3 Questions For The Start Of A New Month
Looking for a simple way to start making the next month better than the last? Give this 3-question 'stoplight' a try.
Ready or not, we have turned the calendar to a new month - and a relatively short one at that. If it goes the same as last month, will you be pleased? Or are you looking for a way - preferably a simple, non-time-consuming one - to make a change?
I’ve shared a number of ideas for conducting a monthly review/reset before, and I’ll include links to some of those articles below if you’re wanting a more in depth reflection and planning process to explore. But if you’re short on time or simply seek a brief clarifying exercise, give what I call the Success Stoplight a try. This 3-question activity can provide you with valuable in-the-moment information to bring greater purpose, intention, and growth into the new month.
The cool thing about these three questions, too, is that you can ask and act on them regardless of whether you’re a big, bold goal-setter or prefer more small, incremental changes. If you seek meaningful growth in some form, answering these three questions can help support it.
The Success Stoplight
Just like a stoplight at the intersection has three signals - each with its own distinct and important purpose - so does the Success Stoplight we’ll discuss here. And throughout this exercise, keep in mind: you get to define what success means to you.
As you reflect on the month just past and look to the one ahead, what will you:
Start Doing?
What do you want to begin doing, either on a routine basis or in general? Think of this as your green light - the actions that will help you move in the direction you want to go. Once you’ve landed on one or a few start-doing items (take care to not overload yourself with too many new actions all at once), you can decide your preferred frequency as well.
Some examples:
Read 20 pages per day.
Send a weekly text to a long-distance friend.
Step outside and breathe some fresh air at least once per day.
Identify three top-priority items each day from the overall to-do list.
Bake a breakfast casserole every Sunday to eat throughout the week.
Write a handwritten note every weekend and mail it off.
Discover and record a Daily Delight.
What will you start doing this month?
Stop Doing?
As you may have guessed, the red light on our stoplight example signifies what you commit to stop doing in the days and weeks ahead. Similarly to the start-doing items, be mindful of how many you include on your list. Practicing consistency with one or two and then adding to them over time typically proves more sustainable than trying to remove or change thirty habits at once.
Examples might include:
Looking at the phone before engaging in a purposeful morning routine.
Complaining about the weather.
Letting self-doubt cause procrastination on meaningful goals.
Checking social media more than X times per day.
Watching TV while eating dinner.
What will you stop doing this month?
Continue Doing?
Now, here’s the category that often gets overlooked (and also the one that probably least-directly connects to our stoplight analogy, but let’s keep it going anyway!). As you look over the last month and your recent past in general, what’s working that you want to be intentional about continuing? Sometimes these are habits you’ve carefully been cultivating over time, and sometimes they are actions that have somehow snuck up on you but you like how they’re working.
Some examples:
Reviewing core values, purpose statement, and meaningful goals each morning.
Attending a weekly group coaching call for motivation, accountability, and support.
Lifting weights on Tuesdays and Fridays.
Mapping out the week, including menu plans, every Sunday.
Going for a daily walk.
Perusing Reading And Purpose every week. :-)
What will you continue doing this month?
One Additional Consideration
Although I’ve framed the questions above to focus on what you will start, stop, and continue doing, feel free to consider ways of being, too. I love to start the morning by asking myself who and how I most want to be in the world that day. If you’d like further ideas and examples on this aspect, just let me know and I can certainly put together an article for you.
I sincerely hope you find these three ‘stoplight questions’ helpful, whether you reflect on them for an hour or simply while you’re sitting at an actual stoplight waiting for the green! What’s one thing you will start, stop, or continue doing this month? Share below to inspire all of us while adding a bit of accountability for yourself, too.
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Additional articles you may find helpful:
Monthly Reset: Mindset Version
Conducting Your Monthly Review: 7 Categories For Reflection
The 2026 Reading And Purpose Nonfiction Book Club!
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Dr. Christi Hegstad is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and self-proclaimed book nerd, here to help you work with meaning, live with purpose, and reach bold + difference-making goals! Peruse coaching opportunities at ChristiHegstad.com, email questions to ReadingAndPurpose(at)gmail(dot)com, and check out book recommendations at the Reading And Purpose bookshop.org store (your book purchases through the links provided may earn me a small commission, at no extra cost to you).
Thank you for being here!