ON A MISSION FOR FUN
Monday Motivation Quickie
Harnessing the power of a bucket or f**ket list
It’s a new year, and everyone’s talking about resolutions. By next week, we’ll avoid the topic because we tunneled our way through the bag of Oreos one week after we swore them off forever.
We’ve all done it. We miscalculated the amount of willpower we cultivated over the past year — even though we took no action to prepare ourselves for even the smallest of goals. And because of our selective amnesia, we forget that the same thing happened last year and the year before that and the year before that.
Statistics repeatedly show that only a tiny percentage of people (I’m talking single digits. . . . and by single digits, I mean like two people) follow through with resolutions. So, why do we put ourselves through all the torture?
Humans are striving creatures. We find purpose in working toward goals. The problem with striving for something so big and immediate is that it can be challenging and stressful, which some people are cut out for (remember those two people I mentioned earlier?) and others are not (almost all of us).
This leads me to a conversation I had with co-editor Toni Greathouse. We were talking about doing a Monday Motivation prompt, and she was talking about bucket lists. I immediately chimed in and said, “Yes, that’s what I’ll use as the next prompt’s theme.” Thank you, Toni!
The thing about Toni is that she always comes up with a wealth of ideas. It’s hard not to feel inspired in her company, and she makes me want to be a better and more uplifting person and writer. But when I’m out of her company, my old demons come back to haunt me. That’s when trouble strikes.
I want to honor the idea of a bucket list — if nothing else, to thank my dear friend for her worthwhile suggestion. I like the idea of a bucket list — those things we want to accomplish before we die. Examples might include: cruising around the world, skydiving, or finally signing up for open mic night at the local comedy club (like your friends have been telling you to do for years).
Bucket lists are unlike resolutions because items on our bucket list require time and planning to accomplish them — so we are often met with success. On the other hand, resolutions are more challenging because we usually don’t plan as well for them, and they tend to challenge our minds and bodies in ways they don’t want to be pushed — which is why we usually fail.
Which sounds funner — going to Norway to see the Northern Lights or eating only celery and cucumber sticks until you can fit into your skinny jeans from high school? That’s why a bucket list item is better than a resolution.
The challenge I have with coming up with a bucket list is that I don’t know when I will die, so how do I plan accordingly? It’s a morbid thought, but it’s probably the least twisted thing that rattles around in my brain.
So, here’s my tradeoff: If you find it hard to write about a bucket list because it seems too stressful, possibly because you’ve got way too much on your lists already (to-do lists, goals list, grocery lists, etc.), I offer a counterbalance — a fucket list.
Now, hear me out. Some of us are aspirational (like Toni Greathouse), and some of us, despite our higher natures begging us to listen, are devolutionists — we sink rather than rise. So, as a compromise for those of us on a downward spiral, I offer you the opportunity to let go of the big goal or goals that have been weighing you down.
Whether we create a bucket or fucket list, we basically want the same thing — liberation to choose how we spend our days. Whether that includes soaking up the rays on the sandy beaches of Fiji or spending our days like it is 4:20 pm all day, we get to choose.
While bucket lists are admirable and inspiring, fucket lists can be downright funny. Both are fun, so let’s share our grand visions here. Perhaps we’ll find some playmates to join us on our journeys.
If you would like some Canva-generated designs to accompany your article, Co-Editor Toni the Talker (Toni Greathouse) has offered some up for free. THANK YOU, TONI! CLICK HERE to view her article where the designs are parked.
