18 exciting challenges for writers that give your life more purpose and direction

Forget searching for a sense of purpose.

Do what I did (after a long period of failure), and focus on action.

Action will create purpose without trying.

Action comes a lot easier when you gamify life. Setting challenges is a great way to do this, and they will help you see results faster.

Here are twenty challenges that give you direction, sharpen your edge, and remind you what you’re capable of:

1. Write a short story in a week.

Pick a premise. Write an outline. Write 300 words a day for seven days.

Just stick to your outline. Stop second-guessing. Stop making excuses. Write to completion.

You’ll learn more about storytelling in one week of actually writing than reading ten books about it.

2. Publish daily for 30 days straight.

Whether it’s articles, threads, essays, or frameworks, it doesn’t matter. The emphasis with this challenge is on simply shipping daily.

You’ll find your voice by forcing yourself to use it, and you’ll learn what resonates.

3. Walk 75km in a week.

Break it down to around 10km a day. Use the steps app on your phone to track your distances.

Your feet will ache. Your mind will clear. You’ll have more ideas than you know what to do with.

You’ll feel a sense of achievement, and that joy will flood into all areas of your life.

You’ll remember what it feels like to push through discomfort.

4. Read a book a week for a year.

That’s fifty-two books. Track them on a fun little book list.

Document what you learned, both from the books and the experience itself.

By the end, you’ll have a library of ideas most people will never touch.

5. Write 100 headlines in one sitting.

This is a headline brainstorm. Perhaps you first read through the good ones on Substack to get inspired.

Immerse yourself in problems your ideal readers have. Write to those. Create solutions.

Experiment with playful headlines and intriguing ones.

These become ideas for articles for weeks.

6. Have at least one conversation with someone new every week for a year.

This one would be challenging for me because I like my Alex time. But I’m also excited about the idea of introducing so many potential new people and brains into my life over the coming months.

Connect with people you may have avoided and ask them for lunch. Strike up conversations with strangers.

Slow down and really listen. Enjoy it.

Watch your social skills improve and your mental health strengthen.

7. Learn a new skill intensively for 90 days.

Cartooning. Baking. Playing the piano. Urban photography.

Commit to a daily practice. Ninety days is enough to go from beginner to competent.

8. Interview 10 fascinating people and publish it.

Find someone doing interesting work.

Ask them ten questions. Record it. Transcribe it. Share it.

You’ll build relationships for life and create valuable content at the same time.

9. Go 30 days without social media.

Delete the apps, and watch what happens. Your brain will recalibrate.

Your focus will sharpen and you’ll become more creative in moments you previously found ‘boring.’

10. Build something physical with your hands.

I’ve been yearning to do more of this since I do 99% of my work through a screen.

What if you carved out some time to learn, design, and build something physical?

How about a bookshelf for all those thrillers of yours? A watercolour? A ceramic mug? A chair?

Where would you start? Join a class? Watch a few YouTube videos? Get creative. Set a target and get it done.

You may be surprised by how much of a breath of fresh air doing this will be for you.

Creating something tangible reminds you that you’re capable beyond the digital realm.

11. Write your life story in 5,000 words.

What are the key moments that shaped you?

You can view this as a mini-memoir. You can use it to remind yourself of what’s come before and what you learned. You can even feed it to your ChatGPT chum so it learns you more deeply.

What did the struggles teach you?

This is a powerful mental strengthening exercise in itself, while contributing to your legacy.

12. Document your life visually for a month.

Upload one photo or short video every day to an appropriate platform.

Who else does this? Not many. Keep it mysterious or add a little written caption.

You’ll start seeing beauty in ordinary moments that most people ignore.

This is an untapped way to grow your brand too.

13. Write 1,500 words every morning for 60 days.

Most of us have resistance to write because we simply didn’t make the commitment to write a decent amount each day.

When the focus is on simply doing it (and there will be hell to pay if you don’t), ideally with volume, you will be more productive.

Have these be words you do NOT overthink. Edit later. Write now. Get the 500–1500 words down, no matter what it takes.

You’ll excavate thoughts you didn’t know you had and clarify what matters to you.

14. Build an email list from zero to 100 subscribers.

So you have established some presence on social media. Use it.

Create and share a simple lead magnet that has people subscribe to your newsletter.

As much as you can, talk about this lead magnet (like I do with every online article I share).

Have 100 subscribers be the goal. It’s a worthy one because an email newsletter is one of the most rock-solid assets for you in an AI world.

You’ll learn more about audience building by doing it than studying it.

15. Rewrite your worst-performing article three different ways.

Take something that flopped and change the angle.

Rewrite the intro or rewrite the header so it smacks readers in the chest.

Flip the structure. See what works.

I have had several flopped articles that I adjusted and turned into viral flyers.

This will teach you more about writing than publishing endless new pieces.

16. Create a ‘banned list’ and honour it for 90 days.

Identify your five biggest time-wasters or energy drains.

Ban them. Set clear rules that keep you from slipping.

Watch your productivity and clarity skyrocket.

17. Master one recipe every week for three months.

Cooking builds competence. It’s meditative and it’s practical.

By the end, you’ll have twelve dishes you can make without thinking.

18. Start a weekly creative practice and never miss a session.

Pick something you’ve wanted to do but continually hold off.

Maybe it seems pointless, but anything creative has value, especially in an age most people are scrolling zombies, wasting their existence.

Writing poetry. Speaking on video. Drawing people. Making music.

Choose a day. Protect it like you would a puppy in bad weather.

Show up every single week for a year.

Watch your confidence soar.

See all of these as experiments.

Each one forces you out of passivity and into action. They give you focus and make life energising.

When you throw yourself into engaged action, you’ll find purpose and clarity return.

Pick one. Start today.

If you’d like to significantly reduce your stress and expand your confidence in the next couple of days, you might like my Untethered Mind course.

Join hundreds of happy students below.

Learn more here and get access today.

And join us as a paying subscriber here for access to more bonuses and to support my writing: