In honour of my blog's 2 year birthday, I am sharing a small Bucket List of mine: my 30 before 30. I made this when I was in my early twenties and have completed some of these already, however now that I am 25, I thought it would be a good time to share this list of experiences I'd like to have in my lifetime (the fact that I would like to complete them before 30 is more to encourage myself to focus on these, as opposed to a concrete target, however some are most likely to happen before 30 or not at all).
Live abroad I have wanted to live abroad for as long as I can remember, however as London is my favourite city in the world and most of my loved ones are here, I am unlikely to emigrate for more than a few years. Neither of my degrees offered year abroads, but I would've loved to have been offered that opportunity and I'm a big fan of slow travelling (i.e. living in different places for 3-6 months at a time). I did a 6-week stint in Lisbon in the summer of 2021, which was incredible, but would love to live elsewhere too. Read my post on the cities I'd love to live in here.
Travel across South America This has been a life-long dream of mine and is one of the items that is most likely to occur before 30 or not at all as it is much easier to travel over a few months before commitments such as a mortgage, pets, or children get in the way. That said, I had planned to go travelling before starting my grad scheme, which got postponed due to covid, so you are not always able to achieve goals by a certain age; I am now aiming to go next year though, fingers crossed! Although I have visited South America previously, I would like to experience long-term travel, preferably staying in hostels and backpacking as opposed to luxury trips, which I feel is most likely to occur throughout one's late teens or twenties.
Buy a house I've been house-hunting for over two years now and it has been a harrowing process, with one seller pulling out after eight months on the day of exchange. I have had to start the process from scratch once again but hopefully will be a homeowner by 2024. Stay tuned for a post on the process of buying a house and what the jargon means.
Own a dog Despite loving dogs, I've never actually owned one. Due to my love for travel and the fact I'm often not home, it would be unfair to own a dog at this stage in my life, however as I get the wanderlust out of my system, I'd like to eventually own a dog. I am currently trying to look after a dog regularly while I work from home through BorrowMyDoggy, however this has been a slower process than I'd anticipated.
Get a tattoo This is an item that I accomplished in 2022 - you can read about my experience here.
Run a marathon In 2021, I ran my first half marathon. Truthfully, by the time it came around I was excited for it to be over with as we were coming out of lockdown and running had been taking up a lot of time, however I feel like running a marathon is something I will either do before 30 or not at all, and whilst I do want to do one at some point, I wouldn't put pressure on myself to run it in a ridiculously quick time or without walking in parts. Training would be a great way to maintain fitness and I would like to experience the atmosphere of the London marathon (as well as the challenge of fundraising £2000). I entered the ballot this year but didn't make it unfortunately (I did, however, gain a running jacket, so can't complain).
Visit 100 countries Obviously I love travelling, and I've been extremely lucky to have already visited over 80 countries at the time of writing. I have a couple of exciting trips planned for 2023 and am hoping to travel across South America next year, so feel like this target is fairly doable. That said, I am very cautious of not wanting travel to become a tick-box exercise and want to re-visit places as opposed to simply visiting new places and not actually taking in the culture. Regardless, there are numerous places that are still on my bucket list to visit including Zanzibar, Aruba, the Philippines, Kenya, China, and the Polynesian islands.
Start therapy A resolution of mine for 2023 was to start therapy, as not only do I think that everyone could benefit from it, but I feel that I will only get busier and busier as I age, so it makes the most sense to start early on. This item has been on my Bucket List for years and is very easy to postpone as there's never a 'good time', however after my break up at the beginning of this year, I decided there wouldn't be a better opportunity and thus, I made the decision to start. At the time of writing, it is too early to say how helpful it's been, however I may write a post eventually on it.
Invest in friendship This is a long-term goal of mine, but I thought it was important to mention here as one of the main contributors to happiness is your relationships with friends, family and partners. Life is all about the people you share it with and over the last couple of years I've reflected often on my friendships. Stay tuned for a post on 25 things I've learnt in my 25 years.
