Looking for monthly to-do list ideas? These tips on how to create your own monthly checklist can help you get started on the right foot!
One of the biggest things I struggled with when I entered adulthood was all of the little to-do’s that were all of a sudden something I had to worry about.
I mean, up until that point, I only really had to worry about whether or not I finished my homework and did my chores.
Now I had to consider booking my own doctor’s appointments, paying bills, checking bank accounts, and caring for my belongings and my apartment.
It was overwhelming!
I felt like I always had a list building up in my head of all of the things I needed to remember to do.
Not only was the task itself stressful, but trying to remember them all was a challenge in itself.
I had little to-do lists all over the place but everything felt so chaotic.
I knew I had to do something to organize the chaos and bring a little more calm into my routine.
This is when I decided to create a monthly to-do list.
This monthly tasks list was a list of recurring tasks that I did on a monthly basis in order to organize my life more effectively.
I no longer had to worry about forgetting important tasks. I could breathe easy, knowing that every little adulting activity was accounted for.
That monthly to-do list was actually the first thing I ever shared on my blog. However, there is always room for improvement and customization.
This post takes some ideas from my original monthly to-do list and explains some extra steps you can take to customize your own personal monthly to-do list. I will also be sharing how you can add non-recurring tasks to your list on a monthly basis.
Want more content on monthly to-do lists? Check out this post: 15 Monthly Tasks to Add to Your Routine: How to Prepare For Next Month Like A Boss!
How to create a personalized monthly to-do list
Step 1: Brainstorm all of the things you want to do that month
I prefer to call this action a ‘Brain Dump’ and I have a whole other article about that.
Basically, you need to sit down for 5-15 minutes to consider all of the things that you want to accomplish in the month ahead.
They can be important tasks or simply something you’d like to do. At this stage in the planning process, you don’t need to have any categories in mind.
This step is messy and doesn’t need to be done carefully. Just write whatever comes up in your mind to do.
Are you are struggling to think of things you might need/want to do in the upcoming month? You can check out the abundant ideas I have for you right here!
What should you do every month?
Consider the following tasks when deciding what you might like to accomplish this month:
- Clean up the files on your computer (including email and other online storage spaces)
- Clean up your phone
- Go through any digital or physical photos you’ve collected
- Change the aesthetics on your devices or anywhere in your home
- Go through all papers, magazines, and books
- Empty all pockets and purses
- Check and plan for monthly holidays, birthdays, and events
- Schedule monthly appointments
- Make cards and buy gifts for monthly occasions
- Review all of your bank statements and accounts
- Review your budget
- Check for things to donate or toss
- Decide on things you would like to learn this month
- Determine any tasks you want to do to maintain healthy relationships with people you love (date nights, family nights, meeting friends, letters to friends, etc.)
- Plan a home maintenance task that will otherwise be ignored
- Schedule time for self-care
- Make a mental inventory and decide what you need to buy this month
- Consider what books and movies you’d like to enjoy this month
- Do a body scan to stay up-to-date on your own health
- Refill prescriptions and renew any relevant subscriptions
- Go through your wardrobe and make sure you have the right seasonal items out
- Review your daily routines and decide if you need to make any changes
- Check all of your appliances and electronics in your house to make sure that everything is functioning correctly
- Take a look through random to-do lists you may have written and transfer any tasks that have not yet been accomplished that you still want to do
- Consider any tasks that don’t need to be accomplished right away but you want to start thinking about now (like a trip you’d like to plan in the future or gifts for a friend’s birthday that’s in a couple of months)
Related Post: How To Do A Brain Dump To Stop Overthinking Now!
Step 2: Write down anything that already has a fixed date
The first thing you can do once you’ve written your list is to find any tasks that have a fixed date already attributed to that task.
It could be the date of a birthday or similar event, the due date of a work task, or other things of that nature.
This is also a good time to schedule your self-care time and any potential dates with loved ones, if possible.
Related Post: 6 Important Types Of Self-Care Habits You Need In Your Life!
Step 3: Organize the rest of your list
Once you’ve got all of your ideas written out and your events pencilled in, I’m sure you’ll notice how much lighter your brain feels!
But now it’s time to start organizing the rest of those thoughts into more cohesive lists.
There are lots of ways that you could approach this step. I’ve got a suggestion of five different categories that I find easily organize my own brainstorming lists.
Category #1: Recurring Tasks
This category will save you a lot of time in the future when you’re planning out new monthly task lists.
Recurring tasks are the things that you predictably need to do every single month.
Some examples of recurring tasks are as follows:
- Paying monthly bills
- Renewing prescriptions
- Organizing emails
- Organizing photos
- Scheduling monthly events
Once you have these tasks categorized as recurring tasks, you won’t have to think about them at all in the future.
Instead of trying to remember every month that you need to do these things, you can have them written somewhere more permanent so that they are easy to remember each month.
Related Post: The Only Monthly Reflection Template You Need for Spiritual Growth
Category #2: A High Priority List
Once you’ve determined what items on your monthly to-do list are recurring tasks, it’s time to consider which items are a high priority for the month ahead.
