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Writing down wishes, drawing treasure maps, they always say that making your goals visual on paper helps you reach them. It just magically makes them happen. why is this?

Looking at old lists of things to accomplish is like getting letters from a younger self. Did it turn like I hoped it would? Have I accomplished any of my goals? Do I still want the same things? Am I the same girl at all?

Today I dug up a sort of life plan from over two years ago. It was very tongue in cheek at the time, but now made me swallow hard. Am I on this path? Do I want to be?

19.3.2003
Things I plan to do in the next six years:
Get to the pointe-shoes stage in ballet
Learn modern dance
Become very very flexible (physically)
Graduate with Master’s degree in architecture
with a topic for my doctoral thesis chosen
Fall in love, for real
Have a relationship
Live with someone
Live without any furniture but a matress
Then
Build a bed that is as wide as long, in
which you can sleep in any angle possible
and it should be very low and have
wheels so I could wheel it around
Paint one wall of my flat in some bright
colour (pink, turquoise?)
Do more photography
Find a hairstyle I actually like
Live in Italy
Learn to speak fluent italian
Travel
Read Russian Classics
And Peter Hoeg
Start my own design company

Things I don’t intend to do:
Dress my age
Get married
Have babies
Get rich
Become sensible
Or realistic

Now, two years later, I have the painted wall. I read more. I do more photography. I have learned modern dance and can start on pointè any time I want. I have my heart broken to pieces and I have a failed relationship that hopefully taught me something. I am living with someone (a friend) and I like my hair (dark is how it should be). My own design company is very much in the plans (and in the making). I don’t dress my age. No one calls me sensible. I want to have babies some day and marriage actually doesn’t sound so bad. I still want to learn italian. I went to the architecture school, but now doubt if it is the right place for me.

but clearly listing works.

thelist/july2005
find my dreams
have the courage to follow them
learn patience
do yoga regularly
draw comics
make pins and magnets (!)
start my own design company
and make a living
get illustration jobs
make my own fonts
write a book and get it published
learn italian/spanish
live abroad
travel more
find love
have children
own my own house
have a garden
and a dog
be well (the most important thing) and happy

p.s. what are your goals?

This entry was posted on Friday, July 1st, 2005 at 12:20 pm and is filed under life.