101 Goals in 1001 Days

March 2, 2012

Several photographers I know have started or completed a 101 Goals in 1001 Days Project, including my dear friend RJ Kern. In fact, RJ and I started working together because of his list– I offered to help with a couple of the goals listed on his blog, and we started chatting about projects we’d like to do. It’s funny how life works like that sometimes.

I’ve been kicking around the idea of putting together my own list for awhile now. I tend to do better with goals- I was that obnoxious kid at school who always completed every assignment. My parents grounded me once from my homework. A list like this is a bit like creating a Life Syllabus for myself- I am who I am, what can I say?

Recently, I read Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project. It solidified for me how a project like this can be useful. She talks about happiness and unhappiness and how they’re not really polarized, “they aren’t opposite sides of the same emotion- they’re distinct and rise and fall independently.” Doing some things can help you feel good (traveling),  and decreasing the things that make you feel bad can add happiness (cutting crap food or getting rid of clutter.) Completing necessary or “right” tasks (her word) like taking care of medical check-ups and volunteering can increase happiness, but the most important factor she mentions is growth. As she says, “… it isn’t goal attainment but the process of striving after goals- that is, growth- that brings happiness.”

So with growth in mind, and a desire to revel in the process, I start my 101 in 1001 project. If you have your own goal project, I’d love to see them and see what I can help with, and if you see any goals you can help with, I’d appreciate that too. After all, you never know where collaboration might lead.

  • 1. Renew my Passport
    2. Have a Reason to Renew my Passport
    3. Girls Weekend in Manitou Springs
    4. Visit 3 Places I’ve Never Been in Colorado (1/3- Calhan)
    5. Financial Goal #1 (3/1/12)
    6. Financial Goal #2 (3/28/12)
    7. Financial Goal #3
    8. Create $0 Sum Monthly Budget
    9. Have a Garage Sale
    10. Have a No Spend Month
    11. Tailor Good Clothing
    12. Go to a Tasting Event
    13. Attend Cirque du Soleil
    14. Buy a New (to me) Car, Preferably Outright
    15. Take Advantage of Denver Restaurant Week
    16. Attend a Movie at Red Rocks
    17. Find 10 New Musicians I Enjoy  (3/10 The Lumineers, Of Monsters and Men, and The Black Keys)
    18. Wander through new places on South Broadway
    19. Complete Photo Essay of South Broadway
    20. Complete a Photo Essay of Museum Taxidermy
    21. Shoot @ BNC (for myself) for Movement
    22. Confirm my Blood Type (3/2/12)
    23. One Month without Crap Food
    24. Get Skin Screening 2 More Times
    25. Go to the Dentist 6 Times
    26. Legitimately Move up to 5 lbs Weights (I’m little, shush)
    27. Cook with 5 Fruits or Veggies I’ve Never Cooked (1/5 Artichoke)
    28. Actually Keep up with Quantum Faith Reading for 1 Book
    29. Do Dishes After Dinner Every Night for 1 Month (4/15/12)
    30. Create 50 Different Homemade Ice Creams (6/50)
    31. Create an Ice Cream Album
    32. Complete one “Let’s Do 52”- abandoned, I need a new goal!
    33. Perfect High Altitude Biscuits
    34. Finish My Chairs
    35. Finish my T-Shirt Quilt
    36. Finish Second Scotland Trip Album
    37. Finish year in Japan Album
    38. Take a Class Through SSPRD
    39. Sercret Goal #1
    40. Save over 50% with Coupons (5/1/12)
    41. Save over 75% with Coupons 4/13/12)
    42. Roast Drinkable Coffee
    43. Roast Delicious Coffee
    44. Say “Yes” to 10 Things I Normally Wouldn’t Do
    45. Accept
    46. Teach InDesign Class
    47. Take a Risk on Something Scary
    48. Secret Goal #2
    49. Secret Goal #3
    50. Secret Goal #4
    51. Support the Endeavors of 10 Friends (2/10)
    52. Host 3 Parties- Not Mother’s Day
    53. Meet Elowen Before her 1st Birthday (3/30/12)
    54. Use my Great-Grandmother and Great-Great-Grandmother’s Dishes
    55. Organize a Picture Day for Friends’ Kids
    56. Give BNC a 10 year Anniversary Present (4/12/12)
    57. Help AfterHours in the Park on Average Twice a Month (10/67)
    58. Complete our Website Redesign (3/29/12)
    59. Complete a Pricing Redesign
    60. Complete a Business Cards and Collateral Redesign
    61. Be Published in a National Blog or Magazine
    62. Complete the Transition to a Paperless Office
    63. Complete Flatland Test Shoot (4/5/12)
    64. Complete ### Test Shoot
    65. Complete ### Test Shoot
    66. Study 5 Photojournalistic Photographers for Depth and Dimension
    67. Finish Couture Book Portfolio Album
    68. Organize my Office
    69. Redecorate my Office (4/29/12)
    70. Go Through my Books 94/29/12)
    71. Go Through my Media
    72. Go Through my Clothing
    73. Go Through my Toiletries
    74. Clean out the Hutch and Kitchen
    75. Replace the Kitchen Sink (4/29/12)
    76. Redo the Downstairs Floor
    77. Fix the Living Room Ceiling
    78. Create a Reading Area
    79. Redo Downstairs Bathroom
    80. Paint Upstairs Bathroom Moulding and Doors
    81. Redo the Backyard
    82. Make an Inviting Patio Space
    83. Clean out the Linen Closet (4/29/12)
    84. Paint the Banisters and Railings
    85. Paint the Fireplace
    86. Paint and Replace Window Sills
    87. Organize the Basement
    88. Organize the Garage
    89. Be Able to Park in the Garage
    90. Complete Paleontology 101 (5/14/12)
    91. Complete Intro to Geology
    92. Complete Curation of Fossils
    93. Complete Paleontology of the Western Interior
    94. Complete Evolution
    95. Complete Lecture and Lab Course #1
    96. Complete Lecture and Lab Course #2
    97. Complete Writing and Research Course
    98. Complete the Schnozosaurus Book
    99. Secret Goal #6
    100. Review Goals at Halfway Point
    101. Make a new 101 in 1001 List