High priority items are the activities on your monthly to-do list that don’t happen every month but are of extreme importance this month.
Those items might involve projects around the house, upcoming events that require action beforehand, or simply things that you don’t want to put off any longer.
Category #3: Things to do if you have spare time
Your high priority list already covered all of the things you really want to accomplish. The next thing that you can organize for your monthly to-do list is a collection of tasks that you’d like to do but aren’t an absolute necessity.
They are items that don’t add any stress if you leave them unfinished but might be nice to get done if you find yourself with some extra time on your hands.
Personally, I like to refer to this list whenever I’m feeling at a loss for what to do at the end of a day.
I find that when I don’t have a list of suggested activities, I end up mindlessly using that time scrolling social media or watching television.
Having a list like this on your monthly to-do list will help you spend each day with more intention.
Related Post: How to Simplify Your Life with the 80/20 Rule
Category #4: Things to buy
This list will be an easy one to organize!
If there are things you want to buy that month, it goes in this category.
It might be smaller things that just need to be bought next time you’re out. Or it could be something you’ve been saving up for.
Category #5: Things to think about or prepare for
This might sound like a bit of an abstract category and it might not be a necessary one for you, but I find it useful.
There are some things that are on your mind that don’t exactly require action but are still something you want to start thinking about.
For example, maybe Christmas is still a couple of months away but you want to start thinking about gift ideas for the family in September. No actions need to be taken but you still want to keep it in the back of your mind so that you already have some ideas when the time comes.
This is the sort of thing that would go in this monthly to-do list category.
If you’re not the type of person who likes to consider things in your head before you have to take action on it, then this might not be a necessary category to have.
However, I definitely find it useful for people who are planners and like to feel prepared for things far in advance.
Related Post: 21 Simple Ways To Implement Practical Self-Care For Anxiety
Is a monthly calendar the same as a to-do list?
This is an important distinction to make when planning out your monthly tasks list.
A monthly calendar and a to-do list are not the same things. However, they work well when you use them together.
A monthly calendar is a view of the month ahead with all of the events and deadlines written on the corresponding dates.
In contrast, a to-do list is typically made up of tasks that you want to have done but that don’t have a clear deadline.
A to-do list is much more flexible than a monthly calendar but doesn’t have as much structure.
In my own system, I use the two strategies in tandem.
For all of my firm dates, the monthly calendar serves as a quick reference that helps me determine when everything is happening. For anything that has a flexible date, I like to use a simple monthly to-do list.
This allows me to get a full picture of what needs to get done by a certain date as well as the things that need to get accomplished anytime within the month.
Step 4: Transfer your lists
This step has a few options to choose from and some will be a better fit for you than others.
The purpose of transferring the lists is so that you have your monthly tasks list in a format that is easy to access and will be a constant reminder of your goals for the month.
Without this task, it can be easy to create a list of tasks without ever actually doing anything on the list.
You need to put your monthly checklist in a place that can be seen so that you will be reminded to take action.
How do I organize my to-do list?
I have three great options that you can try with your own monthly to-do list. Try them all and see what is most effective for you.
Option #1: Write your monthly checklist somewhere electronic
One of the biggest benefits of writing your monthly to-do list somewhere electronic is that it’s hard to lose and easy to take with you everywhere.
You could download a specific app built for writing to-do lists.
Personally like to keep mine on the simple Memo app that comes with my phone.
I also like to use Notion to store checklists and other organizational information. These are the two formats that I would recommend.
Option #2: Try bunching tasks strategically and putting them in your paper planner
I store my recurring lists on my electronic devices but when it comes to more static tasks, I still prefer good ol’ pen and paper products.
In my bullet journal, I have a monthly calendar and a weekly calendar. In addition to that, I follow the traditional bullet journaling technique for daily planning.
Whenever I finish drafting my monthly tasks list, I try to batch some of my high-priority items and write them down in my weekly calendar. This allows me to pace myself to complete everything within the month.
This keeps me from putting off tasks until the last minute.
This might be a good strategy for you but you won’t know until you try it out yourself.
When it comes to organizational strategies, it often takes a lot of experimenting before you find the best fit.
Want more bullet journaling tips? Check out this page that’s all about journaling!
Option #3: Have a simple list written on a paper you will display
This option is easily the best one for those of you out there who believe in absolute simplicity when it comes to organization.
In this example, all you do is write out your monthly tasks list on a piece of paper and keep the paper displayed throughout the entire month.
It’s simple, quick, and effective.
I usually use this option during my less busy months, like in the summertime.
What should I do at the end of the month?
In order to make the most of your monthly tasks list, it is important to review your progress at the end of the month to determine how effective your strategies were.
Before you make your checklist the next month, review your previous checklist and see what strategies worked and which ones didn’t.
When you’re more aware of yourself, you will quickly learn which organizational strategies are helping you and which ones are just wasting your time.
At the beginning of the next month, try out this system to create your very own customized monthly to-do list. When you’ve got a system in place that works, you will certainly notice the difference it makes in your overall stress level.
Do you have any tips for how to make a customized monthly tasks list?
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