Whether you already have a huge bucket list, or it keeps getting smaller, or you’re just about to start — here are the 10 key topics of your life that you ought to address sufficiently on your bucket list (and in your life in general!). And if you haven’t created a bucket list whatsoever, then head over to “The Ultimate Bucket List Resource Guide” ASAP.
You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough 😉
Personally, I strongly believe that a bucket list should address all walks of life — and not just seek to feed our travel or “adrenaline appetite”, which most bucket lists online solely do.
Moreover, I don’t want to be too specific as it’s your life and you yourself should be in charge of what exactly it is you want. So, while it sounds cool to bungee jump or trek the Himalayas — they shouldn’t be on your list just because other people might have it or think’s it’s cool. What’s the point if it doesn’t matter or align with your own values and goals?
What I do believe though, is that there are certain areas of your life that ought to be addressed sufficiently to ensure you really live life to the fullest and avoid living a regretful life. Therefore, instead of me listing out 10 exact things you should be doing, I will instead list the 10 core areas of your life that ought to be addressed on your bucket list. Also, to help you brainstorm and begin, I’ve included various examples as well as actions for you to take to get started.
1. Do Something Adrenalin- & Action-Packed
Skydive and bungee jump are items you’ll find on most bucket lists. Are such adrenaline activites one of the main topics on your bucket list? Well, there’s hardly any greater rush than the feeling as you plummet towards the ground in speeds up to 120 mph (and even better when included with some memorable landscapes such as The Palm Jumeirah (UAE), the Australian beaches, the Swizz Alps etc.).
While it certainly doesn’t have to be any of these two activities, you ought to seek to conquer your fears and try something in your life that you consider wicked and thrilling — whether that be driving a sports car in 200 km/h, riding a mechanical bull, riding bobsleigh, holding a big speech or whatever that makes sense to you.
Simply put, it is important that you keep challenging yourself in order to develop and grow as a person (and have fun, of course). To give you a few more ideas, here are my adventures and activities-related bucket list items.
Take action:
- Brainstorm and think outside the box about things you would “never” imagine yourself doing.
- What are some kind of wicked or extreme things to you that would be highly memorable?
- List down your fears and figure out how you can challenge these. What would go contrary to your fear? If it wasn’t for fear, what would you do? How can you accomplish small steps to gradually conquer the fear?
Why You Need to Do Sh** That Scares You | Nerd Fitness
Do Something That Scares You Every Day | Psychology Today
2. See Some Major Travel Sights
Travel is a vital part of life; it expands our horizons in many ways, it stimulates our senses, it boosts our intellect and makes us happy.
Now, most of us have a limited amount of vacations and therefore we can’t necessarily “travel slow” (like many travel blogs like to recommend) and we can’t visit every corner of the world.
As such, we need to get our priorities straight about the places that we really want to visit. Moreover, while I’m not saying there’s anything outright wrong with a resort vacation and relaxing on a sunbed sipping Pina Coladas and working on that bronze tan — I do think that if you’re mostly doing this, then you are missing out on the essential value of travelling and visiting new places.
Here’s few suggestions:
- Visit a Wonder of the World and watch history come to life (e.g. Great Pyramid of Giza, Acropolis, Angkor Wat, etc.).
- Do a major hike such as Macchu Pichu, Kilimanjaro, and Everest, or a mountain that would challenge your condition or that you find particularly beautiful.
- Do a safari, be one with nature, and go in search for the “Big 5”; the most elusive animals to hunt on foot (lion, African elephant, Cape buffalo, leopard, and rhino).
- Find beauty in undisrupted regions of the world like Alaska, Antarctica, Iceland, and Greenland (e.g. Northern Lights – Aurora Borealis).
- Locate paradise; go somewhere with white sand beaches, flowy palm trees and the rush of the ocean. Go remote, find an undiscovered alcove, hidden retreat or secret hideaway that only you and your significant other can call your own to forever share a special moment.
Take action:
- One of the major limits regarding our travel aspirations comes down to lack of information. You can’t desire something that you know nothing or little about. Thus, consider subscribing for some travel-related blogs or magazines to get inspired every now and then (and of course, subscribe to this blog).
6 Great Tips to Prepare for a Destination You Know Nothing or Little About | Bucket List Fanatic
11 Reasons Why Travel Makes You a Happier Person | Huffington Post
25 Truly Amazing Places You Must Visit Before You Die | LifeHack
3. Events
Events are often some of the very most memorable experiences that we incur throughout our lifetime. They are something that we keep treasuring and reminiscing about time and time again as we grow older.
Now, obviously, what “events” include is completely up to you. However, I would recommend you include some major festivals. It is a rarity when citizens from all around the world gather for no reason whatsoever besides to celebrate life and have fun. Here are my event-related bucket list items.
A few examples:
- partying at Mardi Gras
- drinking at Oktoberfest or
- shaking your booty at the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- hosting a major cook-off for your neighbourhood or something else.
50 Top Festivals and Cultural Events | Day Zero Project
Travel: Seven Reasons Why You Need to Attend Cultural Festivals | Potentash
4. Give Back
We are all trying to be good people. However, when we’re caught in our daily struggles it is often easy to forget that there are many less fortunate than us. Therefore, wherever you may be, do consider doing a service project or volunteer opportunity — or something similar. It will make a positive impact on your community; you may develop relevant job skills, you can explore other interests, make new friends and enhance your knowledge.
