Success Advice
Why You Should Write Down 100 Goals For 2021 And Beyond
Three years ago, I wrote down 100 goals in my journal. It was harder than I thought it would be. Among these riveting goals that my young brain came up with were “Go to Coachella,” “Climb Everest,” and “Cook with Gordon Ramsay.” Absolutely riveting, I know.
Despite these brainless entries, I did come up with a few goals that shaped my life today. I wrote “Go to the Philippines” in my journal–I now live in the Philippines full-time. I wrote “Start a Youtube channel” as well, and now I have a bustling channel with 140,000 subscribers.
The fact is, writing down 100 goals for my life three years ago gave me incredible direction. Given how much this simple exercise has helped me, I’m certain it can also help you, the reader.
Here’s how to perform the “100 goals” experiment yourself:
1. Writing Down Your First 20 Goals Is Easy
Got a pen? Good. Got a piece of paper? Now we’re talking. Write out your first twenty numbers and get going on filling them with goals. Truthfully writing out your first twenty goals will be very easy. You likely know exactly what you want to do, right? Some big goals might be to buy a house, get married, start a side-hustle, learn how to speak Spanish, and other various things.
Get those first twenty goals out and then brace for the worst case of writer’s block you could possibly imagine.
“Goals. There’s no telling what you can do when you get inspired by them. There’s no telling what you can do when you believe in them. And there’s no telling what will happen when you act upon them.” – Jim Rohn
2. How To Write Down Your Next 80 Goals
When you have writer’s block during this exercise, it’s likely because you’re being too picky. “Cook with Gordon Ramsay” is an absolutely ludicrous goal of mine, however I still wrote it, right? I wrote it because I was trying to get out of my own way. I trained myself to write absolutely anything that came into my mind.
I don’t care if one of your goals is to go play professional soccer and you’re currently 50 years old. Write it down. I don’t care if your goal is essentially impossible. Write it down. This will help you get the exercise done.
Here’s a list of my personal goals that I wrote down three years ago…
- Go To Europe
- Live in San Francisco
- Start a Successful Youtube Channel
- Write a book
- Write an insanely viral article
- Start a consulting/coaching business
- Maintain a high level of fitness
- Go to Coachella *Winces*
- Write a screenplay
- Get nominated for an award in entertainment
Out of these first ten goals, I’ve already done four of them. The problem is I have another 90+ goals on this list that I’m far from accomplishing. You may be feeling a little overwhelmed here. You might be saying to yourself, there’s no way I’ll ever get to visit the Pyramids or get elected to public office. Those thoughts may come to your mind. Banish them immediately. It’s normal to get those thoughts, but tell them to go away for just twenty minutes while you write your goals down.
3. Break Up Your Goals By These 5 Categories
For one, break down your goals based on five different categories: Work, Relationships, Location, House, and Hobbies. Let’s take a look at some of my goals for a second…
Go on a road trip out West with my Dad. That’s relationships. Go to Europe. That’s a location. Run a marathon. That’s more or less a hobby or like a leisure activity. Work on a movie set. That’s work.
When you’re writing down these goals and you’re at a loss for what goals to write down next, just think in terms of category. Think about a few goals you can add to your “relationships” stockpile, or a few goals you can add to your “house” stockpile.
For instance, I want to build a house in beautiful Bohol, Philippines. I want to have a brick oven in my home, too. These could be categorized under a “home” goal. You can add categories if you wish, too. I saw someone write down “Faith” as one of theirs, so get creative–your list doesn’t need to revolve around the five categories I’ve mentioned here.
“If you set goals and go after them with all the determination you can muster, your gifts will take you places that will amaze you.” – Les Brown
4. Your Life Will Magically Follow Some Of These 100 Goals
Three years later, I’ve found my life has almost magically followed my 100 goals. So far, just three years later, I’ve accomplished sixteen of them. I’m convinced that simply listing down what you want in a journal can act as a sort of cosmic hand influencing you and pointing you in the right direction. You’ll subconsciously work towards many of your goals without knowing it.
Now, to be honest, many of my initial 100 goals are ones I’ll never accomplish. I have no desire to work on a film set right now, and living in San Francisco? That’s where rent prices are some of the highest in the world. What was I thinking?
You won’t bowl a strike every time writing down your goals, but that’s not the objective. The objective is to drain your brain of every goal you might ever want. It’s a 100 goal exercise on purpose–it’s hard to write down that many at one time.
Once you do, though, you best believe that every desire you’ve ever had is likely right in front of your face. You’ll be looking at a roadmap for your life, and that’s a pretty amazing gift to give yourself.