The gist: Need a fresh start? These 9 realistic midyear reset strategies are perfect for managing burnout and refreshing productivity.
Let's be honest: our goals and plans rarely unfold the way we imagine.
And that’s okay!
Sometimes life throws us curveballs like a chronic illness flare-up or worsened executive functioning, and suddenly it feels like we’re moving backwards instead of forwards with our goals.
I've been there, too.
At the start of this year, I felt so optimistic about my health and productivity goals after making a lot of progress with them last year.
But then this year turned into one health issue after another, which has made productivity practically impossible, so 90% of my goals and plans for the year went out the window.
Here's the thing about resetting your life, though:
You don't need to catch up on everything or become a completely new person for you to still feel like a completely new person.
Just completing a few high-impact reset tasks, like decluttering and organizing your main workspace or deleting outdated things from your project manager, can be enough to make your life feel far less chaotic.
So that’s exactly what we'll talk about today: a few low-effort, high-impact ways to reset your productivity and motivation.
1. Look back at your year so far
The first way to reset your life is to pause and reflect on how things have been going lately.
Not to judge or criticize, but to acknowledge both the wins and the challenges that have shaped your year so far.
Taking time to celebrate your highlights—whether they're big achievements or small wins—helps reinforce those positive experiences and reminds you of your capabilities when motivation runs low.
And yes, you need to look at the hard stuff too.
Not to dwell, but to process with hindsight. What felt like setbacks or failures at the time might make a lot more sense, and confusing situations can become a lot more clear.
How to do it
Grab your favorite note-taking tool and make two lists: highlights and challenges.
Include anything significant, from new habits to health setbacks. Don't judge these experiences—just acknowledge them and learn from them.
2. Assess the main areas of your life
Another way to reset is to get clear on how your life is going right now in general, as opposed to the specific focus on highlights and lowlights in the previous reset idea.
That means taking an honest (but kind!) look at different areas of your life to see what's working and what isn't.
This helps you get a grip on your current reality before making any plans about where you want to go next. After all, even if you know where you want to go, you can’t figure out how to get there until you know where you are right now.
It can also help you identify which areas of your life need the most attention from you right now.
Maybe your career is thriving but your self-care routine has gone MIA, or your creative projects are flourishing while your living space needs some attention. This can help you realize that and decide what to do about it.
How to do it
List out the important areas of your life: things like health, relationships, career, creativity, and home environment.
Then, score each area from 1-10 based on how satisfied you feel with it right now. Don't think about what other people think of your life, focused on how bright that life area feels to you personally.
3. Refresh your mindset
One of the most powerful ways to reset your life is to take a closer look at your self-talk and consider how it's serving you (or not serving you).
Don’t worry:
When I say “mindset,” I’m not talking about toxic positivity or the law of attraction and manifesting.
Instead, I’m talking more about recognizing when you're operating on unhelpful narratives or assumptions (which, one could argue, includes “traditional self-help” mindset stuff).
How to do it
Start by identifying a few limiting beliefs - those nagging, extreme thoughts you have about your abilities or potential. Look for "all-or-nothing" thinking (using words like "always" or "never"), taking blame for things outside your control, or making worst-case assumptions.
Then, rewrite these beliefs into more balanced statements. For example, try changing "I never get anything done" to "I make progress at my own pace" or "I accomplish as much as I”m able to given my limitations."
4. Adjust your goals
Sometimes the best way to reset your life is to reset your expectations.
That means taking a fresh look at your goals and adjusting them based on how your year has actually gone—not how you hoped it would go back in January.
When you adjust your goals to match your current energy levels and circumstances (instead of past expectations), you create a more realistic foundation for progress.
Plus, letting go of goals that no longer serve you opens up space for new priorities and possibilities you might not have even considered before.
How to do it
Start by listing out your current goals, then consider each one carefully.
Some might need to be made smaller or shorter-term. Others might need more time or a complete overhaul. And yes, some might need to be deleted entirely—and that's okay!
The point isn't to "catch up" to where you want to be, but to create goals that work for where you are now.
Are you ready to start working brighter?
Productivity isn't black and white, it's personal as hell. And there's no single lifehack or framework to solve your problems.
Sign up to get weekly tips and stories to help you create your OWN definition of productivity working better and brighter.
5. Build your initial plan
After all that reflection and adjusting, it's time to start getting clarity on the rest of your year. This is where you'll start mapping out the months ahead, but not in an overwhelming or overly detailed way.
