For a few years now I’ve had what I called my 007 list, it was a list of things I wanted to do or learn over my lifetime. It has since expanded and I will now be lame and copy Hollywood by referring to it as my bucket list.

Just writing out the list brought so many thoughts into my head. I mean, it really makes you think about life. Take for instance Flying there is no way life would ever be the same after that. There is a quote that goes something like this:

“I can live more in a moment on my motorcycle than most people live in their entire lives.”

I’m sure I’ve blundered the quote but that wasn’t the point. How does one define life? Is it by the amount of money you’ve made, the number of lives you changed, how many girls you slept with? Perhaps it is the amount of unforgettable moments you experience. Or maybe it is how many times you smile.

Why is it that the majority of the world insists on defining one’s life by its length? The worst part is, I think that most people would agree with me that your life isn’t defined by how many years you worked or lived, its defined by a few amazing moments. When then do we focus so little energy on creating those moments and so much on mundane day to day life? This won’t be me I promise you, by the end of this year I will have taken significant steps towards achieving at least 3 things from my list.

This was supposed to be a simple list and I’ve turned it into an essay here. The last thing I’ll talk about is how this same philosophy on life needs to be applied to dating. Desperate for companionship people spend months or years in relationships that just seem to go by. 6 months, 2 years, 5 years people like to talk about how long they have dated for, but its usually meaningless. There can be more power and romance in a single moment than entire relationships, it really is a tragedy to see people miss this.

Ok enough is enough, here is the list of the things I will do before I kick the bucket:

Learn to ride a motorbike (done)

Learn to race a motorbike

Live in Africa

Discover what is left of mother nature. Gorillas in particular.

Learn to fly a plane

Fly a jetfighter

Visit Space

Learn how to fight

Learn 5 languages fluently

Fly

Escape a country wide manhunt, or something similarly exciting

Save someone’s life. Not in the abstract “Oh he got me off drugs and saved my life” way, I want to do that as well, but in the life and death falling off a cliff way

Sail the world

Live like a rockstar, including performances, for 6 months

Fight an impossible battle for a just cause

Marry someone I’ve known for less than 48 hours

Climb Everest

Heliski

Date a celebrity

Be a celebrity

Find total clarity

See the most beautiful place on earth

This has been a running list for me for a while, and I’m sure more will be added over time. I will frame this and put it up on the wall, I’m finding that when you tell the Universe you’re going to do something it tends to help you out.

Dan is an entrepreneur, practical psychologist and performance coach. For information on coaching opportunities with Dan, please email dan@leadinginmotion.com.