Do These 5 Things Every Day to Reach Your Goals | Hustle Sanely 5
So you want to accomplish your goals? Well girl, I’ve got you!
Introducing: Hustle Sanely 5 (aka HS 5).
I was in the shower (legit where all my big ideas are born) and Hustle Sanely 5 came to me. So what is it? I’m glad you asked:
It’s a list of 5 intentional things for the Hustle Sanely Squad to do every day to hold us accountable to working toward our goals without sacrificing our mental health and relationships.
AKA HUSTLING SANELY!
The 5 things are:
☑️ Complete your focus 3.
☑️ Move for 30 minutes.
☑️ Tidy for 15 minutes.
☑️ Say or do one kind thing for yourself.
☑️ Say or do one kind thing for someone else.
Like, a daily checklist that is INTENTIONAL AF and encompasses the message of what it means to Hustle Sanely? YES PLS. Doing the Hustle Sanely 5 every day as a community is going to make sure that we are present in our relationships, taking care of ourselves, and moving the needle toward our goals.
So today, I want to break down each of the 5 things and give my reasoning behind why they made the cut for Hustle Sanely 5.
NUMBER 1: COMPLETE YOUR FOCUS 3.
This one probably requires the most detailed explanation because you might hear it and think “What the heck is focus 3?”
Your focus 3 are the 3 things on your to-do list that are non-negotiable for that day. 3 things that you deem “most important” to get done. Before putting a task on my Focus 3, I ask:
“Will this task move the needle toward any of my goals?”
“Is this task time sensitive?”
Y’all know that I’m not a fan of never-ending daily to-do lists. They overwhelm us and leave us feeling defeated at the end of the day. Instead, I like to have a master to-do list saved somewhere (I personally use the Notes app in my phone - I don’t like keeping it in my planner because it’s too easy for me to flip to and be tempted to start panicking over how much is on it).
The master to do list of EVERYTHING that I can think of that need to get done is in its own place and I don’t look at it more than once a week. I have it broken up into work and life tasks.
On Sundays when I’m prepping for my week, I create a weekly task list based on the master to-do list. This is the only time during the week that I look at the master task list - unless I’m adding something to it. Because I should mention that if I think of a task that needs to be done, I do not try to tack it onto my current day (unless it is time sensitive) because that is a recipe for what I like to call a false sense of urgency. Putting it down as “has to be done today” instills a sense of panic in us and causes our mental state to lean toward chaos while trying to figure out how we’re going to fit one more thing in our day. When the reality is, most of the time the things that we think of don’t NEED to be done in the moment or even on that day.
Anyway, each day I create a daily task list based on my weekly list that is no more than 10 things. I usually don’t allow my list to have more than 7 items honestly. This includes work and life tasks. Part of hustling sanely is being intentional about what goes on your to-do list each day. YOU get to choose what you spend your time and energy on. Your to-do list is a TOOL not an anchor that holds you down. Remember that.
From my daily list, I choose my FOCUS 3 - and I know that if I get those 3 things done then the day can be considered productive, even if nothing else gets done on the list. Now this isn’t an excuse to hurry up and finish those 3 things and then fluff off the rest of the day. This is just a way to choose tasks that are actually going to move the needle toward your goals.
On my days off of work, I still choose a Focus 3 because it holds me accountable to pouring into the important relationships in my life and making sure that I’m taking care of myself mentally and getting rest.
NUMBER 2: MOVE FOR 30 MINUTES.
If you didn’t know, I was a personal trainer for a few years and fitness and working out are passions of mine. I know that is not the case for everyone and that’s why this says MOVE for 30 minutes instead of work out for 30 minutes. The intention behind this one isn’t vanity-based. Moving our bodies is good for our physical health, obviously, but it’s also so good for our mental health.
Regular intentional movement reduces stress, helps with anxiousness, increases self-esteem, and improves our sleep. All things that are incredibly important when you’re hustling sanely, ya feel me?
Do something that makes you feel healthy!
Walk your dog
Do a yoga flow
Lift weights
Jog by the river
Dance
Ride your bike
I don’t care what you do, but move your body in a loving way for 30 minutes every single day.
Number 3: TIDY FOR 15 MINUTES.
