62: how to turn bucket list goals into practical plans
craft a year you'll love 2
For decades, “Learn Spanish” was at the top of my bucket list. Finally, last June, after not being able to communicate with an UberEats guy in Miami, I started Duolingo.
Today, I crossed my 483 day streak. I could definitely speak to the UberEats guy in Miami. My next milestone is to speak and understand (that’s the tricky part) enough for my sabbatical in a couple years.
“Visit All 50 States” is also on my bucket list. I’ve been at 27 for years.
Next year, I want to knock another one out. I’m eyeing West Virginia.
I’ve been to all the states around it - Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Kentucky. Not yet to WV. I’ve not had reason to, but I want to see it.
I strongly believe that we should know the place we live in. America is so diverse, and I’ve only seen half of it. I’m looking forward to the other half.
There’s much more on my bucket list. Countries I want to spend months in (Italy, Greece, lately Mexico). Stories I want to tell. Money I want to make. Daring adventures I want to take.
I feel like they were on pause for a while. Not just the last 2 years of intense caregiving.
I feel like I’m re-emerging from a spell cast almost a decade ago.
My desires are awakening again, and I’m moving toward them.
In this season, I believe in magic AND action. Both are in a beautiful dance.
I know how to vision AND how to plan. Meaning, I see the big picture and the steps to get there.
I also have the capacity to take the steps. The emotional, mental, and financial resources. The practical know-how. The experience. And that capacity is growing.
Last week, I talked about creating the container for your year.
Now, I’ll talk about what you put in it.
The Planning Process: The Dance Between Dreaming and Doing
Planning is a multi-directional process.
It involves checking in for current resources to see what you have for the journey ahead. It takes looking beyond the immediate milestone to ensure that the milestone is on the way to the overall vision. It takes breaking down the steps between here and the next milestone.
It’s like driving from Charlotte to Los Angeles. The trip is 35 hours and 2,500 miles. You can’t see Los Angeles from Charlotte, but you can envision it.
Sure, you can just hop in the car and take off, hoping to get there eventually. Or, you can start off with a map, information on how to get there, and maybe some things to see along the way.
You’ll have some milestones in between. You can make detailed plans to get to the first milestone. You’ll know what to pack for that milestone and how much gas it’ll take. You can assess again once you get to the first milestone how you want to approach the next leg of the trip.
Sometimes, you look back to celebrate how far you’ve come and reminisce on the finds, foods, and friends made along the way.
Same for planning.
It’s not a one and done process. It’s constantly zooming in and out. Checking in and looking forward. Even sometimes looking back for perspective.
That’s how I plan anyway.
How Action-Oriented Goals Lead to Desired Outcomes
I started off by sharing about my bucket list because it’s the bits that make up my vision for my life well lived.
As I look toward 2025, I check in with my bucket list to see what I want to experience from it in the upcoming year. Those are the things I put in the container.
I also have “goals”. Concrete items that move me toward the bucket list and my desired lifestyle.
Most of my goals are action-oriented, not outcome-oriented.
Action-oriented goals are within my control. I can assess whether I did it or not.
Outcome-oriented goals are relatively out of my control, with one HUGE caveat. They are usually the natural result of successful action-oriented goals.
For example, I have an outcome-oriented goal to increase my options account by 10% every 30 days. I don’t control the markets and I’m a novice trader. 10% every 30 days is a reach.
My action-oriented goal is to stick to my disciplines. That’s completely within my control. It’s very likely that when I stick to my disciplines, I’ll hit my outcome-oriented goal.
Another example of an outcome-oriented goal is that I’d like 250 readers subscribed by the end of 2025.
Out of my control, but more likely if I achieve my action-oriented goal of publishing a Letter from Nneka every week and doing weekly outreach.
See the dance?
Tell me, what’s on your bucket list?
What are you planning in 2025 that checks something off or gets you closer?
In Joy,
Nneka
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