According to Dream it. List it. Do it!, creating a life list is not a difficult undertaking. You simply ask yourself what you’d like to do but haven’t due to lack of time or motivation.

It’s the age old life coaching question: If money were no object and you were guaranteed success, what would you do? “We believe that the very act of writing ideas down helps you answer the question ‘What do I really want to do with my life?’ and puts you on the path toward accomplishing it,” state the authors.

Dream it. List it. Do it! was written by the life list experts at the goal setting site 43things along with journalist Lia Steakley. I’ve been goal setting and achieving with 43things since 2007. Last year to celebrate my four year anniversary with the site, I purchased the book.

The book is divided into 43 categories ranging form “Learn New Things” to “Fix My Finances.” Within each category is a list of possible goals including some of the most popular goals from the site. One of the things I’ve discovered through this process is that many of the goals I set for myself are internal. Dream it. List it. Do it! covers this as well with sections like “Understand Myself” and “Be a Better Person.”

In addition to listing goals Dream it. List it. Do it! features both practical tips and resources for accomplishing a wide variety of goals. Also included are first person accounts from goal setters who made their dreams come true.

A life list reveals your deepest desires. Some of which may be a surprise even to you.

For example for fifteen years I went around thinking what I wanted more than *anything* else in the world was a graduate degree. I thought I would not feel happy or successful without an MS or MA after my name. Yet the timing just wasn’t right for pursuing this goal. I was more focused on taking care of my two young children and writing. I really had no true desire to make grad school a priority, still it remained front and center in my subconscious making me feel like a failure.

That is until I started a life list on 43things. As I worked on the list, I tabled the grad school goal for the foreseeable future. It was like storm clouds rolled away and a new world of possibilities opened to me. Once I put the graduate school goal in it’s proper place, I made a bunch of new, exciting goals like “spend the night inside of a castle” and “go to at least 12 cultural events a year.” Then I started to give myself credit for what I’d already done like “Meet Maya Angelou,” “See Roy Ayers perform live,” “play in a band,” and “write a novel.” To date I’ve checked off 630 goals and I’m actively working with another 40 right now.

While I was blocked by one goal, others may find their dreams have been suppressed to the point where they don’t have them. Both the book and the site can help in this regard. One of the key components of 43things is sharing. I didn’t come up with my “spend the night inside of a castle” goal on my own, I borrowed it from another goal setter on the site.

43things.com has more than 1.3 million goals contributed by users from around the world according to Dream it. List it. Do it! Surely every goal setter can find something that speaks to their heart.

As you work with your list over time your priorities and goals will change and evolve. “But that’s part of the fun,” write the authors. “Start adding to our life list and you’ll be ready to answer another question: ‘what happens next?’”