So this year I hit 40—your “fabulous 40s,” as some say. And they’re right, but only if we choose for these years to be fabulous…
It seems this fateful day in a woman’s life commands at least a tinge of reverence. A moment of pause. You see, some people believe we have the choice to live “two lives” within our one lifetime—that we’re presented with a fork in the road during this 40-something transition period of our lives, when we have one seemingly simple choice: We can either start living by embracing what’s to come in “Act II” or we can make excuses for not participating in life the way we once did and thereby get started dying.
Take a minute right now to stop and think about this pivotal choice…
Think about your parents.
Think about older friends and co-workers and relatives.
How have they chosen to handle their Act II?
Personally, I was shocked by how easily the people I know seemed to fall under one category or the other. I immediately smiled, thinking of my father, who started doing triathlons in his 50s. I also thought of my mentor, Patti, who decided to follow her dreams and travel abroad to New Zealand solo in her 60s. Then my heart sank as I thought of other people I care about who fall on the opposite side of the spectrum.
We have to make the conscious choice to start living. So, let’s ROCK our Act II together!
Okay… so what does that look like? Well, it’s different for every woman, but one way to “get started living” is to create a LIFE LIST to spur you into action from here on out.
Bucket List Ideas Or LIFE Bucket List Inspiration?
I strongly encourage you to focus on the JOY of LIVING while looking through the 200 Life List ideas below. Don't think of it necessarily as a “Bucket List” of things to do before you die. Instead look it as a LIFE Bucket List where you focus on living. It’s a subtle—but important—difference!
The collection of ideas below is meant to be a starting point, so you don’t have to feel intimidated by staring at a blank sheet of paper as you create your list of things you want to try yet. (Getting started is always the hardest part of any task.)
Simply pick and choose the ideas below that suit you and your interests best. Then disregard the rest. Hopefully, a few of these suggestions will inspire you to keep adding to your personalized Life List.
200 Life-List Ideas for Women
Stand Under a Waterfall
Knit a Scarf
Leave a 100% Tip for a Server
Join a Book Club
Ride on a Ferris Wheel
Swim in the Ocean
Find the Perfect Black Dress
Visit Your Childhood Home
Create a Family Tree
Walk on a Black Sand Beach
Make a Candle
Wear Fake Eyelashes
Jump into a Pool Fully Clothed
Attend a Murder Mystery Dinner
Ride in a Hot-Air Balloon
Make a Kiva.com Loan
Get a Henna Tattoo
Eat Fondue
Watch the IMDB Top-50 Movies
Go Whale-Watching
Have No Credit Card Debt
Watch the Sunrise and the Sunset in One Day
See a Ballet
Kiss in the Rain
See a Coral Reef
Make Mosaic Art
Drive Route 66
Swim with a School of Fish
See a Broadway Musical
Take Pictures in a Photo Booth
Tour a Vineyard
Attend a Poetry Reading
Do a Boudoir Photo Shoot
Learn a Line Dance
See a Broadway Play
Make Soap
Go to a Drive-In Movie
Take a Bikram Yoga Class
Organize a Family Portrait
See Times Square
Design a Room You Love
Take a Vacation Solo
Work on a Pottery Wheel
Do a Random Act of Kindness
Get a Professional Body Massage
Do the Hula
Start a Blog
Have a Dinner Party
Go a Week Without Makeup
Develop a Passive Income Stream
Sing a Karaoke Duet
Create a Flower Arrangement
Go on a Cruise
See Niagara Falls
Have Your Palm Read
Hit the Town with Bright-Red Lips
Go to a Book Signing
Make a Tie-Dye Shirt
Eat Southern BBQ in the South
Take an Art Class
Go to the Movies by Yourself
Put Change into Someone’s Expired Parking Meter
Throw a Themed Party
Watch All the Oscar-Winning Movies
Send a Care Package to a Soldier
