Without a trip planned yet for 2016, I am suffering from some extreme wanderlust and general anxious feelings about the future and decision making.
Lately I've been having episodes of an existential crisis where it occurs to me so clearly:
YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE.
(that we know of).
I don't know why, but that YOLO phrase is echoing in my head so loudly. You only live once so what are you wasting your time for? What is it you want to do? How are you going to do it? When are you going to start? And here's a good jumping off point once you figure out what it is you want to do, both long and short term.
1.
Make a vision board. I haven't done this yet but I can picture it in my head. It's a giant cork board filled with images of tropical beaches, stretches of rolling landscapes, mountains, ancient ruins, serene humans doing yoga outdoors, unbelievably athletic people in high scale gyms on Spinning bikes, sun kissed girls doing stand up kayaking on a sea of turquoise, puppies, occupational therapists at work, and books.
2.
Determine, based on your vision board, what is most important to you. For me, it looks like this would be travel, health & recreation, puppies, and education.
3.
Make a realistic time-line of that importance. What can you do soon and as soon as possible? Realistically, you're going to have to be looking at your finances and budgeting. Maybe I can get Spinning certified in three months but I have to wait three years to save up for yoga certification. In the meantime I'm saving up for grad school and going on mini vacation every few months, but one big vacation per year. It's wonderful to want to do everything at once, but it also has to make sense and be possible.
4.
Do it. Take the first step. My first step of 2016 was realizing that if I don't get a move on applying to grad school, then sooner or later I'm going to be 30 and still not have my degree. I want it now, as soon as possible, and I have to be willing to put in the work. So I threw my hands up in the air and registered for a class at a local community college that I'll need as a pre-requisite for grad school (since I majored in Psych and decided a year after graduating that I want to be an Occupational Therapist). The phone call was my first step. Because your first step has to be action, not just dreaming about it.
5.
Figure out the second, third, fourth, etc steps. In February I plan to get Spinning certified. At the end of May I'd like to go on vacation, but I haven't decided where yet. I'm going to call some grad schools next week to check up on any other pre-requisites. This is action. Make the phone call. Start the plan.
WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?!