A few suggestions:
- Teach underprivileged children
- Help an animal shelter
- Donate blood
- Leave encouraging notes in self-help books (or public toilet mirrors) for others to find
Take action:
- Think about the causes you care about. How can you contribute? Remember that it doesn’t necessarily have to involve giving money, but that you instead can help in so many ways. Maybe you are able to offer your expertise or combine your profession in a way that can help others in need?
Volunteering and its Surprising Benefits | HelpGuide.org
5. Learn & Practice New Things
Constantly learning something new is beneficial in so many ways; it provides something to talk about, it exposes you to new things, it’s refreshing, it combats boredom and your quality of life will be enhanced. Perhaps you’ll even find a new hobby!
Overall, stay hungry for knowledge and seek to constantly challenge yourself and acquire new skills.
Remember, knowledge is power. And remember this: you affect the lives of others, so something you learn and share could have a profound impact on another person.
A few suggestions:
- Acquire a new language (Spanish, Mandarin etc.)
- Learn IT skills (make a website, learn Photoshop etc.)
- Learn to play an instrument (guitar, piano etc.)
- Learn a new sport or skill.
- Master productivity skills
See if you can learn something that might be outside of your comfort zone!
How To Learn Something New Every Day (And Actually Do Something With It) | Productivityist
40 Amazing Places to Learn Something New Every Day | Inc.com
6. Try All Kinds of Food and Drinks
Food is such a big part of everyone’s life — we can’t live without it — yet it is easy to fall into the pattern of eating more or less the same every day. By creating a food bucket list you keep yourself motivated on trying new dishes, drinks and restaurants.
A few suggestions:
- Always try national/traditional dishes wherever you may visit (Wiener Schnitzel in Austria, Pizza in Italy, and so forth).
- When in restaurants, always seek out dishes you’ve never tried before, and try various dishes you consider “weird”. E.g. insects, chicken feet, live octopus. Here’s my “strange food” bucket list.
- Dine in a Complete Darkness Restaurant.
- Cook all the dishes in a cookbook of your choice.
4 Good Reasons To Try a New Food Each Week | A Healthier Michigan
5 Reasons Eating Will Always Be the Best Part About Traveling | Spoon University
7. Live a Minimalist Lifestyle
Live a simplified life. Forget about luxury, possessions and so forth. Simply put, declutter your life. At least on a regular basis. You will never regret it. You’ll start living a more balanced and joyful life. Identify areas of your life that needs simplification and take action to change those, whether it be time commitments, your possessions, your thoughts, your goals and multi-tasking, or your screen-time and connections to the world. There’s a lot of distractions out there. Which ones impede you from excelling and being a better you? Here’s a guide I made on living a simplified life that could help you further.
Also, try to forget about high-end hotels and focus on the bare necessities as you trek countries. If possible, go backpacking, and enter it all with an open mind — with no fixed plan and just enjoy the ride.
27 Reasons Why Backpacking is Awesome | GapYear
Why Everyone Should Go Backpacking And What I Learned When I Did | JustWanderLustBlog
8. Be True to Yourself and Excel at What You Enjoy + Career
Just because something isn’t “a big thing” to someone else doesn’t make your life goal any smaller or less important and less great than anyone else’s. So don’t scrutinise yourself and say to yourself that a certain life goal is silly and refrain from following up on it.
This is especially true for your career. While it’s not necessarily easy, you owe it to yourself to find (or create) a job that aligns with your inner wants and needs. Therefore, be sure to set specific goals for your career. And seek to make these goals tangible and break larger goals into smaller milestones, so you can better track and celebrate progress along the way. Lastly, to ensure you make every day count and stay on the right path you should ask yourself these questions every day.
Take action:
Think back at when you were young and had more imaginary aspirations for the future and had less limited lenses and views on what was possible in life? What would be cool to you? Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Dare to Live: 10 Unconventional Ways to Be True to Yourself | Tiny Buddha
A Practical Guide to Being Yourself | Prolific Living
9. Family
Family is immensely important and we ought to treasure every moment we have with them.
Think about whether there are some special things you could arrange for them. What about taking your parents on a vacation (as they took you on tonnes when you were young). I brought my parents to Svalbard which was amazing. Moreover, what about researching your family tree? Carve your family members’ names on a tree etc. or anything else that makes sense to you and would be something special besides the autonomy of daily life and traditions.
Besides “one-ticks” off the list — perhaps mix it up with continuous goals such as saying you love them every time you talk to them, and so forth.
Take action:
A great thing about a bucket list is being able to share it with loved ones (which is why you NEED to write down your goals). Through the process, you’ll also get to know more about them (as they share some of their goals) and they are more likely to pitch in or join in on yours. Perhaps it turns out you share some common life goals!?
10 Reasons Why Family is Important | Listovative
Top 4 Reason Why Family Is Important In Our Life | Worth of Read
10. Sports & Health
We all know staying healthy is important, yet that is easier said than done. With temptations such as TV, fast food and the like it can be challenging to find motivation and energy to bother with working out or cooking up healthy dishes.
However, when we write down sport or life-relate goals we force ourselves to be more specific and we are much more likely to achieve them just by the act of writing them down. Moreover, knowing you have a specific target to work towards is much more motivating and positive as opposed to merely puting in place self-imposed restrictions which is negative (just like I have conveyed that you should stop using New Year’s resolutions and rather make a bucket list).
15 Ways to Improve Your Fitness | Real Simple
The Importance of Physical Fitness | Health Status
That’s it folks. What do you think? Do you agree with these being 10 really important areas you ought to include on your bucket list? Did I miss anything?
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