Invest One of the ways in which the rich stay rich in the UK is because they invest (whether that be in stocks, bonds, property or other things) rather than save money in a bank . The importance of investing if you are able to is understated and it's a good practice to get into as early as possible due to the time value of money (essentially £1 now is more valuable than £1 in 10 years). I have been investing since I was at university but it is never too late to start.
Obtain passive income Passive income was a buzzword on tiktok during covid, however it really does allow for financial freedom. Whether that be through creating a design and selling it online, advertising on a blog, renting out a property, or earning capital on investments, passive income allows you to reduce your time working and enjoy more free time to do whatever you please (including creating additional passive income streams!).
Start a blog Obviously, this has already been accomplished, and I have fortunately managed to post regularly since I started it, in part due to enjoyment and in part due to discipline. It was one of the best things that came as a result of covid for me, as lockdown gave me the push I needed to start the blog, and it has been my online diary of sorts ever since.
Exercise consistently There are multiple sports that I would love to get better at, such as surfing and dancing, and I have tried everything from pilates to salsa to skateboarding, however as long as I manage to maintain a healthy and consistent relationship with exercise throughout my life, I will be happy with this goal. Being healthy contributes hugely to happiness and if exercising regularly helps with that, it's a small price to pay (especially if the exercise is enjoyable).
Start writing a book A life goal of mine is to write a book - in fact, this blog was partly founded in order for me to write regularly and improve my writing style. By 30, I would like to have perhaps started writing my book, or at least have a solid idea of what topic I'd like to write about. As it stands, I'd quite like to write a memoir (which hopefully will be a long-term project), but I wouldn't be surprised if I decided to change topic and dedicate a few years to researching and writing about a different topic.
Speak clearly and intentionally I am very aware of the power of speech and as I've gotten older I've been trying to become clearer in my speech and reduce my use of 'filler' words and phrases such as 'to be fair' and 'like' as it adds no value and can appear less professional. Even though it shouldn't matter, the way you speak changes certain people's manner of dealing with you and if you come across as capable and competent, you have a better chance of getting the results you want, whether that be a higher salary or a well-negotiated (and thus, cheaper) property.
Earn six figures This goal is definitely low on my radar since starting work and getting older as my priorities have completely shifted, however this list was created a few years ago and it's good to show that there is nothing wrong with changing your mind and goals as you learn new things and become wiser. I still would like to focus on building my career throughout my twenties and am very glad to have experienced the corporate world in London. I am unsure of the exact direction I would like to head towards, but am excited to see what the future holds.
Climb Machu Pichu/Kilimanjaro/Base camp Although I'm not a hiker by any means, I have done a couple of hikes in my life that have left me speechless, including Lion's Head in Cape Town and Pico do Arieiro in Madeira. I would love to do one of the hikes above as a challenge for myself (and a great view at the end).
Go to Glastonbury Despite loving festivals, I've been to very few. I have tried to get tickets for Glastonbury for several years now but have never managed, and none of my friendship groups tend to prioritise festivals. That said, I would love to go to Glastronbury Festival one year, or a similarly renowned festival such as Burning Man, Sziget, or Coachella within the next 5 years, as after that it will be much less likely to be a priority.
Explore sexuality & drugs This is a very rogue and perhaps unexpected item, which was definitely of more interest when I was a teenager than towards my 30s. Although I won't elaborate much, I will say that I think it is important to figure out what you like and dislike and if it isn't harming others, it shouldn't be a problem.
See a solar eclipse The next few items are Bucket List items of mine, all of which were added to this list years ago. I have wanted to see a total solar eclipse every since I learned about them at school, and I would love to see the one predicted across the USA in 2024 or across Europe in 2026.
