30 Day Challenge – Create a Mini-Game to Change Habits

Is there a habit you would like to instill in your team?

Or a habit you would like to break?

Or perhaps you simply want to create more camaraderie.

Try a 30 day Challenge (or 25 work days).

You can do these challenges on a department level or organization-wide depending on what works best for what you’re trying to accomplish. The most effective challenges will be ones that make sense for your team.

Here are a few ideas to get you started, each day for 30 days:

• Turn projects in on time/hit deadlines
• No e-mails from 8:00am-9:00am
• Complete the top 3 critical items on your list for the day
• Write and send a thank you note to a customer, vendor or co-worker
• Call and touch base with one customer, potential customer, vendor or co-worker
• Brown bag lunch and learns – If have at least 25 employees, have them share their unique passion/hobby
• Arrive to meetings on time/Start meetings on time/End meetings on time/15 minute standing meetings only
• Take your 15 minute breaks and unplug during at least one of them – walk, stretch, meditate
• No donuts, cakes or candy jars for 30 days
• Drive a different way to work (shown to generate creativity of thought)

A few tips:

• Note none of these are financial goals. They can be, however chances are you already have something like that in place. This is meant to shake things up a bit. I think of a 30 day challenge as something that creates/breaks habits that positively impact the bottom-line.
• For your first challenge, choose something stated in the positive, rather than the negative.
• Have a simple 25 day sheet that’s “on your honor” where people check if they did said item – can put up in the break room with everyone’s names (You can even have small stickers – you’d be amazed at an adult’s affinity for small stickers – make sure to get super hero options).
• Not into charts? Have each individual turn in their results at the end. Either way make sure it’s the employee who is documenting his/her participation.
• Celebrate 30 day challenges that succeed – not for perfect performance but for a concerted effort and shift in the area being addressed. Choose non-monetary awards that everyone will benefit from together such as: A Dunk the Boss machine, or on the last Friday of the month, send everyone everyone home two hours early, or better yet, upgrade the coffee and tea as well as the coffee machine (or whatever item everyone has wished was better.)
• Resist the urge to hand out items with the company logo or low dollar gift cards.

Like what you’re reading? You may want to read One Key to Employee Retention: Family Buy-In, 9 Ideas

Photo credit: https://pinterest.com/pin/21673641928730489/