Effective 30-Day Productivity Challenge (+ Printable)

Have you fallen into a slump and your productivity has taken a hit? Maybe your time management is lacking or you have become disorganized. No worries, it happens to us all! This 30-day productivity challenge is the perfect way for you to get back on track!

(Don’t forget to claim your 30-day productivity challenge pdf checklist printable at the end of this post!)

It can be extremely difficult to stay productive ALL the time. In fact, it’s really not realistic to expect that of ourselves.

But the problem occurs when you fall into the habit of being unproductive day after day. It’s happened to me many times. Often, it’s a sign of burnout and feeling overworked.

With a little self-care, rest, and a good 30-day productivity challenge reboot, you can be back on your feet in no time.

Let’s walk through this 30-day challenge for productivity together. (Stay till the end to grab your 30-day productivity challenge printable PDF checklist!)

Ultimate 30-Day Productivity Challenge

This challenge is all about balance. As you probably know, too much of anything is not sustainable. Throughout this productivity challenge, you’ll notice a few days dedicated to self-care, mental health, or physical health.

Believe it or not, rest is a key part of productivity. Those days are what set this challenge apart and make it incredibly realistic and sustainable.

Day 1: Set Fresh Goals

If you are starting this month-long productivity challenge, you are going to want to set some goals for the month.

What are you hoping to accomplish in these 30 days? Is there anything specific you want to get done during this challenge? Do you want to feel a certain way when it is complete? WHY are you starting this challenge in the first place?

These are all questions to ask yourself when first starting this productivity challenge.

If you don’t have a really strong “why”, you are less likely to succeed. Setting goals at the start can help keep you motivated and dedicated, even if the challenge starts to feel tough.

Goals are a great reminder of why you started in the first place. Often, that’s enough to keep you going when you feel like quitting!

Day 2: Get 8+ Hours of Sleep

Whether you sleep in or get to bed earlier is up to you. What matters here is that you are getting ENOUGH sleep to function optimally.

Most productivity challenges that I see promote waking up earlier. Even I have promoted this (see my 5 am morning routine). But, in reality, that is not always the best choice.

Studies have found that waking up earlier does not necessarily make you more productive. There can be benefits to waking up earlier (fewer distractions, more daylight work time, etc.), but if you are sacrificing sleep to do so, the effects will be counterproductive. This is highly personal and comes down to your genes and personal circadian rhythm.

That said, getting enough sleep is beneficial for everyone. You will be more energized, think clearer, and will be healthier – mentally and physically. Regardless of if you are a morning or night person, getting enough sleep is the ultimate goal. Plan accordingly.

Day 3: Change Your Sheets

While we’re on the topic of sleep, having fresh sheets can actually help you sleep better, stay healthier, and just plain feel good. Nothing beats getting into a cozy bed with clean, fresh sheets at night.

Get up, go strip the bed, change the sheets, and consider this day of the productivity challenge complete. You’ll thank yourself later.

Day 4: Go for an Outdoor Walk

Getting outside and moving your body is one of the best things you can do for your health, mental clarity, and productivity. Try adding in an outdoor walk before work, on your lunch break, or whenever you have some time during the day.

I love to listen to motivating Podcasts or relaxing music to get the most out of my walks. I find that my walks are a time to tend to my physical and mental health. When I come back, I am always more focused, motivated, and energized.

If you are lacking motivation or feel your productivity dropping, try stepping away from the work for a moment. Get outside instead. A walk break may be the most productive thing for you.

Day 5: Clean Out Your Fridge

Fridge clean-out day!

This is one of my favorite days of this 30-day productivity challenge. Something about a clean fridge just feels so good.

I’ve made a habit of doing a deep fridge cleanout at least once a month (I try to do it every other week).

To be honest, fridges get nasty. Crumbs fall, glasses leave rings, things mold and expire, leftovers go bad. It’s important to stay on top of all of this.

If you don’t do this often, this first fridge cleanout may take you a while as you check expiration dates and scrub away stains. But, as time goes on, if you stay on top of this and make it part of your cleaning routine, it will only take 30 minutes or so.

An organized fridge not only looks nice, but it also allows you to remember what you have, prevent food from going bad (and wasting money), and stay healthier. As part of my fridge refresh, I make sure all my fruits and veggies are clean and ready to go for healthy snacks.

It may seem like a big task to tackle, but it really isn’t as daunting as it seems! Go start now as day 5 of this productivity challenge!

Day 6: Do Your Laundry

Does anyone else’s laundry basket start piling up and, before you know it, it’s overflowing onto the floor? It happens fast, I know.

Take today of this productivity challenge to tackle that. Start right now. Go sort your laundry and start getting some loads washing.

Once those loads are done, don’t you dare procrastinate folding it all and putting it away! It’s tempting, but it just causes more stress later on. Push through now so you don’t have to think about it anymore.

Don’t feel like you have to tackle ALL the laundry in the house today. For now, we are focusing just on your clothes. Household items can come at a different time. The key to this 30-day productivity challenge is to space these tasks out so we don’t take on too much at once.

So for day 6, go wash those clothes… and dry, fold, and put them away 😉

Day 7: Go Grocery Shopping (with a List)

Grocery day!

You just cleaned out your fridge on day 5, so now let’s fill it.

But don’t you go crazy in the Walmart aisles. We’re going to have a plan when we tackle these groceries.

Take some time today to do a quick inventory of your kitchen. Know what you have and what needs to be replenished. If you notice you need something, add it to your shopping list for your grocery run.

I try to organize my grocery list by category so I can work my way through the store sequentially. If I don’t organize it, I’m running around like crazy.

Bread to produce to the freezer to dairy and – oops! – back to produce.

This is my favorite organized grocery list:

It’s cute, customizable, and super user-friendly.

But you can also put in some extra effort and make your own in your own notebook. This is up to you. The important thing is that you are going in with a list! This helps you save money and prevent mindless shelf shopping.

If you need some grocery inspiration for your next grocery shop, feel free to check out my healthy and balanced grocery list that I shop with nearly every time.

Day 8: Have a No Phone Day

At LEAST during the workday, try putting your phone away today. Avoid all non-essential phone usage. This means no mindless scrolling, no texting, no online shopping, and no social media when you are supposed to be getting things done.

It’s best to put your phone away from you entirely. Out of sight out of mind. Experiments and studies have found that even just having your phone nearby could influence your thinking – negatively.

If you are looking to be more productive (and since this is a 30-day productivity challenge you’re reading, I’m going to assume that’s true), try putting your phone in another room while you work. That way, the temptation is gone and you can focus on what you need to be doing instead.

Day 9: Budget Plan

Let’s talk about money!

Budgeting is an essential part of most adults’ lives. As a 20-something myself, I know that a budget plan is a must-have for me.

I took inspiration from one of my favorite bloggers (BySophiaLee) and her monthly budget spreadsheet.

During the huge life transition from teen/student to adult, money was by far the most overwhelming aspect.

How much do I need? What should I be saving? How much can I freely spend? Numbers, numbers, numbers.

A budget planner helps you work out ALL of this so you can feel more confident in your finances. This applies to older adults too! Even if you’re not in your 20s like I’m talking about, a budget planner is useful for nearly everybody.

It’s just plain smart to plan your finances. Let’s leave it at that.

Day 10: Meal Plan

Yesterday we were planning money, now we’re planning FOOD. (This day seems a bit more fun to me 😉 )

I LOVE to meal plan. I don’t know if it’s just because I’m a huge foodie or what, but meal planning is genuinely FUN to me.

I’m not overly strict with meal planning. For example, I don’t hold myself to a super tight meal plan schedule if something else sounds good.

Basically, I meal plan to get a general idea of what I am going to eat for the week so I can shop and prep accordingly.

For example, if I know I want to have turkey tacos for dinner on Taco Tuesday, I am going to buy ground turkey during my grocery run for the week. I also know that I need to pull the ground turkey out of the freezer to thaw mid-day on Tuesday.

Developing a flexible and adjustable meal plan is one of the best ways I’ve found to stay organized, healthy, and prepared – plus it eliminates the dreaded “what should I make for dinner?” question after a long day of work.

Grab my free meal planner printables here!

Day 11: Go Through Your Closet

Chances are good that your closet is currently holding some things that you no longer wear, use, or need. It’s time to fix that.

Cleaning out your closest can be a daunting task. It really feels like a ton of work, I know. That’s why I made it its own day of this 30-day productivity challenge. That way you can focus on solely that for today’s task.

