14 WAYS TO RESET YOUR LIFE AND COME BACK TO WHAT MATTERS

Sometimes in life we need to do a reset. You might be feeling frustrated, overwhelmed or tired, or perhaps just in need of a fresh start, a change in direction and something new to look forward to. If this sounds familiar, then this article is for you! I’m sharing 14 ways to reset your life and come back to what matters.

WHAT IS A LIFE RESET?

Every now and then, not just in January, but particularly with the changing season, I like to take an aerial view of my life and look at how it’s going. This isn’t always as easy as it sounds because often I’m just going day to day and week to week. But, sometimes I feel like moving out of the funk and switching gears.

Personal growth, self-care and mindset are all really important to me. That’s probably why I feel drawn towards simple and intentional living as my clutter-free and simplified life gives me time, space and freedom to work on myself as well as working on my life. It’s definitely a case of less stuff and more life, but that doesn’t come easy.

Simplifying isn’t easy and you have to work at it, every day. The key is to know what you’re working towards and why! With that in mind, a few times a year, especially with the changing seasons, I find it really helpful to do a life reset.

For me, a life reset is about addressing some of the main areas of my life and exploring how well (or not) they’re working for me, what direction I’m going in and anything I’d like to change.

IDEAS ON HOW TO RESET YOUR LIFE

In this article, I’m sharing some of these ideas on how to reset your life so you can do this too, as often as you feel you need to! You might like to grab a pen and notebook so you can jot down your thoughts as you read.

1. Assess your current situation

Ask yourself some questions about how you feel about your life right now. What’s going well, what’s not going so well.

• Do you regularly feel good about your life, happy and contented or do you often feel stressed out, tired and running on empty?
• Do you have time for what you WANT to do in life, not just what you need to do?
• Do your days reflect how you’d like to live your life?

If someone looked at your home, schedule and life, would they be able to see what’s most important to you in life, or are you spending your time and energy managing your To Do list instead? In short, how do you really feel about your life right now?

2. Define your priorities

Now you’ve begun to think about your current situation in life, did you find that you’re spending time and energy on the things that really matter to you, or are you just scrabbling around trying to keep your head above water with the day to day?

One of the problems when we don’t think about our life and the direction it’s heading, is that life tends to push and pull us in all sorts of directions. Our priorities get misplaced as the priorities for just getting through the day take precedence.

Knowing how to reset your life is having the opportunity to revisit your priorities so you can take action and make them a priority, not just something you’d like to make time, space and energy for one day… when you have time.

Getting clear on your priorities is key to knowing how to reset your life and get the most out of it. Here are some more tips on defining your priorities and there’s a free worksheet you can get too to help you brainstorm.

3. Reflect on what you’d like to change

Now you’ve thought about your life as it is today, what would you like to change? Are these changes to do with yourself and the things you can control, or are they about things that you have no control over? If you can change things, what EXACTLY would you like to change?

Be specific. Write it down in a clear, concise way. Try to nail it down to a few, say up to 5 bullet points, a sentence or two long.

If you find you’re waffling or can’t define it clearly, maybe you haven’t got to the root of what you’d like to change. Keep thinking about what you’d like to change, if anything, so you can pinpoint it exactly.

4. Set your goals

Don’t wait for New Year to set goals. You can set goals at any time of the year and refresh those goals whenever you need to. A life reset is a good time!

Make sure your goals align with what you want and what matters to you right now otherwise you’ll have little motivation and incentive to work towards them.

In the points above, you looked at how your life feels like right now and what you’d like to change. You can use your answers to these questions to help you create a set of goals with a definite objective and timescale.

Here are some minimalist goals you could try, or some ideas on how to set goals that really count. In these articles we chat about the goal-setting process and how it’s helpful to set SMART goals to focus the mind and body into meaningful action!

5. Create an action plan

For the list of things you’d like to change and the goals you’ve set, your next step is to think about HOW you’re going to make those changes. Change doesn’t happen by itself, so apart from identifying your end goal or objective, you’re also going to need to take action. Baby steps are fine, as long as they’re consistent and regular.

Make a plan for how you’re going to make the changes you need. However, don’t forget that these changes need to be things that you’re in control of. You can’t change other people or expect them to have the same priorities as you.

Your action plan might be booking time to do something to move towards your goals in your diary. It might be purchasing that online course and committing to it one evening per week. It might be getting rid of the sugary snacks in your home so you’re not tempted to break a diet. It could be walking to work instead of driving so what time do you have to leave the house?

Goals are one thing but planning the logistics of taking action over them is another.

You might also enjoy these practical ways to declutter your life.

6. Declutter your home

For many of us, our homes are a big part of our life, either as a sanctuary to retreat to and launch from or as sucks on our energy and time. As this is a blog about decluttering and simplifying, the next obvious thing I’d suggest you do for your life reset is to look around and declutter your home!

Sometimes clutter creeps into our home when we’re not on the lookout. We can get stuck in the cycle of clutter and no matter how often we declutter our home, the clutter builds up.

Not only is that through our shopping habits, or lack of vigilance, but it’s also because busy, modern life throws clutter at us from all directions. Without habits in place to stay clutter-free, our home becomes cluttered and the benefits of a decluttered home are lost as fast as the clutter comes in.

Grab this declutter checklist with 100 things to get rid of right now to kick-start your decluttering and reset your home as well as your life!

7. Review your habits

Not only can we have habits for our homes, but we can have habits for our self-care and habits to simplify our life more generally. As part of your life reset, this might be a good time to review your habits.

• Have you slipped into some bad habits?
• Did you begin any new and healthy habits recently but didn’t or couldn’t keep them up?

Habits don’t need to be big to be effective and life-changing. In fact, smaller habits done repeatedly over time can be just as effective. James Clear’s book, Atomic Habits, explains the power of tiny habits really well.

Once you’ve identified which good habits you’d like cultivate, why not grab your free habit tracker here to help create habits that you stick to.

8. Assess your schedule

As part of my own life reset I like to assess my schedule. I make a note of all the things I do each day, week and month and whether this looks and feels too busy. Some seasons of life are busier than others but as a general rule of thumb, are you happy with how you’re spending your time?

• Do you have enough free time?
• Are you always running from A to B, overbooked with too little wiggle time and flexibility for when something unexpected happens?

Look at your calendar, postpone or say no to things which you don’t have time or energy for at the moment and find ways to slow down if you need.

If you don’t know whether you’re too busy or not, I always try to listen to my body to help me decide. Your body sends out signals when it’s too overwhelmed. Do you recognise any of these signs you’re too busy in yourself?

9. Overhaul your home management

As well as decluttering my home, I also like to make sure my home is still functioning how I need it to. Life changes and our needs change with it, so I like my storage, organisation and layout to work well for us as that changes

Everything in your home sends out messages to you in terms of what it requires or reminds you of. Does your home function and serve you well right now? Read more about the ‘Silent To Do List’ to find out what your stuff is saying to you!

Here are some other tips you might find helpful on how to be more organised at home and in life.

10. Review your monthly checklist

Every month I run through a monthly checklist to make sure I’m organised and prepared for the month ahead. It’s a great way of relieving some stress and pressure by knowing what’s coming up and that I’m ready for it!

You can read this monthly checklist and grab your own free printable to help you plan and prepare for your month ahead. It’s a great way of getting ahead of busy life and hopefully staying that way!

11. Sort through your clothes

I like to check my clothes when I’m doing a life reset. It’s important to me that my clothes are suitable for my everyday life and I don’t have time or inclination to be rummaging around in my wardrobe every morning to find something to wear.

Having a personal daily uniform, a signature style if you like, is a great way to make getting dressed easier and so is purging your closet.

Here are some tips on knowing which clothes to declutter so you can make sure your wardrobe fits your current life and helps you both look and, more importantly, feel good!

12. Cultivate a positive, healthy mindset

Your mindset shapes your actions and decisions in life so it’s important your mindset is supporting you, not hindering you. Here are some essential mindsets to help you get the most out of life, no matter what season of life you’re in.

Focus on building a positive and healthy mindset. Journaling, brain-dumping, meditation, mindfulness and the practice of gratitude are all helpful ways to reconnect with yourself and stay in tune with what you’re really thinking and feeling (and what to do about it).

You could also try these ideas to declutter your mind and get a free Declutter Your Mind checklist.

13. Make time for self-care

Take a moment to reflect on your self-care practices. Do you drink enough water, choose healthy eating options where possible, treat yourself every now and then? Do you exercise enough, look after your body and mind with regular rest, spend time with loved ones to build strong connections? Do you have hobbies and interests that you enjoy doing in your spare time and that stretch you in a positive way?

To help make self-care a consistent part of your everyday life you might like to consider my Ultimate Self-Care Toolkit if you struggle with finding time or feel guilty for making space for you.

14. Get a free worksheet to help you define your priorities

Resetting our life is very much about making sure that our days are filled, as much as possible, with activities that are important to us. Try my free worksheet at the end of this article to define your priorities for the coming season.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

I hope you enjoyed these ideas on how to reset your life. I’d love to hear from you if you have any thoughts or suggestions to add. Leave a comment below!

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I’m Antonia and on this blog I share practical inspiration to simplify your home, time and life. Follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest! You can also subscribe to Balance Through Simplicity and receive regular simplicity tips straight to your inbox for free. Make sure you never miss an article plus you’ll get a copy of my free Declutter Starter Kit as a welcome gift!