See the Northern Lights As a child, I remember going to ski school one morning in Norway and learning that I'd missed the Northern Lights the previous night. Since then, I have been determined to witness the Northern Lights, and although it was many years between this childhood incident and the actual witnessing of the Aurora Borealis, it was undoubtedly worth the wait. I was in Iceland in 2018 with my mum, and despite the cloudiness and low probabilities, we set sail on a boat and whilst some Irishmen sang, we witnessed pink and green shapes dancing across the sky. To this day, it was one of the most magical moments of my life and I could not recommend it enough.
See a shooting star I had wanted to see a shooting star for years and I'd researched when was best to see them, however it had never worked out for me - until 2022. In august 2022, I went to Blackheath Park with a couple of friends and we spent a few hours stargazing. A lot of patience was required, but eventually we all witnessed several shooting stars in the clear skies. It was another magical moment and was worth the hassle. Read my full blog post on my experience here.
Visit every continent This item was placed on this list whilst at uni, however as I've travelled more and gotten older, I am actually leaning towards not achieving this. I have visited 6 of the 7 continents, with only Antarctica left, and although I would without a doubt seize the opportunity if it arose, I am not in a rush to spend the money and time visiting Antarctica as I don't think I'd actually enjoy it as much as I would, say, revisiting Portugal or another country I love.
See the 7 wonders of the world As an avid traveller, this was a logical aim to have, and although I have visited 5 of the 7 wonders, namely the city of Petra, the Chichén Itzá, Christ the Redeemer, the Roman Colosseum, and the Taj Mahal, there are still 2 to go, the Great Wall of China and Machu Picchu, both of which I aim to visit within the next 5 years. I have also visited the only Ancient Wonder of the World that is still standing today: the Great Pyramids of Giza.
Diving with sharks I had aimed to go cage diving with great white sharks whilst in South Africa in 2019. Unfortunately, the waves were too choppy so the dive had to be cancelled, however I would still love to have this experience at some point in the future, as I love the sea and I'm intrigued by nature's 'perfect hunter'.
Paragliding Whilst I was a student, I was enthused by the idea of adrenaline and getting out of my comfort zone. I really wanted to skydive (see item 30) but thought it best to try paragliding in advance to determine whether I'd actually enjoy the calm part of the experience. My aunt had paraglided in Madeira as part of her hen do, so in the summer of 2018, she treated me to the same experience. It was cool but surprisingly calming, and not the adrenaline-fuelled activity I'd expected. This confirmed my desire to skydive as I knew I'd definitely enjoy the last part (if nothing else).
Sleep in a pod This is a very rogue item, especially given some of the other items in this list (such as: Buy a house), however one of my travel buddies and I have always wanted to sleep in a small pod (preferably in an airport on a layover).
Après ski Skiing is one of my favourite sports and I've been lucky enough to ski in many countries, as well as at different times of year. Despite this, I have never actually experienced après ski as I've always been with my family and although I've tried to organise ski trips with friends and was even signed up to my uni snow trip, this has never come to fruition.
23 and me For some reason, I have always been fascinated by my ancestry and identity. Despite this, I kept procrastinating buying a DNA kit as the cost seemed a waste of money. Eventually, I treated myself to a kit and was very impressed with the accuracy of the results. I would recommend discovering your heritage as it is a great conversation starter and provides endless entertainment. One thing to note is that as more people take these tests, the results become more accurate and update over time, so whilst in my original blog post I was only 78% Madeiran, my results have since updated to 97% Madeiran.
Sky dive This was a huge accomplishment for me as I sky dived at a point in my life where I was trying to get out of my comfort zone and push myself. The fact that my mother decided to do the 12,000ft dive with me made it very special and I will never forget this once-in-a-lifetime experience. We did it in the sacred Uluru, Australia - read about my full experience here.
Hopefully, I will be able to look upon this list when I'm 30 and see how much I've accomplished, alongside reflecting upon how my goals (and I) have changed over the years. I will also post the long-awaited Bucket List soon so stay tuned for that!
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