I Can Do Anything for a Month... Maybe.

I am a little obsessed with personal growth, life improvement, all things moving me toward being a better person and living a better life. I've only got maybe 80 years here on earth, and I would like to make the most of it. The trouble is that it's just difficult becoming a better person. I've got lots of habits that are hard to kick. Nothing really terrible or criminal or any worse than the next guy, but lots of things that keep me at a mediocre level in many areas of my life.

I have discovered that I can get momentum up for a while but then I just wimp out.

I need to build up more self-discipline. It is a long, slow process, but I am determined to keep trying and keep pushing because I am simply not satisfied with mediocrity. So. I read about this idea of a monthly challenge, and I think it is worth trying.

The concept is simple: try something for a month.

There are two basic kinds of monthly challenges, same concept but slightly different vision. The first promotes a habit. The 30-Day Challenge at Steve Pavlina's site is a good example. This type of monthly challenge gets you to put forward enough energy for the 30 days you've committed to. You trick yourself - "it's only for 30 days" - but after those 30 days it has become a habit and you can continue it, if so desired, with much less effort.

The second kind of monthly challenge promotes a project

. NaNoWriMo is, perhaps, the best-known of these challenges. The point is to put forward as much energy as possible to complete a (large) project in 30 days. The goal is completion, not perfection. You can let other things slide a bit in order to complete the project; you can always go back and work on the details later. The month of intense effort gets you through the project without a chance to lose momentum.

The monthly challenge possibilities are endless.

Whatever habit you need to establish or break is fair game. (It is easier to make a new habit than break an old one, though, so I suggest teaching yourself a new habit that will usurp the old one rather than focusing on not doing something anymore.) Monthly challenges work well because they give us a light at the end of the self-disciplined tunnel. You can endure almost anything for a certain amount of time. Telling yourself "it's only for 30 days, and then I can quit," helps you to keep moving forward on the intimidating project you need to face or the new, perhaps difficult, habit you need to establish. The beauty of the monthly challenge is what you have actually accomplished at the end of it. You have reached the 30-day goal; you are free to quit; but you find that you've completed the project, or established the habit, and now that beastie isn't staring at you from the dark corners of your closet while you try to sleep. It's been tamed.

My Monthly Challenge Muscle-Flexing Plan

So this is my plan for building self-discipline in my life: take on a different challenge every month

for the rest of this brand-new year of 2008. I did miss January, yes, but I still have 11 months left. 11 Challenges. 11 Chances to Exercise Self-Discipline until I am the Self-Disciplined Life-Improving Personally Growing Muscled Equivalent of Arnold Schwarzenegger. (And maybe I'll go into politics then, since Arnold did...)

I know what my first challenge for February will be: To Stick to a Morning Routine. This is not very exciting and not nearly as interesting as a lot of other Monthly Challenge Possibilities (see a list below), but I think it is key to making a whole lot of other (good) things happen consistently in my life. I am so tired of that run around, always behind, totally dragging and wondering what I've accomplished at the end of the day feeling. You know the one I mean? Perhaps you want to take on a Monthly Challenge with me. (Anyone? Hello?) I'd love to have some company, and I think we all have areas that could use some improvement.

The Rules of the Game

I had better put a few guidelines in place for myself. I am trusting that the public accountability of a Hub will be motivational for me. I will be reporting in regularly on my progress, or lack thereof. Perhaps I should offer some kind of prize to a random commenter if I fail: further motivation.

Monthly Challenges (in general):

Begin on the 1st of the month and conclude on the last day of the same month.

Must be accomplished every single day of the month unless the specific month's challenge is stated otherwise at the outset.

Previous Challenges

The Get Up Early Challenge: From Feb. 1st to Feb 28th, I challenged myself get up at the same time every morning (5 am) and establish a morning routine. Overall, a successful challenge. I got up at 5 today and wasn't even sleepy!

The Life Without a To Do List Challenge: From March 1st to March 26th, I challenged myself to live without making a to do list everyday. Any day. Successful in that I didn't make a daily to-do list, unsuccessful in that it wasn't a change I wanted to incorporate permanently, so I called it over on March 26th. It was an interesting experience and has definitely helped me be less obsessive about lists and more balanced about how much I put on them. I am relieved to be able to have one now!

And Next.... April begins tomorrow. I haven't decided on a Monthly Challenge for this beautiful, wet, Spring month yet. Let's review the possibilities:

Monthly Challenge Possibilities

1. Exercise daily.
2. Cook something new.
3. Eat a healthy breakfast.
4. Talk to a stranger.
5. Be bold and confrontational (not in a rude way).
6. Spend time outside.
7. Work in the garden.
8. Spend time training Mara.
9. Go for a walk.
10. Drink 3 liters of water.
11. Go to bed at the same time.
12. Buy only consumables.
13. Go to no mass merchants.
14. Write a song.
15. Write a poem.
16. Memorize a poem or passage.
17. Listen to music for 20 minutes (while doing nothing else).
18. Bake.
19. Eat a salad.
20. Help someone.
21. Give something away.
22. Encourage someone.
23. Write a letter.
24. Write 1000 words in my novel.
25. Drink green tea instead of coffee.
26. Sew something.
27. Fix something around the house.
28. Organize.
29. Write a review (book, music, movie).
30. Read 20 pages.
31. Eat fruit before each meal.
32. Submit an article.
33. ... Okay, I'm out of ideas. Have any more?

What habit could you form this month? What project could you dedicate extra time and energy to for a mere 30 days? Perhaps you could form a habit this month that would help you complete a project next month. Take a challenge, even if it is just a small one. It's a great way to build up self-discipline, gain momentum, and reach a goal that might have seemed unreachable.

More:

A cooking monthly challenge blog. "Every month has a different "theme" to cook from and recipes, pictures, and reviews are then shared with the other contributors. We are cooks of all abilities and are located all over the world."

A 30-Day Challenge Training Program (free) to help you start a business online. (I haven't done any of the program, so I don't know if it's good or not. Might be worth checking into.)

A 30-Day S*x Challenge (it's okay! it's for married couples! I promise!) from Relevant Church. Here's an article about it.

Steve Pavlina's 30 Days to Success article (my original inspiration).