Monday, August 27, 2012

Blog Series: 30 Things I've Already Done, Experienced, or Otherwise Accomplished

A mistake I made while composing my 30 before 30 list was looking at other randomly selected 30 Before 30 lists I found on the internet.  I was going through a bit of block halfway, and thought that reviewing the lists others have created would give me "inspiration". Instead, I managed to come away feeling unmotivated, unaccomplished, and old.

Some people's lists were clearly written in their early 20s, giving them nearly a decade to complete a highly ambitious list, such as managing to travel to every continent while earning advanced degrees and becoming successful in their field.  I glanced at my list (and the past few years of my life) and could feel self-doubt and disappointment creeping up.

I had already been feeling like I wasn't yet a "real adult".  I still ate dinner on the couch more often than at the table, because the table was too full of other stuff. My mattress had springs poking out and was currently residing on the bedroom floor, not a bedframe in sight. Real adults organized their mail, had regularly scheduled housecleanings and wouldn't be embarrassed if someone stopped over unexpectedly; real adults didn't have their mattresses on the floor.

The remedy, I decided, was to make a list of 30 things I've already done, experienced, or otherwise accomplished. 30 things I'm proud of, even if I accomplish nothing on the list I was working on. 30 things I can say I achieved before 28 1/2 (totally a real goalpost, you guys. Trust me).

So, here they are. Well, some of them. I'm going to be adding them slowly, discussing why each and every one of these items are things I'm proud to have accomplished. The order isn't leading up to the most important or anything, I just kind of organized it in a way that made sense to me.