Take a Break | Step back to move forward—how end-of-month reflections can reignite your drive
The real value of monthly reviews isn't in the insights you gain (though those are great).
Often, a sense of overwhelm comes with being overworked, tipping your toes into the murky waters of burnout, and struggling to see consistent progress.
Life’s a relentless cycle of demands. It should not be this way. It does not need to be this way.
I’d like to say that I have the perfect answer for you how: not to feel exhausted and disheartened at the end of the month. I don’t. I, too, have the same struggles.
This brings me to monthly reviews. (Yes, I realise that talking about monthly reviews in the middle of August is wacky! I have a good reason: we are halfway through the year, so it fits. And hey, it’s Substack— we make the rules.)
Why Monthly Reviews Matter (Even When Everything Feels Like It's on Fire)
They're your new performance metrics. Forget about KPIs and OKRs. Your monthly review is where you get to define what progress looks like. Did you increase your subscriber count? Great. Did you write something that made you proud, even if it didn't go viral? Even better.
They're your burnout prevention plan. The corporate world thrives on burnout culture. Your Substack career doesn't have to. Use your monthly review to check in with yourself. Are you working smart or just working yourself into the “burnout.02”?
They're your reality check. It's easy to get lost in the day-to-day tasks. Monthly reviews force you to zoom out and ask the big questions. Is this bringing you closer to your goal of full-time writing, or are you just replicating the exact type of work you’re trying to escape?
This brings us to the question: How do you complete your monthly review?
How to Actually Do a Monthly Review (Without Making It Another Chore)
Start with baby steps. You don’t need any type of fancy journal (yet, if you’re into stationery, you go ahead and splash out a few pounds on Amazon or at your local stationary shop. The shopkeeper knows you by your name, no shame in that). And you don't need seven quick, easy tips to complete monthly reviews.
Schedule it like it's your job. Block out time at the end of each month. Treat it with the same reverence you would a meeting with your biggest client.
Ask yourself the hard questions:
What did I learn this month that I didn't know before?
Which pieces resonated with my audience? Which ones fell flat?
Am I any closer to making the leap from corporate to full-time writing?
What's one thing I can do next month to move the needle?
Celebrate the wins, no matter how small. Did you finally figure out how to embed a note without breaking your entire newsletter? That's worth celebrating.
Plan, but don't overplan. Set intentions for the next month but remember: the beauty of this new path is its flexibility. Leave room for spontaneity and inspiration, research and editing.
The real value of monthly reviews isn't in the insights you gain (though those are great). It's in the act of pausing, of forcing yourself to step away from the work and remember why you started this journey in the first place.
In the corporate world, reflection is a luxury. In the writing world, it's a necessity.
Now, close that spreadsheet, open your journal, and start reflecting.
As always, I did some snooping around (because, let’s be honest, procrastination-disguised-as-research is the writer’s natural habit) to find out how other creators approach their monthly reviews. Here’s what I found:
This *ONE* Habit Can Transform Your Entire Month 📅 by Dani Bruflodt
Getting the bigger picture with a monthly review by Robert Talbert
Plus, I asked the writers on Notes:
I could not agree more, so I wrote an article about tiny improvements and following a “one percent” better method.
shared that he ends up beating himself up when he does not hit the goals he sets for himself, even though not hitting the goals does not actually hurt his progress. This is a very crucial point about goals. I came across it a lot here on Substack, so I will write a full-on essay about it. “The goals are overrated”—from this type of point of view.
Lastly,
has shared that she does her monthly deep reflective checking, which goes beyond a checklist. And she was kind enough to include questions, so here they are:What has naturally come to completion in my business? What am I ready to let go of? Be specific. Includes offerings, behaviours, platforms, messaging, groups, people, supplements, routines, etc. Intentional surrender or retreat. Does a specific area need an energy fast?
What still or would feel good for me to continue or add? What’s working energetically?
Where did I find myself bypassing my personal needs or boundaries and not holding to my energetic sovereignty?
The most important thing is that you find a method that works for you – one that helps you grow as a writer and a human, without making you want to throw your laptop out the window.
How do you keep yourself accountable? What does your ideal monthly review look like? Share your thoughts, tips, and, if need be, existential crises in the comments below. After all, we're in this together – even if "together" means we're all sitting alone in our home offices, wearing pyjamas and drinking a lot of coffee.
Thank you for reading and for your support.
JANA! Thank you so much for the shoutout 💌 I loved reading “this is Substack we make the rules” because it’s so true and I think doing these checkins are important to look at where your are in your journey rather than just focusing on the end results.
🥰🥰🥰👍👍👍