“If you aren’t in over your head, how do you know how tall you are?”

T.S. Eliot

Committing to a 30-day challenge means that you will be doing something every day for 30 straight days. The commitment can be scary and many people say no to this type of thing straight away. Others start but don’t finish. A small group, however, accepts the challenge and comes out on day 31 all the wiser. Let that be you.

Find Your Challenge

Think about what needs improvement in your life. What would you like to get better at? What is it that you’d like to practice for 30 days? Create a short list of some ideas and start researching online to see if there are any challenges within these areas. 

For instance, if you want to workout more regularly I’m guessing there are a ton of readily available 30-day workout challenges online. However, if your goal is a little more obscure, such as improving your basket weaving skills, you may have to create your own 30 day challenge.

Almost every activity that you’re looking into will have an online community. You may be able to get help if you want some other ideas or participants for your challenge. Finding a community through this time will not only help you during the challenge, but it will help you long term as well. 

Jump In

Whatever you do, don’t wait to start. Jump right into the challenge. It’s inevitable that you will be pushed out of your comfort zone during your 30 days, that’s precisely why it’s called a challenge. So why wait? Force yourself out of your comfort zone straight away. 

Leap. Make today day 1. 

You might have one, fifteen, or a hundred reasons why today won’t work, but that is all hogwash. Well, I don’t know your situation so it might not be hogwash. But the point is don’t put off starting. It’s the most important part. Do whatever you can to make it happen as soon as possible. 

Focus on Growth

Remember, this is a challenge. The idea is to force yourself to do something daily that normally you wouldn’t do. Things might not go quite as you expect and that’s wonderful. You should be surprised along the way. You should learn. 

Too many times perfection prevents people from growth. To grow, we have to accept failure and understand it as part of the betterment process. Expect to fail on this 30-day journey, and don’t let it get in the way of good momentum. The key here is to rewire your brain to think of failure as opportunity for growth. If you can embrace that mindset, then you will be primed to getting the most of your 30 day challenge.

Be a Machine

Ok, let’s pretend you lose motivation at some point. I know, I know, it probably won’t happen, but we should… What am I saying?!? It’s going to happen for sure! It might happen as early as day 1.5. Maybe you’ve lost motivation already and you haven’t even started! 

Ask yourself this: Does a furnace need motivation to heat a house? Machines are some of the most productive things in the world and they do not have motivation. You don’t need motivation to do something challenging every day. You simply need to do it. 

Ignore how you feel. Carve out some time to do your thing each day and move on. If you only have five minutes to spare, find a way to get your thing done in five minutes. If you want to succeed at a 30 day challenge, then you must do something for 30 straight days. Period. 

You must be a machine.

Celebrate

Each day after you do your thing, take a moment to congratulate yourself. It’s done. You did it. You may feel great about your accomplishment, or maybe you don’t. It doesn’t matter. Again, ignore how you feel. Ok, maybe you shouldn’t ignore your feelings, but don’t let them distract you from your goal, which is to do something for 30 straight days. Every day you do it, that’s reason to celebrate.

And of course you’ll celebrate when you’re done! When you reach day 30 and you finish the challenge, you’re guaranteed to feel accomplished. Reward yourself. You did it. You will reap the benefits for weeks to come as you slowly process your journey. 

Good Luck!

I wish you nothing but good fortune on your 30-day challenge. Personally, challenges such as this make me excited. I’m excited even by the thought of you taking on a 30 day challenge. Good luck, and don’t forget to enjoy the journey, because a journey is what you’ve signed up for.