Tomorrow my 101 expires.
I can’t believe it. It’s like I’m flushing my goldfish or something! Goodbye…!!!
101 in 1001 lists are pretty popular these days. The idea is pretty simple: you make a list of 101 very clear goals and set a limit of 1001 days to accomplish it – 2.75ish years. I didn’t complete mine – I actually didn’t really hit 50%, and I wanted to share with you the things I learned about my list.
When I first made the list, I had just purchased a plane ticket to spend the weekend in California to visit the girls I used to live with. I worked 3 days a week and had 4 days to do whatever I wanted, and I built my list around that. I now have a full time job with no real consistent schedule. That affects my ability to plan. Oh and I bought a new car which takes a lot of my $$ every month.
#2. Priorities can change a lot in 2.75 years.
3 years ago, I was allll about wanting to write songs on the guitar. I thought it would give me more opportunities to play music. I am consistently able to play the piano in various groups now, and so things like “buy a guitar” just no longer interested me.
#3. Friends make things more fun.
I had my friends walk across the i5 bridge with me. It was rainy and my shoes got really dirty, but it was so much fun. It’s not anything we would have just randomly thought to do. It was one of my favorite things to cross off because my friends bought into it. Completely a list that keeps you isolated and doing a bunch of things by yourself is no fun.
#4. The 101 things can’t be an attempt to become a new person.
I gave up coffee for a week. But I still drink coffee. I gave up soda for a month. I still drink soda. I gave up technology for an hour before bed for a month. But I’m back to that. Some of the things I put on my list are there because I want to be the kind of person who does those things. If you want to know what those things were, go look at the ones that didn’t get crossed off.
#5. The 101 might spark some new habits.
In August of 2014, I spent nothing but gas money for the month and I did a huge downsizing of my stuff. Over the past year I’ve continued to let go of stuff and have been way more mindful of my spending. I am grateful for the change it kickstarted.
#6. If you make a goal to do more of what you already love… you will love to do it.
I love coffee and I love couch surfing. The two most fun things to be intentional about were sleeping in different places and trying new coffee shops, because those were things I already love doing. I just had to be intentional about doing it more often.
#7. 1001 days goes by REALLY FAST if you’re not paying attention.
Seriously, I looked at this list SO OFTEN and I’d think “oh I will have plenty of time to………” and here we are and time ran out.
#8. The list doesn’t really matter. It’s about life.
I live a pretty spectacular life. So even though I kind of failed at crossing some things off on my list (for example, I never sent Travis Batista a colored in coloring book) I did even cooler things (like actually spending time with Travis and his wife when I went to Nashville).
I don’t feel like I failed at my list at all. I have been excited to start a new one (it’ll post in a few days) since I realized the overwhelming amount of work it would have to take to finish my old one.
Hopefully some of this is useful and encouraging to those of you who have 101 lists or are thinking of making one. I’ve loved having one to help me break out of my comfort zone (um I took a picture of what I wore every day for a month. That was soooo weird for me) and to keep track of small memories I wouldn’t remember otherwise.
