. Teach someone.
39. Listen compassionately.
40. Tidy the house before going to bed.
41. Take the stairs.
42. Park at the far end of the parking lot.
43. Set the thermostat a few degrees higher or lower (to save money).
44. Take a picture of nature’s beauty.
45. Organize for 15 minutes
46. Work on your dream project for an hour.
47. Stop smoking.
48. Get outside and into nature .
49. Zero waste (try to produce as little waste as possible).
50. Read an affirmation.
51. Listen to an uplifting podcast.
52. Do a detox diet to cleanse your body.
53. Write in a journal.
54. Watch every sunrise.
55. Watch every sunset.
56. Take a few minutes to watch the stars in the night sky.
57. Leave 5 minutes early.
58. Go to bed early.
59. Sit in quiet for 5 minutes.
60. No caffeine.
61. Be kind to yourself.

Have you ever done a 30 day challenge? What was it? Did it work? Can you think of any others to add to the list?