When going through your closet, take time to ask yourself if you really want/need/use the items inside. When I am going through my clothing specifically, there are a few questions I always ask myself:

These 7 questions are routine for when I am clearing out my closet. They really help get to the heart of whether or not you should keep something around.

Additionally, since I am a huge fan of selling on Poshmark, I ask myself if I would rather have the item or the money I can make from the item? More often than not, if I’m on the fence, I’d rather have the money. That’s how I know it’s time to boot it from my closet and list it on Poshmark.

For my top tips on how I’ve made over $1,000 selling in just a few months, check out my post on how to actually make money selling on Poshmark.

Day 12: Clean Your Shower

This is another task that, if you’re anything like me, can feel pretty daunting. Cleaning the shower is something I procrastinate on but, to be honest, it’s just something that has to be done.

It’s not fun but it’s necessary.

With that, for today’s task in the productivity challenge, you should take some time to clean your shower. Scrub the floors and the walls, discard any empty bottles, organize the products, etc.

Having the proper shower cleaning tools helps the process go easier and quicker. Make sure you have all the necessary shower cleaning supplies you need.

A freshly cleaned shower feels so great once it’s done, so get in there and do it!

Day 13: Wash Your Bath Towels

While we’re working in the bathrooms, a freshly cleaned shower calls for some fresh towels too!

We have already tackled your clothing laundry in this 30-day productivity challenge, now it’s time to tackle some household laundry.

Hand towels, bath towels, face towels, washcloths, etc. – I do them all at once. Gather them up from all the bathrooms in your home and run a load.

You never want to go too long between washes with bath towels. They get dirty and need to be swapped out. As a general rule, aim to get a fresh bath towel weekly.

Day 14: Do a Workout

Working out is a great way to boost productivity. Exercise has been proven to boost motivation, productivity, and mental clarity. Getting in a quick workout can also help you avoid that afternoon slump that comes in to crush your productivity.

If you’re short on time, don’t be dissuaded by thinking your workout has to last for hours. Even just a quick at-home workout or a short jog can have incredible benefits.

I utilize YouTube for my at-home workouts. Doing one or two YouTube videos in the middle of my day helps to boost my mood and gives me a burst of energy to power through the rest of my day.

Day 15: Practice Gratitude

We are halfway through this 30-day productivity challenge.

Now feels like a great time for a gratitude break. Today’s productivity task is quick but effective.

Practicing gratitude is one of the best ways to improve your life almost instantly. The benefits of gratitude are plentiful but some of my favorites include:

• increased positivity
• decreased stress
• improved self-esteem
• better sleep
• overally increase happienss levels

Not to mention, when we focus on being grateful for what we have, we raise our vibrations to attract more positivity into our lives.

{RELATED POST: Is Manifestation Real?}

Take today of this challenge to deeply reflect on all the incredible things in your life. Make a list of as many as you can think of. Take time to be thoughtful here. You’ll get the most out of this exercise if you are fully present in it.

Day 16: Meal Prep

Hip, hip, hooray! It’s meal prep day!

To be fair, I’m not a huge meal prepper. There are many people that meal prep more intensely than me. By this, I mean that I don’t utilize meal prep containers filled with chicken and rice. That said, if this is something you want to do, props to you! Go for it!

My version of meal prep is a bit more flexible. I like to make large batches of food that I can utilize in many different ways throughout the week.

For example, I like to prep:

• Chicken (for salads, burrito bowls, etc.)
• Quinoa or rice
• Overnight oats
• Cut veggies
• Protein balls

There are some other things that I’ll prep too, but those are 5 main ones.

{RELATED POST: 5 Meal Prep Breakfasts to Save Time in the Morning}

Day 17: Organize Your Desk

Having a neat and tidy workspace is essential for productivity. Whether you work from home or not, an organized workspace is absolutely essential.

{RELATED POST: 25 Quick Things to Organize When Bored}

You may have to recruit some organizational tools to help you tackle this project. For example, a desk organizer, pencil holder, file folders, and a desk calendar are some of my organizational essentials for my desk.

A cluttered space makes it difficult for you to find what you need when working AND clouds your mental space. Being organized directly boosts your productivity.

Day 18: Have a Self-Care Night

Self-care is productive.

