I have to preface this post with a little back story so it makes some sense (and so when I come back to read it down the road I won’t feel like I left a big chunk of info out.)

In August I left my full time job and moved West to try my hand at freelancing full time with hopes of business being so good that I’d be able to start my own design firm. It hasn’t quite worked out yet, and needless to say it’s been hard. So when I came across Adam Savage’s 100 Wishes talk this afternoon, it made me stop and think about my own 100 wishes. So, as I step down from my soapbox that I’ve been on for the past week here, I thought I’d share with you 25 of my 100 wishes. Some of them are professional, and some aren’t. These are the less totally out there wishes (like I wish I could teleport. You know you wish you could too.)

  1. I want to own my own design agency
  2. I want to live in a city where I can go surfing and skiing in the same day
  3. I want to learn how to surf
  4. I want to speak at a conference like TED about how important design is in our lives
  5. I want to publish a book
  6. I want to make something that I get to see on TV later (like a comercial or TV show)
  7. I want to teach
  8. I want to earn the title of Dr. (phD) in something
  9. I want to have a “Kodak Carousel” type moment in a pitch meeting (if you don’t know what i’m talking about)
  10. I want a weekend in Vegas where I wear a suit the whole time, not for business
  11. I want to visit every continent on the planet
  12. I want to make something that solves a big problem in an elligant and simple way
  13. I want a job where I get to be a thinker and a builder, not just one or the other
  14. I want to work with at least one of the people I admire for at least a month
  15. I want to win a gold pencil from the One Club
  16. I want to race in the Ironman in Kona, HI as an age group racer
  17. I want to take a vacation where I spend the whole thing at a tropical beach
  18. I want to live in a loft like the one in the movie Big
  19. I want to work in an office where everyone is friends, like in sitcoms
  20. I want to help create the next big breakthrough on the internet (web 4.0?)
  21. I want a studio space in my house that is set up for all my creative activities
  22. I want a nameplate that either sits on my desk or office door (i’ve never had one)
  23. I want to have business cards that cost more than $5 each to produce
  24. I want to work for a client that trusts me 100%
  25. and just like Adam Savage, I want a secret room in my house that’s only accessible via a secret door behind a bookcase :)

This isn’t the whole list, but after looking at my 100 wishes, when I just filtered the list just down to the practical things, they actually seem pretty attainable. So what was the point of this post? Well, it’s really a fun exercise to just sit down and do, and when you’re feeling beat down by the world (and who isn’t at some point lately?) it’s a good way to get some perspective and focus. Also I really wanted to keep the momentum going on this whole blog thing ;)

You know what would be really rad? If we discussed some of your 100 wishes in the comments.