Challenge #5
You still with me? I am so glad!
I am going to get down to a few practical things this week.
I want you to write a bucket list!
No, don’t freak out!!!
I am not making you think about dying. The opposite, really! I want to force you to think about LIVING! If you are not trying a new adventure or something exciting at least once or twice a year, then you are just slowly dying inside. This isn’t the top ten things you just CRAVE to do before you die, this is those top 10 things plus a whole lot of things that would just be fun!
So, read some examples!
Examples:
Ride in a race car
Ride in a helicopter
Fly a plane
Go camping or hiking out in the wilderness alone
Travel somewhere with NO PLAN, see where you end up.
Ride a camel
swim with dolphins
Hike a canyon
Go river rafting
Go skinny dipping
try snow shoeing
Try sailing
try kayaking
try surfing
Learn to play the cello
Pick up painting
Learn a new language
Learn how to make soap
Learn metalworking
Learn how to build things out of wood
Learn to knit
Learn to draw/paint
Start a ministry
Start your own business
Learn photography
Jump into a Peat bog in Ireland/Scotland
Swim in the ocean
Write as many as you can think of, add to it as often as you can.
This is a whole lot of things to TRY.
Why?
Because you really don’t know what types of exciting things you will love until you try a bunch. Think of all the things that would be fun to try once. Not only are you learning about things others may choose to talk about that you now can discuss intelligently, but you have lived an adventure that others wish they had. Try many new things, then find a way to continue doing the items you fall in love with after trying them. You never know, you may discover a new career, hobby, or set a life goal from it all. Either way, it helps you LIVE!!
I have a special leather blank book that I write in, listing all the things I have done in my life to prove I lived. From falling in love with my best friend to driving a race car to my first flight in a Helio. This book makes me happy to write in. It is FUN!! These things I try have come from lists of things I know I would love to try… at least once.
When opportunities arise that are not on your list, for you to try something new, learn a new skill, or have a new experience, TRY IT! I know people that started businesses/ministries after trying something new or learning a new skill. You have nothing to lose, and everything to gain!
There is no chance that I ever thought as a kid that I would grow up to be a soapmaker, and have a business that is growing too fast to keep up with! However, I LOVE MAKING SOAP! Which I would never have known if I hadn’t tried it, and it never would have grown unless I had talked to my doctor about doing it, and listened to what he had to say about the store bought soap. Yes, this changed my life all because I tried something I always thought would be fun to learn.
A woman I know that helped someone with a charity event that turned into her passion and now she helps run it. It turned into her next adventure, and a ministry. If you are not a Christian, don’t get caught up on the word “ministry” as anytime we help others with our activities it can be called ministering to others.
It may not ALWAYS be fun.
Deciding to try and conquer my fear of heights, I tried jumping off this 2 or 3 story platform on to a giant air filled pillow they put up in movies for suicide jumpers. It turns out, I wasn’t a fear of heights I suffered from. It was a fear of falling. I didn’t conquer my fear, jumping off that platform made it worse! It did help me clarify this, and at least I did it! It is definitely something I have tried and tossed aside never to repeat. Ever. That is okay too, it is all part of self discovery!
I don’t go out of my way to try things I know I won’t like. I want to explore things that help me know who I am, what I like and where I want to go. Figure out where I am going on my next adventure. All this exploring yourself will open doors for you eventually, it really will.
You will learn new skills, have exciting adventures, and enrich your life if you make a list and set a goal to try one or two things a year. (MORE OFTEN if you can.) I also know that your next project, ministry or business could grow from it. For those that haven’t spent half their life dreaming of something, this could lead you to the very life you will love! Dabble! Don’t let people tell you that you can’t try something and quit. Don’t accept that you will be stuck where you are or anywhere else you try out if you hate it.
It is a journey! Get started today.
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Seriously, make this list, we will be using it later in these challenges!
