One of the books I’m currently working my way through is Goals! by Brian Tracy. This was recommended by hiker/explorer DonkeyLegs, whos hikes I had been following on the Appalachian Trail. Seeing as I had been in a bit of a rut, the 100 Goals list concept intrigued me.

One of the exercises in the book is to create a list of 100 things you would like to do in your lifetime, and no matter what you do not stop listing until you reach 100 items. So on a balmy summer evening this July, I enlisted Earl to join me and we sat on the patio under candlelight, splitting a bottle of wine while writing out our goals.

I was surprised at how easily the list came to me. I wrote furiously and quickly surpassed 100. Some goals were small and silly, others were big essential life-changing items. A few where X-rated and some were family oriented. Many where deep seeded goals which I have been harboring for years, whereas others struck my fancy right there on a whim. Very many of them are seemingly frivolous yet are surprisingly important to me. Happily, more than couple of them have already accomplished between July and today!

Later while perusing the web I also came across the website of Ian Usher, who earned international acclaim when he sold his life on ebay. He’s now continuing the momentum from his last endeavor and attempting 100 Goals in 100 Weeks. I poked around Ian’s site and was inspired how he listed his goals out in the open, upping the accountability factor. Ian’s website reminded me quite a bit of the style of my friend and triathlete Felix Wong, who posts of lists his goals and notes once they are accomplished. I’ve always admired Felix’s site and aspired to create something akin to his checklists. Aspects of each Ian and Felix site’s reminded me of why I initially started my Ironman blog, partially to document all the training out in the open and make sure I actually DID it all!

Paying homage to DonkeyLegs, Ian and Felix, I have posted my 100 Goals. A few of the more risque goals have been toned down with an editor’s eye for this site. Listing them all out was not only fun and rejuvenating, but also a bit grounding. It was almost as though creating the list helped center me closer to my purpose; I found myself reenergized and ready to start checking them off. I believe Brian Tracy would be proud!