Emotional Bucket List — Which Of Your Emotions Will Make It In?
Most people have written the places they want to go to or the things they would want to accomplish throughout they lives. Whether or not they end up going or doing those things is up to them, but the fact they actually write it down or mention it to others is, in my opinion, a good starting point.
For me, Egypt — Alaska — Haiti — and U.S. Virgin Islands are all part of my personal destinations; places I intend to visit and go within the next three to five years.
But what I really want to explore with you is another type of bucket list; a bucket list that most people may have never considered before reading this article because it involves their emotions.
Curious?
Good, because it makes a lot of sense.
What’s an Emotional Bucket List?
It is similar to the bucket list concept you often hear of. However, it involves the emotions you want to experience — in the here and now and not what you “maybe one day” would like to experience.
When you think of it, there are a lot of emotions out there. On a daily basis, you experience many feelings and emotions. The truth is, they may not always be the emotions you want to deal with where the importance in having your emotional bucket list so you can choose the positive emotions you prefer to have at that time.
What I did with my positive emotions
I decided to do something different in the last few days. I tallied my emotions. What I mean is I looked at the emotions that appeared to be the most present throughout my day and look at which thoughts or behavior I was having or doing that brought each emotion in the forefront of my heart.
I have to admit, it was a fun exercise. I choose to put the emotions you’ll read below in my emotional bucket list. Which means, I’ll consciously aim at experiencing these emotions as often as I can throughout my days.
If people can have bucket lists for where they want to go and what they want to do, then you and I can also have a bucket list for the emotions we want to have.
My Emotional Bucket List
Emotion #1: Ecstatic
This one is a no brainer for me and anyone who knows me can easily agree. From the time I wake up to the time I go to sleep, my heart is literally full of happiness and joy. It wants to go out on its own and start pumping its fist, LOL.
The excitement can be from going on the track and working out, having good creative insights in the morning, being able to enlighten someone else’s day, and my list of ecstatic moments can just go on for days in and days out.
Emotion #2: Appreciation
This emotion is not necessarily new to me, but it is new in the way it comes to me. Every day, morning and night (and a few times in between), I have this wonderful feeling of life appreciation.
No matter what I am doing or thinking, it comes to me and makes me smile. I became appreciative of the simplest of things, not materialistic things (although there is nothing wrong with that if its your case) but things like breathing, physical movement, thinking, seeing, or other things I may have overlooked at one point in my life but that I am now fully in-tuned with.
My appreciative moments have became part of who I am. They can be random or I can literally sit down and write them down. Whenever it comes, I listen.
Emotion #3: Serenity
This one is the most surprising to me because I had never considered myself a calm person. On the contrary, I would say moving is almost part of my last name, LOL.
I feel serene in very specific moments, for example, when I go to sleep. When my eyes start to close, I begin smiling from the inside. I take a few big breathes and as if I had a magical wand, I find myself in the best place ever — a welcoming and cozy mind. It’s super peaceful. Then, all becomes history as I find myself sound asleep soon after.
What about you? Which emotions will you put in your emotional bucket list?
You don’t have to do like me and tallied your emotions. You can think about them, write them, or express them to someone else, as long as they are emotions you want more of. Those emotions and feelings will then become the ones you want on your emotional bucket list.
As you start paying attention to those emotions, you’ll see yourself recognizing which behavior or thought allows you to feel the way you do.
Once you identified the behavior or thought write it down so you can re-create the same environment at every occasion that you have.
I’ll conclude this piece by telling you, this emotional bucket list its worth doing. It is going to show you things about yourself you may have never been aware of.
For example, if you’ve been someone whose had good emotions but finds it challenging to experience them more often, then the emotional bucket list exercise it for you.
Or if you’re someone who gets overwhelmed a little bit more often than you would like, the emotional bucket list will definitely appease your mind and your heart.
But in truth, no matter what’s going on in your life, at this exact moment, venture out of your environment and see what your emotional bucket list can do to YOUR overall you.
