Bucket Lists Are Great, But Your Day-to-Day Happiness Deserves a List Too

In this series of posts, professionals reveal their best antidotes to work stress. Read the posts here, and then write your own (use #OutsideWork in your piece).

I recently took part in one of those personal development exercises that seemed obvious and rather dull from the outset, but turned out to be rather brilliant and awesome when you dug into things. 

Here's how it worked: I sat down, tea in hand, and made a list of all the things that "fill me up." Big things, little things, and all the things in between. Some of them were pretty obvious (my husband, my toddler) and some of them less so (bulletproof coffee, "The Bachelor"). I tried to tame the list, but suffice it to say it grew pretty unwieldy. And therein lies an important point, I quickly realized: there are a lot of things that fill me up in life. 

And, my next thought: There are a heck of a lot of things on this list I'm not doing very regularly. 

The learning, of course, is just that. The drag in life comes when we don't do those things that fill us up, and when we don't do them on a regular basis.

Now, to you. 

First step: Make your list. Pepper it with lots of and lots of things. Big, little, red, and blue. 

Next step: Think about the list, and how to do more of the things. 

Question: Who are you when you can't do any of the things on your list for a spell? Or, more drastically, who would you be if you never did any of the things on your list?

These are real questions, and they drive to the heart of the exercise itself. The things that fill us up are the things we need to be doing as much as possible in order to keep our lives in a balance of working and playing and giving and taking and being us. Because without these things, we aren't much of anything, really. Hopefully, that means doing something that fills us up every golden day.

Playing with our kids. Going on a run. Knitting a hat. Sitting in silence. Having a morning routine. (Read my free ebook explaining why that particular one is such a great one here.) 

Doing the things that fill you up is not just an antidote to stress and a balm for a crazy mind — it's a way to be more productive at work, and more powerful in the roles you play in life. What does a burned-out CEO and a frantic stay-at-home parent have in common? Neither of them are doing enough of those things on their list, and both of them are feeling the consequences.

When it comes to life, the things that fill you up should be the priorities, the non-negotiables, and the never-leave-by-the-waysides. These are the things that should be at the forefront of our minds when making tough decisions, and at the top of our daily (or weekly) to-do lists. Because without them, we're dust.

Be full, and lead better. Be full, and mother more. Be full, and rock the world. 

What can you do today to fill you up?

For more from Claire, read her blog, follow her on LinkedIn, or find her on the Twitters via@claire.

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