I recently did an exercise about bucket lists. Most people know about a bucket list – it’s what you make a list of, and then work towards doing them all. The structure of creating a bucket list was a little different to what I’ve experienced in the past – where most of it was places to travel.
This bucket list had a special framework called “My Bucket List” and I think that it works wonderfully.
The categories are:
- Meet a personal hero
- Your proud achievements
- Buy that something special
- Ultimate challenges
- Conquer a fear
- Kind acts for others
- Express yourself creatively
- Take lessons & learn something new
- Leave a legacy
- Idiotic stuff
- Satisfy a curiosity
- Travel adventures
The Exercise
After being exposed to this thinking, we were then asked to jot down all of the things that we’d already ticked off our bucket list. My list felt huge and then over the next few days I added more and more to it.
Here’s a sample of mine:
M – Layne Beachley
Y – Announcing winners at KDCCI Business Excellence awards nights
B – Pandora charms on holidays to represent where I’ve been
U – Abseiling (I won’t say I liked it though!)
C – Walking across swinging bridges in Nepal
K – % of income to charities each month
E – Painting on a water tank in Wongan Hills when in high school
T – Coaching
L – Teaching money management
I – An overnight trip with a heap of people I didn’t really know in the first week of uni
S – Drive the Nullarbor (well part of it anyway)
T – Nepal, USA, the Kimberley, the Pilbara, Boxing Day Test match at the MCG…
The Gratitude
After writing all of those, plus many more, I was overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude and humbleness. I thought that living in Karratha, a remote town in the northwest of Western Australia, I was a “poor country girl” with a pretty sheltered life. It turns out that although I’m not exposed to a lot of bad things that happen, I am definitely well travelled and living my life in a well-rounded way.
My Challenge to You
My challenge to you, if you’re reading this, is to give this exercise a go yourself.
You might be surprised at what you’ve already accomplished. You might realise that you’re doing better than you think you are. And you might feel the same sense of gratitude that I did – that life has given you more than you realised.
For more info on Trav Bell “the bucket list guy”: thebucketlistguy.com
Disclaimer: This information is general in nature and doesn’t take your personal circumstances into account. Always seek professional advice for your specific situation.