A tidy space is a place where you can be truly productive. Think about it - if your desk is pure chaos, you will most likely have a hard time focusing on what you need to be working on and more concerned with where all these papers come from and where you can shove them.
I spend 15 minutes every morning tidying our home and 15 minutes every evening tidying my work space.
Not only does this allow me to be productive and inspired but it keeps things from piling up and becoming overwhelming. I do a deep clean every Sunday and it only takes me an hour to clean our 3 bedroom 2 bathroom house (and that’s like scrubbing toilets and wiping baseboards) because I keep things tidy throughout the week.
So for my home, after my quiet time and before I sit down to get started on work for the day, I clean for 15 minutes. I wipe the kitchen counters, fold laundry, sweep, and make sure that nothing random is lying around. I set a timer on my phone so that I don’t get carried away and clean the entire house.
This 15 minutes a day really keeps our home in order. If you feel like it’s tough for your to keep your space clean, try this 15 minute tidying party every day and watch what happens!
Then for my 15 minutes of work space tidying at the end of my work day I make sure to clear off my desk because I know going into my office the next morning is always more pleasant if I’m greeted with an organized space.
That usually take 5 minutes then I tidy my laptop. Which, for me, looks like deleting unimportant emails, marking emails that are priority for the next day, emptying the trash bin, making sure that there aren’t any random downloads or documents hanging out on my desktop. By doing a little bit each day, I never feel overwhelmed by cleaning or organizing my space.
NUMBER 4: SAY OR DO ONE KIND THING FOR YOURSELF.
So often we fly through each day on autopilot without stopping to take a breath. Making sure to say or do one kind thing for yourself is a good way to be present each day because you have to consciously stop for a moment and think about how you’re going to do this. Not only that, but doing this each day is going to result in solid mental health and mindset gains.
When I started saying one kind thing to myself every day, it became my norm to think kind things about myself for the rest of the day. By speaking truth over myself every morning, I am in a better headspace for the rest of the day.
I literally stand in front of the mirror and say one kind thing to myself every morning. It sounds cheesy and it felt weird at first, but the mindset benefits are so worth it. Saying it out loud and looking at yourself as you say it is incredibly impactful.
Some examples of kind things that I like to say to myself as I look in the mirror:
You are so capable of doing this, Jess.
Your work is making a difference, Jess.
You are covered in God’s grace and favor, Jess.
You are bold and tenacious, Jess.
You can also choose to do something kind for yourself too like:
Grab a coffee from your favorite coffee shop
Schedule a manicure
Read a book outside alone for 15 minutes
These don’t have to be insanely big things - just something each day that is just for you. Y’all know how big I am on filling up our cups on the daily so we can pour into others well.
NUMBER 5: SAY OR DO ONE KIND THING FOR SOMEONE ELSE.
One thing that I used to struggle with when I was living in a state of unhealthy hustle, was letting the important relationships in my life fall to the wayside for the sake of making my dreams happen.
It actually hurts my heart to think about how I wasn’t present in my friendships and family relationships in the name of “making my dreams happen.” I used to think that it was fine to neglect relationships for the sake of hustling because once I “reached my goal” I’d then make it a priority to show up for my people.
Well a few things there:
We never really finish reaching our goals. Because one goal turns into a new goal which births another new goal and so on. Making your dreams happen really is a journey more than a destination.
We are not promised tomorrow, people. We hear that all the time but let the reality of it sink in for a moment. You are blessed each new day that you wake up and take a breath. And the same goes for the people in your life you care about.
Don’t take that for granted. We HAVE to make our relationships a priority WHILE we are going after our dreams. That’s why “Say or do one kind thing for someone else.” made it onto HS5.
It makes sure that we are pouring into our people AND it’s a good way to spread kindness regularly too because you can also apply this one to strangers too.
Some ideas for this:
Text someone and tell them you’re thinking of them.
Call someone and ask them how they’re doing.
Pay for the person’s coffee in front of you.
Smile at a stranger on the subway.
Cook your husband’s favorite meal for dinner without telling him.
I created a few free HS 5 resources that you can download to help you remember to do them each day. There’s a phone wallpaper, a printable that you can use in your digital planner or print out and laminate to use as a hard copy.
If you enjoyed this post and want to listen in on the conversation head on over to episode 017 of The Hustle Sanely Podcast: