The premise of 101 Things in 1001 Days is rather simple: come up with 101 things you want to do in the next 1001 days, and then do them!
It’s a great way to force yourself to try new things, get out of your comfort zone, and just generally improve your life. Full disclosure – I’ve already done it twice in the past, but given that my life situation is so vastly different from my last attempt (in 2020), I’ve simply decided to just start over to make it more relevant for my life as it stands today.
How to Create Your Own 101 Things in 1001 Days List
To get started, all you need to do is come up with your 101 things. They can be big or small, easy or difficult, serious or silly. Just make sure they’re things that you really want to do. It’s your list after all.
Once you have your list, it’s time to start crossing things off! Just remember to have fun, and don’t be too hard on yourself if you don’t manage to complete everything on your list. After all, part of the point is to challenge but also enjoy yourself.
A few tips I’ve learned from my previous attempts:
1| Make it personal
It is YOUR list after all. Think of things that make you happy, your medium-to-long-term goals, things you haven’t done in a while but want to get back to, and projects you’ve been meaning to do – these should give you enough ideas for creating your list.
2| Look around for ideas
If you’re still struggling with coming up with ideas, take a look around some of the existing 101 in 1001 list ideas out there. Mackenzie Horan’s list is a good one (and in my mind, I think of her as the OG when it comes to these lists) and she features a ton of other bloggers with their own lists as well.
3| It’s okay to pivot
Sometimes your life may shape up rather differently from when you first put out your list and a lot of things may no longer remain relevant. Don’t think of your list as this static thing that you have to complete no matter what. Feel free to update it, or even completely change direction and create a new list.
The idea behind the list is to link it to things you want to do, and it’s only understandable if a change in your life circumstances prompts you to go in a different direction. Don’t lose heart if you need to update or pivot, is all I am saying.
4| Allow yourself room to dream
I like to think of the 101 in 1001 list as a parallel exercise to vision boarding. It’s a good place to start listing things that will help you build the life you dream of. Let’s say you want to pay off all your loans in 5 years. Break that up into smaller chunks and add a mini-milestone to your current 101 in 1001 list.
5| Specific is good, but some broad-stroke ideas are okay too
It’s not a secret that making your goals as specific as possible is the key to achieving them. And yes, that’s true when you’re working on your 101 in 1001 list as well. However, as I said, it is YOUR list. If you want to add in some broader ideas, that’s completely alright too.
I mean, I have “Waste less (time, money, food, mind space)” listed as one of the items on my list. Super vague, I know. But it’s a bit of a mental goal for me. In this specific example, it’s about a frame of mind for me. I know I have wasteful habits right now, and while yes, I can put down some specifics on how to waste less time/money/food, to me it’s more important for me to feel that I am less wasteful.
I don’t know if that makes much sense to you… but I guess what I am trying to say is to be intuitive. Put down things that make sense to you – however they make sense! This exercise is not about creating something for pleasing others – it’s all about you and the life you want to live and create.
My 101 in 1001 List (2022-2025)
To start things off, here’s my list (maybe the third time’s the charm after all!). If this inspires you to create your own list, do email and let me know – I’d be happy to feature a link to your post as well (if it’s public)!
So well, here it goes:
Start Date: 23rd October 2022
End Date: 20th July 2025
Travel:
- View the Milky Way with my own eyes
- Take a cooking class in a foreign country
- Stay at one of the Aman or Belmond properties
- Watch the Northern Lights
- Visit at least one out of these countries: Morocco, Iceland, Portugal
- Revisit Paris
- Visit 5 new countries
- Visit an African safari
- Watch a major sporting event live (most probably tennis or football)
- Take 5 weekend trips from Singapore
- Spend a birthday outside of home base
- Spend New Year’s Eve/Day outside of home base
Family & Friends:
- Visit Denver for my sister-in-law’s graduation
- Go on a holiday with my parents
- Help my parents renovate their house
- Plan at least one vacation together with siblings, cousins, and niblings
- Meet with my high school girlfriends (individually or all together, as is feasible)
Wellness:
- Improve my hair and skin health
- Figure out a skincare routine that works for me
- Go on a wellness retreat
- Heal myself (physically & mentally) from the inside out so that I can get off my current meds
- Do regular healing work to release trapped emotions
- Get an annual health checkup done every year
- Try out a Tai Chi or Qigong class
- Make yoga, meditation, and morning walks a regular part of my life
- Try acupuncture
- Establish a sustainable meal timings schedule
- Get trained in some healing modalities
- Get my BMI back to the normal range
- Move towards a cola-free life
Creative/Side Hustle Pursuits:
- Complete a thorough blog audit by December 2022 and update/delete posts as needed
- Post at least once a week on the blog for at least 3 months at a stretch
- Start a more personal blog/newsletter
- Publish 12 travel guides on said personal blog/newsletter
- Make US$ X in online sales
- Update and streamline my email sequences
- Start a regular writing practice
- Create a content management workflow sorted out for my creative pursuits
- Launch/relaunch a couple of Etsy shops
- Launch an e-course
- Get featured in a reputed publication
- Organize my creative work-related digital files for easier workflow/productivity
Financial Planning:
- Build net worth to US$ X
- Build an emergency fund of 6 months of expenses
- Pay off all debt
- Solidify my health insurance coverage
- Make my will
- Increase my SIPs from the current levels by 100%
- Find a budget/savings/investment plan that works for me
Singapore/Home Things:
- Go on 5 hikes/walks around Singapore’s parks
- Upgrade to a comfortable 2-bedroom apartment
- Replace the current coffee table
- Put up all of the art pieces and make a gallery wall
- Buy and maintain some real plants
- Buy an electrical steam mop for home
- Dispose of all extra/non-functional electronic accessories
- Figure out a proper work desk setup at my current house
Treat Yo’ Self:
- Buy flowers for myself
- Upgrade my phone
- Buy myself 1 “big brand” bag as a milestone gift
- Buy and learn to use the Dyson Airwrap
- Buy a statement jewelry piece for my 40th birthday
- Buy a 24” Macbook
- Buy an original art piece
Work:
- Create a client management workflow sorted out for my work
- Create a system for tracking my work “wins”
- Get new headshots taken for work
- Get my work (and personal email) under control
- Sign on at least 5 new clients at work
Culture/For Fun:
- Start using the Kindle for reading ebooks
- Watch all of the Star Trek, Star Wars, and Godfather movies
- Re-read and re-watch the Lord of the Rings trilogy
- Read 50 non-fiction books
- Read (or re-read) 20 classics
- Go to 3 concerts
- Watch 5 plays/musicals
- Take a fun art class (like an art & wine class, or something like that)
- Complete a 500- or 1000-piece puzzle
- Visit 5 museums
Habits, Systems & Organization:
- Start a habit-tracking system
- Restart my written gratitude practice
- Stay off social media for at least one week
- Figure out a digital/hybrid note-capturing system
- Do a life audit 1x/year
- Make a 5-year and a 10-year plan
- Figure out a system for storing all digital items (photos, documents, (non-Kindle) ebooks, e-courses etc.)
Others:
- Complete 12 30-day challenges (take inspiration from this list)
- Do 5x 30-day shopping bans (0/5)
- Go on a 3 month ‘digital products’ shopping ban
- Date/fall in love again
- Make a memory book using Moleskine/Milk notebook
- Get a library/Libby membership ✓
- Fill up a notebook all the way to the end
- Make a new vision board every year on my birthday
- Try out 25 new recipes
- Make at least 1 recipe from each of my current cookbooks
- Zap it all out – laser/IPL hair removal
- Waste less (time, money, food, mind space)
- Learn and develop my personal sense of (fashion) style
- Get a psychic reading done (ideally once a year, around my birthday) (1/3)
- Write a list of 101 things I’ve already achieved so far
I find this “101 things in 1001 days” format a fun alternative to typical new year’s resolutions and instead of waiting for the new year, I wanted to sync it up to around my birthday. But you can start anytime you want – no need to wait for a special date to come around!
Go on then – put your thinking caps on and make your own list. Email me or let me know in the comments below if you want to share your 101 in 1001 list!
