One of my favorite things about reading blogs is the inspiration I get for new projects. A few days ago, I went from looking at one of my favorite recipes to wondering what other cool recipes I could find to stumbling on a project I’d never heard of before: the 30 before 30.
I was instantly intrigued. I love lists, and I love goals. The 30 before 30 is both.
Plus, I’m turning 29 next month. The timing is perfect: I’d have just over a year to complete everything.
Where to start?
First, ground rules: I’m willing to change goals. This isn’t a set-in-stone list. Who knows what will happen in the course of a year?
Despite that, my 30 before 30 consists mostly of things I think are achievable. Nothing about traveling to Tokyo or swimming with sharks–two things I’d love to do, but won’t happen in the next year. In fact, only one goal on the list is a stretch: see a coral reef. And there are only two goals that require going out of state: Marfa and LA.
Everything else can happen in my home or just outside my front door. I just have to want it.
My 30 Before 30
- Participate in a color run
- Do 5 pull-ups in a row
- Ride my bike on the Burke-Gilman Trail
- Hike to the top of a mountain
- Bake a cake
- Learn to can/jar something
- Try 10 new restaurants
- Cook a cookbook all the way through
- Master one of mom’s cookie recipes
- Try caviar
- Go on a classic American road trip
- See a coral reef
- See dolphins in the wild
- Go to Olympic National Park
- Go on vacation with my sister Sam
- Spend a night in a yurt
- Visit Marfa, Texas
- Experience Club Tengo Hambre in LA
- Zipline
- Get a tattoo
- Learn to fix something on my car
- Get professional photos of myself
- Learn to drive stick
- Master two hairstyles
- Start saving for a home down payment
- Read a classic book
- Watch Citizen Kane
- 30 dates with Patrick
- Complete a NanoWrimo
- Go 24 hours without technology
Deepak Chopra has a quote I like: “What you focus on, expands.” My list says a lot about what I want to expand: I want to get better at practical things. Experiences around food resonate with me. I know the limits of my comfort zone and want to push beyond it. My physical wellness is a priority. I want to expand my relationships with my sister and boyfriend. And I want to revel in the beauty of Washington state.
The goals also have a lot of natural synergy, which excites me. I get nerdy about efficiency. You can be efficient with everything, even betterment!
The Exciting
- Marfa and Club Tengo Hambre. Those have been vacation goals of mine for years. I always put them off for other things, but 2018 is the year!
- 30 dates with Patrick. Lucky him!
The Nerve-Wracking
- 5 pull-ups in a row. Although I’ll try not to be self-defeating about it, I’ve resigned myself to embarrassment at the gym
- Completing a NanoWrimo. For better or worse, this has been a goal since 2008. It’s a big, mean, nasty goal.
So, what do you think? Is my 30 before 30 is too tame? Too ambitious? What are some goals you have/had before 30?