Master Your Month: the Ultimate Monthly Shutdown Guide

At the end of every month/beginning of the next I do a monthly Shutdown Routine. Don't worry, it's not like a government shutdown ;-), it is putting a nice bow on last month's work and life and moving into the new month with intention and organization. Here's the routine: 

1. Make a list of last month’s highlights

2. List and organize all business expenses from last month

3. Finalize next month’s budget based on the income from last month 

4. Menu plan the next month’s family dinners

5. Finalize monthly goals for next month

First I reflect and make a list (I ♥️ a list–you too??) of all the high points of the previous month. This helps me realize how awesome even January was! Instead of letting my feelings lead me, I let the list lead me. It reminds me of all the goodness I experienced from watching a movie I enjoyed (Licorice Pizza!) to helping to host two baby showers. It will help me remember months from now what was great about January (the least popular month of the year.) 

Then I do some business housekeeping. One of the worst parts about being an entrepreneur is all the money stuff, but I’ve learned that I can be way more on top of itemizing deductions for tax season if I keep track of it every month. So at the end of every month I review credit card statements and make a list (and a pretty little spreadsheet if I do say so myself) of all my business expenses. This makes it all so much easier in the long run. 

Then I finalize next month’s budget. It doesn’t change a ton from month to month, but I do have a fluctuating income due to the nature of my work, so I make sure we have a zero-based budget based on what we earned the previous month. Every dollar gets a home on the spreadsheet for the next month. I do keep budgeting simpler than some folks because I put most expenses on a credit card (that I fully pay off every month!) so we get the passive income of the credit card points that accrue. I never pay for rental cars (and often don’t pay for hotels either) because of these credit card points. I recommend the Chase Sapphire credit card. It has the best perks IMO and is currently offering up to 60,000 bonus points for new customers. That translates to $750 free money when you use it toward travel when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Here is my referral link.

And yes, I menu plan all our dinners (and I’m beginning to do lunches too!) before the month even begins. I don’t know if you hate menu planning like I do, but it feels like such a brain power suck when I try to figure it out on a weekly basis. Instead I figure out the main course for all the meals in one fell swoop and then flesh out the details when I'm at the grocery store the week of (if broccoli is in season and I think it pairs well with our meat, then broccoli it is.) 

And lastly, I don’t do quarterly goals or annual goals, I do monthly goals based on my big values and priorities for the year. This also gives me the flexibility I need to pivot! The reason monthly goals work well for me is because a month is such a short amount of time, I have to connect my ambitions with my actual schedule. For example, this month I want to read more. So instead of just having an annual goal of reading 50 books, I went in to my calendar yesterday and literally scheduled reading time from 8-9:30pm 3 nights next week. This is where the rubber meets the road in connecting aspirations to reality. 

If you want more tips like these to optimize your work/family/life, I want to invite you to consider joining the Hustle & Grace group coaching program. Doors open soon.

Snag your spot on the waitlist to be the first to hear about early bird pricing and get all the details right here. 

6 Ways to Combat Writer's Block

6 Ways (4)

Maybe you love the idea of blogging but the idea of writing on a regular basis seems daunting. Have you ever started a blog and abandoned it? Or told yourself you'd blog weekly and then, whoops, 4 months go by? I get you. Today I want to share a few ideas for writing consistently whether you're writing blogs, articles or the great American novel.

1. Keep a notebook (or notes app on your phone) nearby at all times. When inspiration strikes jot it down. I can't tell you how many blog outlines I've created while running on trails. They may be inspired by a podcast I'm listening to or just come together when I link two separate ideas I've been mulling over. They always go in my notes app and they eventually show up here.

2. Set aside a Creative Think Day once a quarter. Every three months (or more often if you're lucky) hammer out as many ideas as you can possibly think of. Don't feel overwhelmed--we're just talking headlines or key concepts. No need to stress over the finished product or what your five points will be. You're just gathering stones.

3. Put yourself in your readers' shoes. What are their pain points? What can you help distill for them? What are the consistent questions you get asked both online and off line? This is your starting point. Your writing should be of interest to you but it should always have deliverables for your audience. You are serving them.

4. Take the ideas you've aggregated and plug them into an editorial calendar. And just like that, you've got a plan for the next several months. The next time it's time to publish a post, you're not starting from scratch. You already have an idea you've been mulling over. Mark Twain said, “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.”

5. Read up. Ideas come to those who are voraciously digesting other people's thoughts. A ton of what I write comes from an idea that I formulated after reading other people's work.  Samuel Johnson said, “The greatest part of a writer’s time is spent in reading, in order to write; a man will turn over half a library to make one book.”

6. Sit in the chair. The least sexy of all the tips--sometimes you just have to sit there until you create something. The disciplined habit of showing up is half the battle! If you want to write consistently you have to make it a priority. Sit there until you create something. Listen to Maya Angelou: “What I try to do is write. I may write for two weeks ‘the cat sat on the mat, that is that, not a rat.’ And it might be just the most boring and awful stuff. But I try. When I’m writing, I write. And then it’s as if the muse is convinced that I’m serious and says, ‘Okay. Okay. I’ll come.’”

We all wrestle with what to write from time to time. Having a strategy in place to combat those times will always help you get pen to paper. Do you have your own tips for overcoming writer's block? What is your biggest writing challenge?  I'd love to hear what you work most to overcome and how you do it.