Life often moves so fast that we forget to pause and reflect on what we truly want. The 100 Wishes an exercise examining life’s goals, is a creative and powerful tool to help you uncover your deepest desires, clarify your priorities, and design a life that aligns with your dreams. Whether you’re looking for personal growth, embarking on a personal retreat, or simply conducting a life audit, this exercise offers a structured approach to self-reflection. From career aspirations to travel goals across Maine, Costa Rica, Tuscany, Hawaii, Bali, Australia, Finland, Ireland, Iceland, Canada, Buenos Aires, Machu Picchu, and Southeast Asia, this method encourages you to think expansively while staying grounded in what matters most. By engaging in this exercise, you’ll discover new insights about yourself, gain motivation, and create actionable steps toward achieving your life goals.
The exercise begins with a simple yet profound challenge: write down 100 wishes. These wishes are not just random dreams; they represent a roadmap to a fulfilling life. The purpose of this process is to encourage self-discovery, creativity, and personal development. You might start with small wishes, like learning improv or practicing public speaking, and gradually expand to life-changing goals like writing a memoir, book, or poetry collection, building wealth generation, or establishing passive income streams. Including family & relationships, health & wellness, adventure & experiences, and career aspirations ensures a holistic approach. Experts such as Alison Victoria of Windy City Rehab demonstrate how envisioning possibilities in both personal and professional domains fuels motivation and sparks creativity. This exercise also strengthens emotional growth and helps you uncover hidden passions you may have neglected in your everyday routine.
My full list of 100 wishes
Once you commit to writing your list, you will notice patterns emerging. My full list of 100 wishes serves as a real-life example of how diverse and comprehensive a wish list can be. This list might include simple joys like hosting a personal retreat weekend with friends, trying new fun activities, or learning new skills such as collaboration, teaching & mentoring, or comedy. It can also involve long-term aspirations such as traveling to Iceland to see the northern lights, experiencing Tuscany, or taking a spiritual journey to Machu Picchu. For some, it might include professional milestones, such as expanding a business partner venture, becoming an interior designer with a TV host role, or leading a team in a career aspiration. Every wish, no matter how big or small, contributes to a larger vision of a purposeful life. By listing 100 wishes, you engage in goal setting, boost self-reflection, and foster creativity exercises that prepare you for real-world achievements.
| Category | Sample Wishes |
| Travel | Bali, Costa Rica, Ireland, Southeast Asia |
| Career | Public speaking, writing a book, team leadership |
| Personal Growth | Emotional growth, self-discovery, overcoming fears |
| Health & Wellness | Regular exercise, meditation, work-life balance |
| Family & Relationships | Spending quality time, marriage, compatibility |
| Adventure & Experiences | Improv classes, adventure sports, cultural festivals |
| Wealth | Passive income, philanthropy, wealth generation |
After making this list I split it into categories…
Organizing your 100 wishes into categories transforms a sprawling list into a clear plan for action. Categorization is key to understanding which areas of life require more attention and where your passions truly lie. For example, grouping wishes under health & wellness, personal growth, family & relationships, and travel goals highlights priorities that may otherwise be lost in a long list. Categorization also reveals overlaps, such as wishes that combine creativity with personal development or adventure & experiences with fun activities with friends. This step functions as a life audit, providing clarity for what you need to focus on in both your personal and professional life. It’s a strategic approach that supports vision for life and helps maintain work-life balance while striving toward ambitious achievements.
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To sustain your motivation and spark inspiration, subscribing to thought leaders like Mary Lemmer can provide ongoing guidance. Get Mary Lemmer’s stories in your inbox to access insights into life experiences, self-reflection, and personal development that complement your 100 wishes. Her stories often blend practical advice with anecdotes on creativity, collaboration, and teaching & mentoring, helping you connect your aspirations to actionable steps. Following such experts ensures you are supported through every stage of your journey, from defining goals to executing them effectively. It’s an excellent resource for refining your vision for life while keeping your bucket list alive and evolving.
Next, ask why…
After categorizing your wishes, the next step is to dive deeper into each one by asking why it matters. Next, ask why… encourages you to uncover the underlying motivations behind every desire. For instance, wanting to visit Finland may not just be about travel; it might reflect a desire for personal growth, solitude, or inspiration for writing a memoir. Similarly, a wish for public speaking might reveal ambitions for career aspirations, self-confidence, or impacting others through teaching & mentoring. Asking why allows you to align your life goals with authentic values, ensuring your journey is not just about achieving milestones but also about creating meaningful life experiences and strengthening emotional growth.
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Conclusion
The 100 Wishes an exercise examining life’s goals, is far more than a creative writing task—it is a transformative journey of self-discovery and personal growth. By documenting your wishes, organizing them into categories, reflecting on underlying motivations, and seeking ongoing inspiration, you gain clarity on what truly matters in life. Whether your dreams involve travel, creativity, wealth generation, or building meaningful family & relationships, this exercise provides structure, guidance, and motivation to turn wishes into reality. Embrace the process, write down your 100 wishes, reflect on them, and take confident steps toward living the life you envision. Each wish represents a piece of your vision, helping you craft a life full of adventure & experiences, emotional growth, and lasting personal fulfillment.
