30 before 30 (inspired by Small Strokes)
A few weeks ago, one of my favorite bloggers wrote a post with this very title. In it, she gave a list of 30 goals she’d like to accomplish before she turns 30. It struck a chord with me for a few reasons. I am a list-maker. I love making to-do lists, and I especially love the satisfying feeling of crossing things off the list. Like Ashley, I have always written down weekly or daily to-do lists, but I’ve never written down long-term goals. They’re always there, and I turn them over and over in my mind. But I like the idea of writing them down, crossing them off, and writing about it along the way.
So why 30 before 30? Well, I liked Ashley’s idea! I’ll turn 26 this February and I keep joking that “I’m going to be closer to 30 than 20!” Some of these are big goals, some are smaller… and I have until February 4, 2015 to accomplish them. (Wow! That sounds like a long time!) I’m sure I’ll add to the list in the next four years or so, and some of the goals on it may evolve or change. But here is where I stand today.
- Complete Ironman 70.3 (Half Ironman)
- Find an organization system that works in my home, so that the house is de-cluttered nearly every night
- Turn the basement into a “living space”
- Find a church that feels like home, even if that means ending up right back where we started
- Travel to Europe
- Make the master bedroom a relaxing haven instead of a place to hide the clutter
- Run a 2:30:00 half marathon
- Learn to sew (simple things — a button, a hem, a patch)
- Host a holiday party for my extended family
- Compile my grandparents’ stories
- Make homemade soup
- Build a storage bench for the entryway in our house (hey, Dad… you might have to help me with this one!)
- Attend a Girls on the Run Summit
- Take a flying lesson
- Replace our carpeting
- Organize and purge boxes in my office and the basement
- Transfer photos and important documents to an external hard drive and back it up
- Take a Crystal Lake Jaycees project from start to finish (initial CPG, run the project, etc.)
- Join a book club
- Repair the front steps
- Create a filing system for important documents
- Learn to change a flat tire on my bike (not just understand it conceptually — do it)
- Compile family recipes
- Begin to make an annual donation to my alma mater, Clarke University
- Take a warm and sunny beach vacation
- Learn to use the manual settings on my camera
- Order an Ulcerative Colitis cookbook and try to find new, healthy recipes that I can tolerate
- Organize a girls’ getaway and try to make it an annual tradition
- Present at a conference
- Learn to play chess
8 Responses to 30 before 30 (inspired by Small Strokes)
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I'm Lauren, a 27-year-old who is passionate about many things, from running and triathlon to sharing my life with ulcerative colitis.
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Great list! I think those are all attainable goals for you and I know you can do it! But, PS I love the loose brick on your front step. It makes me feel happy when I step on it. Is that weird?
A lot of that list could be ID projects with the Jaycees.
YES a fun list….and fun things to accomplish before 30! That is commendable for sure! GO LAUREN!
xxo
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