Life Improvement Challenge

As I mentioned earlier, I am doing a little experiment to improve myself and change my life a little. This is the Life Improvement Challenge. It's a list of 60 ways to change different aspects of your life in 100 days. I didn't come up with this, although I did add a few of my own ideas to make it my own. I found this list on lifehack.org. It's a long one, so here we go!

     Home

1. Create a clutter calander for 100 days, listing one item a day that needs to be organized and decluttered.
   ex. Day 1: magazines, Day 2: DVD's, Day 3: Books.... you get the picture.

2. Live by the montra, "A place for everything, and everything in it's place."
            4 rules to keep order:
                1. If you take it out, put it back.
                2. If you open it, close it.
                3. If you throw it down, pick it up.
                4. If you take it off, hang it up.

3. Fix one thing you tolerate a day.
    ex. That avalanche of plastic storage containers that burries you everytime you open the cupboard.

    Happiness

4. Write 5 to 10 things you are grateful for everyday.

5. Read scriptures 20 min a day, each day. (I am LDS so I added this one in)

6. Keep a journal of mental clatter. Both positive and negative thoughts. Note the emotions that follow these thoughts as well. Some helpful questions to get started:
              - How many times do you beat yourself up during the day?
              - Do you feel inadequate?
              - Are you constantly thinking critically of others?
              - How many positive thoughts do you have a day?

7. Have a good laugh at least once a day.

    Learning and Personal Development

8. Choose a good book to read each week.

9. Learn one new thing a day. (a new word, interesting fact, or a new skill)

10. Stop complaining for 100 days. We have enough negative people in the world.

11. Set your alarm 1 minute earlier than the previous day everyday.

12. Complete a craft at least once a week, or try to work on a big one once a day until it's done.
          (So I have way too much pinned on pinterest. I'm addicted to pinning. I think there's a recovery program for it... but I don't really look at anything I pin. So if you are a fellow pinner like myself, I challenge you to pick one craft pin a week, and actually use the wonderful things you've pinned!)

13. Speak, act, and think like the person you want to be. And no that doesn't mean like someone else, I mean the better you.

    Finances

14. Create a weekly budget for each month, and then break it down into weeks. Include: gas, food, rent, utilities, recreational, and emergency spending.

15. Along with a regular budget, keep one for groceries each week as well. Save all of your reciepts! (I will post my monthly reciept box I made to keep them all in one place. At the end of the month, I add up the reciepts, and file them according to month in our finance folder.)

16. Research frugalty tips (or in other words pin a lot of budget crap from pinterest).  I personally want to get into couponing hard core. So for my personal list, I added that I want to research coupon sites, and start a couponing folder.

17. Pay with cash whenever possible and save the change for a big trip at the end of the year. (This is how we paid for some of our honeymoon!)

18. Don't buy anything you absolutely DO NOT need. If you think you cannot survive without it, wait at least 48 hours before purchasing it.

   Time Management

19. Record to do lists, appointment dates, and any other tasks you have to do in a day so they are out of mind. Organize and complete them by priority.

20. Track how you spend time for 5 days. Use that to create a time budget for the next 95 days.
      Include: Transportation, (homework), leisure time, work, cleaning, and etc.

21. Identify one low-priority activity that you can stop doing for 100 days. Devote that time to something more important/usesful.

22. Identify 5 time wasters, and limit time for each to maybe 30 minutes a day. Such as, facebook and pinterest.

23. Don't multitask. Accomplish one thing at a time to prevent feeling overwhelmed.

24. Plan each day the night before. Complete the most important tasks that day first.

25. Make a list of obligations. Cross out anything that doesn't help bring you closer to your goals or doesn't bring you joy.

26. (for students like me) Stick to a daily study schedule around the same time everyday.

27. Review your week. What was accomplished? What went wrong? How can you fix it and do better this week?

     Health

28. Keep track of your calorie intake for the first 7 days, then reduce that intake by 175 calories for the next 93 days.

29. Eat 5 servings of vegetables, and 3 servings of fruit a day.

30. Choose one food that sabotages your efforts to eat healthy, and go cold turkey for the next 100 days. Blast you ice-cream!

31. Buy only 100% fruit juice.

32. Drink more water throughout the day. (Tip: set an alarm for once an hour to remind you to drink some water)

33. Make a list of 10 healthy, easy to make breakfasts, and 20 meals for lunch and dinner.

34. Make a list of 10 healthy snacks to enjoy each week.

35. Plan your meals a week in advance. My husband and I started doing this, and trust me, it is a huge time/stress saver! (Bonus: this also helps you stay in your weekly grocery budget)

36. Keep a food log to track what you eat outside of your meal plan, letting you keep track of extra calories you may be consuming without even realizing it.

37. Exercise for at leat 20 minutes everyday for the next 100 days.

38. Make a weight chart to track your weight, body fat %, and waist circumference for 14 weeks.

39. Make a daily ritual to meditate and breath for 30 minutes a day. This will calm and clear your mind.

     Love/Relationships

40. Write down one positive trait you see in them a day.

41. Make a scrapbook of your relationship from beginning to present, and write the positive traits you've found in the scrapbook pages. (the other list said to keep a scrapbook of the next 100 days with them and give them the book at the end of the 100 days)

42. Be the first to say "I love you" every morning. Hug them as soon as they come home from school or work. Go on a 20 minute walk after dinner each night. (Make sure you hold hands!)

43. Leave happy, uplifting notes for them everyday.

44. Avoid negative name calling for the next 100 days. Whenever you are about to say something negative, replace it with something positive. I am terrible for this. I make fun of my hubby a lot, but I don't try to be mean, just playful. But words hurt, so I am going to work on this one for sure!

    Social

45. Connect with someone new everyday,  reconnect with someone you haven't spoken to in a while, or contact close friends at least once a week.

46. Associate with people you admire, respect, and enjoy yourself with.

47. When someone does/says something that upsets you, think it over for 1 minute before responding.

48. Do one kind deed for someone else a day.

49. Give praise/approval when someone deserves it.

50. Practice being a good listener. Don't interrupt.

51. For the next 100 days, stay in your own life. Don't compare yourself to anyone else.

      Develope Creativity and Career Habits

52. Do at least one unassigned task at work each time you are there.

53. Make a list of positive things about your job. Read it everyday before you go to work. I hate my job so I added this one in to maybe ease the burden a little.

54. Start a blog. Share opinions, achievements, and crafts you've completed. Ok, ok this is the real reason I decided to try this blogging thing out again. Sue me. ;)

55. (For me) Paint/sketch something new at least once a month.

56. Try at least one new recipe a week.

57. Make something special for each loved one for Christmas.

58. Try new hairstyles or makeup tricks to find what makes you feel most confident.

59. Develope your own personal style. Yes I do wish my pinterest closet was real, but I guess I will have to work with what I've got.

60. Take pride in your personal appearance for an additional confidence booster. Make an effort to look well everyday. Get dressed as soon as you are up, and leave the pjs alone until night time.


Well there you have it! It's a long one, and I really hope I don't slack on it, but I will try my best. Good luck if you decide to take up the challenge as well! :)