During her last birthday, my roommate made a 30 before 30 list. As someone who loves lists and was an avid user of 43things.com, I was immediately drawn to this idea. Like, found it hard to sit still for another second when all that was racing through my head was everything I knew I wanted to accomplish by the time I’m 30.

There are certain things I don’t think you can/should put a time limit on. There’s nothing about weddings or babies on my list, because those aren’t things you should rush. But I do think it’s incredibly helpful to have a list of things you can look at to help you prioritize your goals. There are so many things I could have already crossed off, had I been actively working towards doing so–like LASIK. I’ve wanted it for years but there was never the thing to push me to get it. This list is that thing! I’m also just incredibly neurotic and as soon as I have a list my fingers itch until I can start crossing things off. So without further ado,

MY 30 BEFORE 30:

1. Become Italian
2. Visit a country in Africa
3. Go to Morocco 
4. Go to Italy
5. Go to Iceland
6. Go to Buenos Aires
7. Go to Costa Rica Bali
8. Go to Turkey 
9. Go to South Africa
10. Go to Greece
11. Go to Egypt
12. Work in the field somewhere in Africa
13. Stay in Shakespeare & Co bookstore
14. Get LASIK 
15. Get my tooth fixed
16. Get an IUD
17. Learn to cook 5 meals very well
18. Be able to run 5 miles without stopping Do a pull up
19. Be in a happy/successful relationship for over a year
20. Fly a plane Live in France
21. Learn how to do makeup properly Learn French
22. Get to a B2 level in Spanish
23. Finish my pilot Get my masters
24. Get something published
25. Read 10 books a year every year
26. Be Debt Free
27. Have $15,000 in savings
28. Have $5,000 invested
29. Work abroad
30. Go to a Patriots game

I’m aware I’ve KIND of cheated in some places (like if I do 3, 9, or 11, I’ll have automatically done 2). I’ve also changed direction a bit since turning 25, and have changed some goals. All the progress I’ve made has been since creating this list, and I didn’t add anything later that I’d already started working on–mostly I just don’t really care about learning to do a smoky eye that much anymore. I think that’s the point–to be inspired and reminded of what you want every time you look at it, but to understand that interests will develop as time passes.

Well this one was just plain cheating. Two for the price of one, really. My reasoning behind it was I had specific goals to go to multiple African countries (all on the list), but had a larger goal to just set foot on the continent.

What’s on your list?