Serve Food at a Soup Kitchen
Attend a Black-Tie Gala
Do a Cleanse
Create a Piece of Art
Travel Outside of Your Own Country
Get a Foot Massage
Dress in Super-Sexy Lingerie
Duplicate an Outfit from a Magazine
Reconnect with an Old Friend
Ride a Zipline
Participate in a 5K Race
Get a Brazilian Wax
Unplug for a Week
Make Homemade Ice Cream
Hike the Narrows at Zion National Park
See the Northern Lights
When you look into infinity, you realize there are more important things than what people do all day. — Calvin & Hobbes
Get Fitted for a Bra
Spend the Day at a Resort Spa
Take a Mud Bath
Throw a Dart at a Map and Just Go
Have 3 Months’ Worth of Bills in Savings
Make Fresh Pasta
Stay in a 5-Star Resort
Take a Cooking Class
Attend a Winemakers Dinner
Get a Bikini Wax
Learn Another Language
Boil a Live Lobster
Get a Complete Makeover
Catch, Cook, and Eat a Fish All by Yourself
Make Paper
Go Canoeing
Cook with Your Partner
Start Fire Without Matches
Eat Breakfast in Bed
Sleep on Satin Sheets
Go Wine-Tasting
Host a Cookie Exchange
Cook a Traditional Dish from a Different Culture
Learn to Use Chopsticks
Pay for the Coffee/Meal of the Person Behind You at the Drive-Thru
Learn to Play an Instrument
Make a Gingerbread House
Cook Every Dish in One Cookbook
Toss Pizza Dough in the Air
Be a Tourist in Your Own Town
Learn to Meditate
Build a Sandcastle
Complete a 1,000-Piece Jigsaw Puzzle
Do the Polar Bear Plunge
Recreate a Childhood Recipe
Finish a Crossword Puzzle
Start an Herb Garden
Learn the Heimlich Maneuver
Own an Original Piece of Artwork
Cook a Fancy Holiday Dinner
Skinny-Dip
Photobomb Someone
Send a Message in a Bottle
Stay at a Dude Ranch
Stay Awake for 24 Hours
Be an Organ Donor
Build a House with Habitat for Humanity
Do 24 Hours of Silence
Participate in a Charity Walk
Climb a Volcano
Entertain Residents at a Nursing Home
Help Someone with a Check on Their Life List
Go for a Fish Pedicure
Give Blood
Plant a Tree
Feed a Homeless Person
Build a Rock Cairn
Walk on a Glacier
Read a Banned Book
Learn Manual Photography
Ride on a Train
Read a Classic Novel
Read a New York Times Best Seller
Read a Trilogy
Send Flowers to Yourself
Spend a Day Helping at a Children’s Hospital
Play a Game of Paintball
Sail a Boat
Roll in a Huge Pile of Leaves
Skydive
Spend a Week at a Silent Retreat
Get a Spa Pedicure
Stay at an All-Inclusive Resort
Swim with Dolphins
Walk a Suspension Bridge
Go Whitewater Rafting
Get a Makeup Lesson
Sponsor a Child’s Wish through the Make-a-Wish Foundation
Climb to the Top of a Tree
Go to a Renaissance Festival
Make a Snowman
Milk a Cow
Name a Star
Relax in a Natural Hot Spring
Ride in a Horse and Carriage
Drive a Snowmobile
Write a Letter to Your Future Self
Hug a Redwood
Do a Themed Run
Drink Only Water for a Week
Fly a Kite
Go to a Yoga Retreat
Learn the Sport of Curling
Go on a Spontaneous Road Trip
Lay on the Four Corners (4 States at Once)
Play Badminton
Snorkel
Drive an ATV
Take a Biking Trip
Fly in a Helicopter
Own Land
Race a Go-Kart
Ride in a Dune Buggy
Toboggan
Attend a Luau
Climb a Lighthouse
Go to an Aquarium
Stay at a Bed and Breakfast
Scuba-Dive
Explore the Everglades
Go to an Oxygen Bar
Attend a Jazz Festival
Sew Something You Can Wear
Drive a Speedboat
Watch a Caterpillar Turn into a Butterfly
Walk the Las Vegas Strip
Dye Your Hair a Crazy Color
Attend a Unique Small-Town Festival
Do the Half-Dome Ascent in Yosemite
Take a Trip with Your Mom
What would you add to this list? I’d love if you’d share your own ideas in the comments below to provide further inspiration for others.
Now it’s time to get out some paper (and some fun colored pens or markers) and get busy listing! These ideas here just waiting for you to create your personalized Life List.
Here’s to a beautiful Act II, my friends. Break a leg.
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