Anything in bold is completed, with the date I  completed it attached. My 1001 days will end on Thanksgiving  of 2014- kinda perfect, I thought.

-Amanda

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WOW Amanda, this is SO COOL! Good luck with your goals, and let me know if I can ever be of help on your journey!

Thank you Meredith!

I'm particularly fond of #2 and, of course, #53.^_^ Elowen eagerly awaits your arrival! (whether she knows it or not!) XD.

We're eager to get there too, and, of course, Totoro hats…

An A+ Joke for you? You must be kidding ;-).

This is full of awesome!

Thank you Taylor!

Great goals! Best of luck!

Thank you Tom!

Check off Number 22 = A+.

Linda Cowan Hall, thank you for your support! I only set something like this up because I know it fits with my personality. Some people can do daily photo projects year after year, and that would make me crazy- too much pressure, too much maintenance. Maybe there's a way of achieving goals and growth that better fits with your personality?

I thought that's what it was- I was pretty sure there was a joke to be made about needing to get an A+ in all things, including blood type

I'm having difficulty mustering the discipline to complete 1 thing in 1 week. A list like that looks overwhelming to me :- This is something I've been wanting to do for a long time, but I will have to start a bit smaller. My hat's off to you…it takes courage to put together a list like that.

WOW!! This is an amazing idea!! I wish I had the self-discipline to do something like this! Everyone always calls me our family historian, yet most of the info is still residing in my brain! Good luck to you…and don’t forget to have lots of fun!!! Blessed Be!

Thank you Jenn! If you’ve not read that book, I think you’d really enjoy it. I’d lend you mine, but that’s the obnoxious thing about Kindle copies. I’ll try to remember the fun thing ;). -A

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