Regardless of what your mind may tell you, sometimes rest and relaxation is the best thing you can do for your productivity. Many studies have found that one of the major benefits of a good self-care routine is improved productivity and work performance.

Treat yourself to a well-deserved self-care night for today’s productivity challenge task.

If you need some inspiration for how to have a great self-care night, check out these self-care related posts:

• How to Build the Ultimate Self-Care Night Routine
• 55 Relaxing Self-Care Sunday Ideas
• The BEST 30-Day Self-Care Challenge
• 20 Steps to the Perfect Self-Care Shower Routine

Day 19: Vacuum Your House

Dust bunnies be gone. It’s time to vacuum – and I mean REALLY vacuum – your house.

I’m guilty of slacking on vacuuming. I’ll do it… but not at well as I should. Sometimes I’ll vacuum around obstacles and avoid really putting in the effort.

But not today!

Today we are going to vacuum under every couch, behind every obstacle, and in every crack. A good, deep vacuum not only looks nice, but it is actually good for your health too.

Living in an environment with dust and debris can negatively impact your health. Vacuuming rids your space of dust mites, allergens, dirt, and improves your indoor air quality.

In reality, vacuuming is a pretty simple task – especially if you have the right tools. For years, I had an old-school vacuum cleaner. You know the ones with a million different parts and the big heavy base? Yeah, it was awful.

I recently splurged on a Dyson cordless vacuum and it has CHANGED THE GAME. Now I can vacuum in under half the time and get into those hard-to-reach areas so much quicker.

You can get the vacuum I have on Amazon or a more affordable version on Saks Fifth Avenue. (As of now, Saks is the cheapest place I can find them… I will update this if I find a better deal!)

You obviously don’t have to splurge on this particular vacuum. It’s pricey and, while it feels worth it to me, I know it’s not exactly budget-friendly.

Basically, what’s important is that you find a vacuum that YOU love and find easy-to-use. It will make the task much less daunting, trust me.

Day 20: Check In on Your Goals

Remember Day 1 of this 30-day productivity challenge? We set some goals.

It’s time to check in on those.

As we enter the last 10 days of this productivity challenge, it’s the perfect time to reflect and see what you have accomplished and what you have left to do.

For today’s task, I want you to take time to look at your Day 1 goals and respond to each of them in a journal or on a piece of paper. Congratulate yourself on all you’ve accomplished and motivate yourself to push through these last 10 days.

If you have goals that you have not yet achieved, no worries. There are still 10 days left in this challenge. That’s why we’re checking in now!

Day 21: Cook a Homecooked Dinner

Treat yourself to a beautiful and delicious homecooked meal.

Part of being productive is making sure you are nourishing your body and mind with enough nutrient-dense foods. A well-nourished individual is a productive individual.

Taking time to prepare and cook a homecooked dinner is both an act of self-care and productivity. (Remember how we said those overlap?)

Listen to your body today. Allow it to tell you what you are craving. Oftentimes, our body craves what we need.

If you are needing some inspiration, check out my post FILLED with all my family-favorite diner ideas. There are nearly 200 unique dinner options to choose from. Surely something will speak to you from the list.

Take time to enjoy yourself while you cook, too. You have been crushing this 30-day productivity challenge for over 20 days straight.

Relax and have fun tonight while making a nutritious and delicious homecooked dinner.

Day 22: Give Up Multitasking

For good.

Are you someone that tries to ramp up your productivity levels by doing multiple things at once? I used to be too. I quit that in order to REALLY boost my productivity.

More and more studies are showing that multitasking is actually the cause of making us LESS productive, alert, and efficient. When our brain is going back and forth between tasks, we are unable to dedicate our attention to really getting something done quickly and efficiently.

Ultimately, multitasking slows us down and makes us more prone to errors (which we later have to spend MORE time fixing).

If you are really wanting to up your productivity, try deep work instead of multitasking. It will benefit you in the long run.

Day 23: Have a Restock Day

Restock days are something I’ve started doing about once a month.

Basically, a “restock day” is where I go through my home and restock anything that is running low.

Some examples of things to restock:

Basically, anything that gets used up and starts to run low can be restocked on a “restock day”.

I rarely (if ever) need to restock all of the products above at the same time. That is simply a list of some of the things to check on a restock day.

