September Reset: Your Guide to Quickly Getting Back on Track for a Productive Fall
Whether you’re heading back to school or work after the summer break, the month of September symbolizes a brand-new start. Now, it’s the perfect time to hit the ‘reset’ button on your routine and set yourself up to have the most productive Fall ever!
Don’t you think too that September feels like a brand-new January, only with less pressure?
The weight of all unrealistic New Year’s resolutions has finally worn off, leaving you with just enough motivation to still get the most out of the last months of the year!
So, are you ready for this ultimate September reset that will allow you to make this Fall season your most productive time of the year? Then, let’s get started!
1. DEFINE YOUR NEEDS
Just like not everyone is starting the New Year with the same goals, not everyone is also brushing off the summer vibes with the same energy, motivation, and state of mind.
Before you plan for a productive Fall season, you need to understand where you’re at in the first place.
Do you feel exhausted or full of energy?
Are you in your best shape ever or did you enjoy too many Aperitivos and fancy dinners this summer?
Are you mentally drained and crave some peace or are you in your best place yet?
It is crucial that you get clear and define your needs because only then you can set your goals accordingly.
You don’t have to analyze your year in terms of what you have – or have not – done so far. The focus of this exercise is not on how much you have accomplished.
What I’d like you to do is to tune in with your body, listen to how it feels, and give it what it needs.
It’s okay to enter the new season wanting it to be as productive as it can be, but if you’re not in the best mental and/or physical shape…well, you’re only going to end the year disappointed.
If you want to end the year strong, you must first spend some intentional time clearly defining what your needs are.
Only then, you are ready to set some achievable goals.
📌 SHORT ON TIME? PIN IT FOR LATER! 📌
2. DROP OFF UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS
Looking at your long list of New Year’s resolutions, you might feel discouraged to realize that you’ve barely accomplished any.
Now all you’re left with is a few months in the year, way more goals than you can accomplish, and the feeling that you’re a failure.
If that’s how you’re feeling right now, you have two options:
➪ Option 1: Swim in an ocean of self-pity, hoping that the next year will be better for you
➪ Option 2: Maybe cry a little, then get over your bullsh*t and finish the year strong, in order to dive into 2024 with the right mindset
RELATED: Read “6 Powerful Mindset Shifts to Change Your Life”
If go for option #2, the question is: “How to make the most out of these couple of months?”
Well, the secret is to let go of all unrealistic expectations.
Yes, it would be amazing if you could:
- Lose 10 pounds
- Write your novel
- Launch your online business
- Quit smoking
- Wake up every day at 5 AM
- Save up $5000
It would be certainly amazing! But how realistic is it?
Not much, right?
That’s why one of the most important steps of this September reset routine is to drop off any unrealistic goal, in order to ensure you can still be productive about what can be done in the Fall.
But how do you do this?
Let’s do this exercise:
- Pull out your long list of New Year’s goals and resolutions
- Assess how much you’ve accomplished so far, giving it a range from 0% to 100%
- Drop off every goal that is below 50%
- Out of the remaining ones, list them in order of priority
- Develop an action plan for your most important goal(s)
- Free up your mind by completely forgetting about all other resolutions
3. BUILD AN EFFICIENT SYSTEM
Okay, okay: you got your needs straight up and dropped off any unnecessary expectation…now what?!
Well, without a good system in place, you won’t go much far.
That’s why, even before you start taking tiny steps toward your goals, you need to first build an efficient system that’s going to help you stay on track.
While you might get a boost of motivation early on – as the September reset activates the ‘Fresh Start Effect’ (which I talked a lot about in this article on “How to Reset Your Life for A Fresh New Start“) -, that is just a temporary motivation that won’t ensure you to be productive throughout the whole Fall season.
Four months is still a long period of time, and you won’t always feel like doing it.
That’s why you won’t rely on your motivation or self-discipline.
Rather, you’ll create a good system.
How can you build an efficient system for accountability? Let’s break it down into steps!
- Specific -> What is it exactly that you want to accomplish?
- Measurable -> What’s your definition of ‘done’?
- Attainable -> Are 4 months enough time to achieve it, or do you need to lower your expectations?
- Relevant -> What is your ‘why’?
- Time-Bound -> What’s the deadline?