A great rule for planning is that the larger of a timeline you’re planning for (for example, half the year), the less detail you want to add to those plans. After all, the further out something is, the more likely it is plans will change before then.
But having a basic long-term plan helps you map out what's actually on your plate so you can plan for reality instead of fantasy. You'll be able to see potential conflicts or busy seasons, and better prepare for them before they become problems.
How to do it
Make a simple list of the upcoming projects and events you’re already committed to. Think about any confirmed events, deadlines, or projects or initiatives at work. You might also want to think about any “related projects” that come with them.
For example, an event like attending a wedding might require a project with tasks like send your RSVP, buy a gift, plan travel/transportation to and from the event, coordinate childcare, pick out an outfit, buy and sign a card, etc.
Or a work project that you know is going to cause a busy season might need to be paired with ramping up your self-care during non-work hours since things are so intense there.
6. Do a brain dump
Think of a brain dump like a decluttering session for your mind. Just like clearing out your closet creates more physical space, getting all those thoughts and tasks out of your head creates more mental space.
When you offload everything that's bouncing around in your brain onto paper (or your favorite digital notes app), you're not just organizing your thoughts—you're making room for creativity to flourish. It's hard for new ideas to pop up when your mind is cluttered with random to-dos and "don't forget to..." reminders.
How to do it
Start with a trigger list (like the one from Getting Things Done) that includes common categories like work projects, home tasks, and errands.
Set a timer for 15-20 minutes and write down every single thing that comes to mind. Don't judge or organize anything yet—just get it all out.
Your brain will thank you later.
7. Reset your routines
Another super impactful way to feel refreshed is auditing your daily and weekly routines.
This isn't about forcing yourself into a rigid daily schedule saved in Google Calendar—it's about reflecting on what the right amount of routine for you is right now, and how you can make that amount as intentional as possible.
The right amount of routine can make your daily life easier and more predictable, which is especially helpful when you're dealing with executive dysfunction. When you know what to expect from your day, you're not constantly draining your mental energy making decisions about what to do next.
How to do it
Start by doing a quick inventory of your current daily, weekly, and monthly routines.
Which ones energize you, and which ones feel like they're draining your battery?
Identify just one or two adjustments that could make your days flow more smoothly.
8. Reset your spaces
One of my personal favorite to reset activities is a physical and digital space declutter to help your daily environments support your brain, instead of overwhelming it.
Why does this help so much?
Because when you're surrounded by more clutter than your brain can handle, your brain has to work overtime just to filter through it all. So when you declutter and organize, you’re saving yourself mental energy in the future.
Plus, your space sets the tone for your routines and habits. The easier something is to do, the more likely it is to do it…for better or worse. You can design and set up your spaces to encourage you to do the things you want to do more of, and vice versa.
How to do it
Pick just one room and set a timer for 10 minutes. See how much you can declutter or organize in that time.
Then do the same thing digitally: choose one app or device that's been stressing you out, set a timer for 5 minutes, and start decluttering.
Finally, set a to-do or calendar appointment to do this again next month, because clutter accumulates quickly.
9. Reset your systems
The final activity our life reset checklist is a systems refresh.
This is where you'll review and tweak the different tools, workflows, and structures you rely on to manage your time, tasks, and energy throughout the day.
Even the most perfectly designed productivity system can start feeling clunky when life shifts around it.
Maybe you've switched jobs, started a new project, or your energy levels have changed. But in all the overwhelm of change, you haven’t updated the rest of your life to “match.”
Refreshing your systems periodically is so helpful because keeps them working with your brain instead of creating extra friction.
How to do it
Make a quick list of the main tools and systems you use daily. Then for each one, answer two questions:
- How does this help me right now?
- What small tweaks would make it work better for my current needs?
If you don’t have time to make those tweaks now, you can add “finish systems update” to your project list from earlier.
Are you ready to start working brighter?
Productivity isn't black and white, it's personal as hell. And there's no single lifehack or framework to solve your problems.
Sign up to get weekly tips and stories to help you create your OWN definition of productivity working better and brighter.
Ready to reset?
Life resets don't have to be overwhelming transformations where you change everything at once (because let's be real, that rarely works out).
Instead, pick just one reset activity from this list that resonates with your current energy and needs.
Whatever you choose, remember that resetting isn't about forcing yourself to start fresh—it's about gently realigning your life to work better with your brain.