Day 24: Drink Enough Water

The exact amount of water that constitutes being “enough” is dependent on each individual body, lifestyle, and needs. But, what remains consistent for everybody is that drinking ENOUGH water is essential for your health, well-being, and productivity.

A recent study found that drinking water can increase your productivity by 14%.

Seriously.

Just by staying hydrated, you can improve your productivity a TON. I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a pretty great deal to me.

Day 25: Clean Out Your Email

After a while, email inboxes can get pretty cluttered. That’s just a fact of life.

Take time today to sort through your email inbox. This includes:

• deleting unnecessary emails
• replying to emails
• unsubscribing from unnecessary mailing lists
• checking and emptying spam folders
• emptying trash folder
• opening (and deleting or replying to) all unread emails

Clearing out your email can help you stay up-to-date on all work-related correspondence.

Unsubscribing from email lists that you no longer need helps to keep your inbox from being cluttered with junk.

Checking your spam folder (before emptying it) helps ensure that you haven’t missed anything important by accident.

Opening unread emails helps you get caught up with responses and/or remove email clutter.

Get in there and get it done today.

Day 26: Meditate

Meditation is something new to me that I have rapidly grown to love.

I try to meditate at least a few times a week for mental clarity, focus, and improved self-awareness.

In addition to being a great form of stress relief, meditation can also improve your memory, focus, energy, and brain function. In fact, regular meditation practice improves your concentration abilities which, in turn, improves your productivity.

Try starting with an app or YouTube video for guided meditation.

It may feel uncomfortable at first, but as you get more familiar with it, your meditation sessions become more effective.

Day 27: Read a Chapter

It’s no secret that reading is good for you. There are tons of mental benefits of reading often.

In terms of productivity, reading has the ability to improve your focus, concentration, and critical thinking abilities. All of these things are key elements of being a productive individual.

That said, I know that reading can fall to the back burner when we have a lot on our plate. That’s why I wanted to dedicate an entire day of this productivity challenge to reading just one chapter of a book.

This can be fiction, non-fiction, self-improvement, etc. The genre does not matter as much as the simple fact that you are reading.

Read at least one chapter of a book today. Stretch your mind and get lost in a book.

Day 28: No Phone Before Bed

Scrolling before bed is a really harmful habit. The blue light from your phone can interfere with your sleep cycle, making it more difficult to fall asleep and wake in the morning.

Additionally, the temptation to continue scrolling can be strong at night and keep you up much longer than intended.

{RELATED POST: 10 Important Negative Effects of TikTok}

If you want to have a good chance for a productive tomorrow, the nighttime scrolling has got to stop. You can get more sleep and higher quality sleep if you swap the nighttime phone usage for reading a book or meditating.

Day 29: Try the Pomodoro Technique

If you are unfamiliar with the Pomodoro technique, it is essentially a form of time management that involves small breaks and has been proven to help boost productivity.

To give you a brief overview, a “Pomodoro” is defined as 25 minutes of work followed by a 5-minute break. After four cycles of “Pomodoro”s, you take a longer 15-20 minute break. You can read more about the Pomodoro technique here.

The idea behind this technique is to better utilize your time. This technique relies on the fact that 25 minutes of intense, focused work can be more productive than hours of distracted work.

For day 29 of this 30-day productivity challenge, try out the Pomodoro technique for yourself.

Day 30: Reflect Back and Look Forward

You have completed the entire 30-day productivity challenge!

I hope that you feel proud of that.

Now that you have been tackling these productivity tasks for 30 days straight, I think it’s time for some reflection. Go back to day 1 and revisit your goals. Did you accomplish them?

What else have you accomplished that you didn’t expect to?

How do you feel? Are you feeling motivated? How will you continue this productivity into life post-challenge?

Looking forward to the future is an important part of this challenge.

You’ve practiced some really great habits. What ones do you want to carry forward?

Maybe you felt WAY better when you drank enough water. Start making that a daily habit.

Or maybe you want to start incorporating a restock day into your monthly routine. Do it!

This productivity challenge was intended to reboot your motivation AND give you ideas to carry into the future.

What will you take away from this 30-Day Productivity Challenge?

What day did you enjoy the most? Are there things you plan to continue?

I sure hope so! Let me know how you feel and what you will take away from this 30-day productivity challenge!

Stay productive and take care of yourself!