Tomorrow’s my birthday – yay! – and at this time of year, I start getting a little bit reflective and introspective.
I’ve never met a list I didn’t like so aside from goals, I also do a life list.
In fact, I’m extremely passionate about life lists because I love the idea of living life to the full and enriching your experience by tapping into all the little and not-so-little things you’ve always wanted to do.
When I speak about life lists, dreaming big and why I think it’s so important to have one, some people tell me they don’t “do life lists”.
Today I want to offer you a different way of thinking about some of the most common reasons people are opposed to the idea of life lists.
You might have said some of these things too!
1. The idea of writing a list makes me freeze up
No problem. To be honest, when I see a blank page with empty lines, I also get a bit of writer’s block.
That just means you’re probably not a linear thinker. Try using a mind map to jolt your thinking, start doodling and see what emerges, or start building a vision board.
Once you start with a more creative process, you’ll sometimes find the ideas flow easily.
* There are no rules – you don’t have to have 100 items (or whatever the number in your head is…). Do whatever feels right for you.
2. Writing a list stops me from thinking big because I get stuck in the nitty gritty details
That’s okay. Go with the flow. At some point while you’re writing out your laundry list of little items, you’ll hit a zone where you cross over into big picture thinking about things that really matter to you. It’s around 10 – 15 minutes for me.
Try it and see where you go. You’ll find you start putting more things that are higher priorities than just a list of things you think you should have/ be/ do.
3. What if I’m setting myself up for failure?
This is a big one. Have you ever heard the saying, “reach for the moon and you’ll touch the stars”?
It’s in the reaching that the magic happens.
If you have a list of 100 and you only get to 20, so what? You’ve done 20 more things than you would have done had you had no list. But if you don’t have a list at all, you’d never have got to those 20 at all.
4. I struggle to set realistic goals
Add things to your list that are really teeny-tiny and super achievable and once you’ve built up a track record of reaching them, start stretching.
I like to suggest that you have many really doable, once-off items like making a roast chicken (an item on my own list at one point) and also some stretch items like taking a trip somewhere you’ve always wanted to go.
The little items will motivate you to get going and will keep you going once you see success.
5. What if I get disappointed?
I can’t promise you that won’t happen but I can promise you that you’ll be much more disappointed if you never try anything. It’s much worse to live with regrets.
I’ve done some things like write a book because I’ve always wanted to have a book of my own with my name on it. I don’t know why that was important to me but it was, and now it’s done. I knew that I’d regret it if I never did it, so I just did.
Have I convinced you to make a life list yet?
My challenge to you – grab a piece of paper and write down just 10 things you’ve always wanted to do, big or small, silly or serious, and see where it takes you.
Bonus points for you if you’re brave enough to show your list to a friend.
Tag me on Instagram so I can see you writing out your list/ your actual list.
