My Mission 101

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.
2. Stay Focussed. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.
3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.
4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.

My start date: February 13, 2009 (Friday the 13th, yipes!)
My end date: November 11, 2011 (11-11-11, muuuuuchhh better)

The List

In Progress
Finished

The Mission
22.) Inspire someone else to make a 101 in 1001 days list.
70.) Write a new list.
81.) Create a blog and update with progress weekly.
82.) Post photos of progress whenever possible.

Family and Friends
5.) Make 5 new friends. (0/5)
10.) Acquire all family and friends contact info and birthdays and put it in the book.
19.) Do something to make D feel special everyday. (15/1001)
30.) Take 10 walks with D in different places. (0/10)
32.) Meet an online friend.
34.) Tell everyone who is important to me, happy birthday, via card, email, text, or phone call.
52.) Have one date a week with D. (2/143)
59.) Take a weekend trip with mom.
60.) Visit two friends out of state. (0/2)
64.) Have a girls night 10 times. (0/10)
69.) Plan one elaborate candlelight dinner for two.
71.) Host a major holiday.

Culture and Travel
23.) Take one real vacation outside of the state for more than one weekend.
83.) Try food from 10 different cultures. (0/10)

Health and Hygiene
3.) Go one week without soda. (0/7)
27.) Tidy up in my room for 10 minutes everyday for 2 weeks. (0/14)
28.) Clean the entire house (including laundry) once every two weeks for 6 months. (0/12)
29.) Drink two bottles of water per day everyday for 2 months. (0/60)
31.) Go one month without "bad for you" fast food.
36.) Quit smoking.
37.) Get teeth whitened in celebration of no smoking.
39.) Workout at least twice a week for 6 months (once at home, once at gym), workout at least 3 times a week for 6 months (at least once in gym, preferably twice), and workout at least 4 times a week for 6 months (twice at home, twice in gym). (Workouts must be for at least half hour per time.)
56.) Brush teeth and wash face everynight for 2 months. (0/60)
57.) Clean out my car once every other week. This may include washing. (1/72)
61.) Lose 15 pounds. (0/15)
62.) Get professional massages once every 6 months. (0/5)
67.) Eat breakfast every workday for one month.
74.) Do not eat after 8 pm for 2 weeks. (0/14)
75.) Complete the hundred push-up challenge. Hundredpushup.com
84.) Complete a detoxification program.
90.) Only take the stairs, and park in a farther spot for a month. (0/30 days)

Charity and Random Acts of Kindness
6.) Donate blood.
9.) Pay for someone’s meal at a drive through.
35.) Give 10 "Just Because" gifts. (0/10)
47.) Volunteer for 20 hours. (0/20)
48.) Donate 5 dollars for any item not completed.
79.) Donate 500,000 grains through freerice.com (350/500,000)
85.) Participate in an Adopt-a-Child or Adopt-a-Family program every year. (0/3)

Education and Mental Growth
4.) Get a library membership and take out at least 2 books a month. (0/33)
14.) Become fluent in Spanish again.
15.) Reread/refresh/relearn my chemistry by going through my general, analytical, and forensic chemistry book again.
16.) Study for and take the GRE.
17.) Enroll in graduate classes.
18.) Learn enough ASL to be able to hold a conversation with a deaf person.
80.) Complete one course on iLearn every 3 months. (1/11)

Finances and Budgeting
40.) Put 50 dollars per paycheck into savings. (3/143)
42.) Save all spare change until the end of 1001 days, then deposit to savings.
66.) Weekly, determine how much I've earned each week. Whatever is over 475/week (not including the 50 deposited from each paycheck) may be used for other trivial expenses. (0/143) ($___)
73.) Record every penny spent for 90 days. (0/90)
86.) Create and stick to a budget.

Materialism
*I'm leaving this catagory, because I have a few more goals to be added later, which could include purchases.*

Personal Growth
2.) Identify 101 things that make me happy (not family or friend related).
11.) Write 10 letters and mail them. (0/10)
21.) Make a list of 101 things I love about myself.
25.) Collect meaningful quotes.
33.) Dress up on an average day.
38.) Wear makeup everyday that I don't work a double for 2 months.
41.) Say nothing negative about anything or anyone (including myself) for one week straight.
44.) Cook dinner once a month, until I have the real job, then increase to once a week. (0/33)
50.) Find a permanent full-time job in my field.
51.) Get a merit based raise or promotion at this job.
53.) Notice my tone, and do not use THAT one. If I find that I am, stop talking. Immediately.
54.) Update LJ at least once a week. Include in that update: (1/143)
1.) Something that I was grateful for that week.
2.) Something nice that I did for someone else.
3.) A time that I successfully refrained from my undesirable emotional behavior.
55.) Clean up my computer.
65.) Organize my iTunes.
68.) Get a planner and use it.
72.) Try 15 new restaurants. (1/15)
-Carrabbas
76.) Grow out my hair. (Trimmed on 2/24/09)
87.) Wake up before 8am every day for two weeks.
88.) Do holiday-related activities for one of every major holiday in the year. (i.e. dye Easter eggs, carve pumpkins, make Valentines, gingerbread houses/ornaments, etc.)
89.) Learn to play one sport semi-well.
91.) Go two months without missing a single day OR BEING LATE to work. (0/60)

Entertainment
26.) Watch 101 movies I haven't seen before. (0/101)
-Friday the 13th (2-13-09)
58.) Go to comedy club 5 times. (0/5)
63.) Go to 3 concerts. (0/3)
78.) Go to an amusement park 2 times. (0/2)

Creativity
1.) Complete 12 assignments from learningtoloveyoumore.com
7.) Take a picture a day. (0/1001)
8.) Brush up on crochet, and/or learn how to knit actually functional things.
12.) Develop a memory journal, and a photo journal.
13.) Update the memory and photo journal at least once a week. (0/143)
20.) Take pictures in a photo booth.
24.) Build a sand castle.
43.) Compile recipes, and create a cookbook.
45.) Print and organize all photos.
46.) Create 3 half hour long playlists for the gym. (0/3)
49.) Learn more about my camera, and learn how to take quality photos with it.
77.) Do a DITL 6 times. (0/6)
92.) Decorate my walls by painting and/or hanging art.

I'm leaving 93.) through 101.) to be completed at a later date, as my life may change and bring unexpected possibilities, so I want to reserve the right to incorporate them, as well as reasonable tweaking to my list.