RELATED: Download below your FREE Habit Tracker!
Build momentum. Turn it into a habit. Track your progress. That’s how it’s done!
4. THE GOLDEN HOUR RULE
If you take a look at your average daily screen time, what does it say? (Yeah, you might be surprised with the result)
Yet, you keep saying you don’t have time to work on that thing you say you really want to do.
Well, doesn’t your phone tell you the opposite?
If somehow, in your super busy life, you still manage to scroll on your phone every day for consecutive hours, then you can surely find the time to work on that project of yours!
Maybe you’re lazy. Too disorganized. Or maybe you’re unclear about your goal.
These are all good reasons why you haven’t started working on it.
The only thing you can’t say is that you don’t have enough time.
RELATED: Read “7 Best Time Management Tips to Get It All Done!”
If you’re ready to have the most productive Fall ever, it’s time for you to take on a challenge!
You’re challenged to squeeze in your daily routine one hour spent working on that big goal or project of yours.
It’s what I like to call “The Golden Hour”.
GOLDEN HOUR ➪ One hour of deep-focused work on something you truly care about, that will move you far ahead toward your end goal
Here are some examples of what the Golden Hour might look like, depending on your goal:
- Lose weight ➪ 1 hour of daily exercise
- Launch your blog ➪ 1 hour learning about blogging or working on your blog
- Write a book ➪ 1 hours spent writing
Now, let’s talk about when you should schedule time for it.
Well, that – once again – depends on you!
Maybe you like waking up early in the morning and working on it straight away.
Or maybe your current job doesn’t allow you to make it part of your morning, so you might have to squeeze in the golden hour before going to bed.
Maybe your golden hour is broken down into tiny chunks: 20 minutes before work, 20 minutes on your lunch break, and 20 minutes at night.
It doesn’t matter when it happens, as long as you keep moving forward!
5. TWEAK YOUR ENVIRONMENT
Your environment impacts you way more than you know: it has the power to make you fail or succeed at whatever you’re trying to accomplish.
As you do your September reset, you should not only decorate for Fall (I see you, already pulling out the Halloween decorations) but also create an environment that allows you to be the most productive!
Depending on what you focus on for the last months of the year, you should aim at reducing any friction (aka any obstacles) between you and your goals.
Here are some examples of ways you could tweak your environment this Fall to be more productive, depending on your goal:
Fitness Goals ➪
- Plan your weekly workouts
- Lay your workout clothes the night before
- Have a bottle of water at your work desk
- Remove all junk food from your house
- Carry your workout clothes with you at work so that you can go to the gym straight from the office
Productivity Goals ➪
- Set time limits for your screen time
- Cancel your Netflix subscription
- Set a ‘No-Screens’ rule for your bedroom
- Have your planner on your nightstand
- Go to the library for some hours of deep-focused work
Financial Goals ➪
- Have a savings jar
- Use a daily expense tracker
- Automatically direct a part of your income to a savings account (out of sight, out of mind)
- Invite friends over instead of going out for dinner
- Get books from your local library about how to manage your finances
Make your environment work for you, not against you.
Here you have it: the ultimate 5-step September reset guide to help you have the most productive Fall!
Let’s conclude 2023 off strong! Shall we?
Q: “What goals are you planning on achieving in the last quarter of the year?” Feel free to share them in a comment below! Let’s chat 🙂
Until next time,
Habit trackers have been so incredibly effective for me. Great tips!
I love them too!
This is so incredibly thorough yet easy to follow. Thank you for your incredible insight!
Thank you 🙂
So helpful! Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Thank you!
Such a good post! I’m so bad with setting too many goals near the end of the year. Thank you!
Start with what’s most important 🙂
I like this post 🙂
What really helps me a lot is setting reasonable and achievable goals. Helps in all situations and is a huge motivator.
That’s true!
I learned about the Golden Hour from your article. Very interesting and educational! Thanks for giving me something new to try!
Thank you! Yeah, the Golden Hour is kind of something I just came up with, but I think it holds so much power 🙂
Great tips. My goal for the last quarter is to be more consistent in all areas. Love the planner on the nightstand goal. Need to clear them off anyway so yay. Another goal is to declutter.
Those are all great goals for Q4 – you’ve got this! 🙂