Don’t settle for mediocrity!
It happens to everyone at some point in our lives — we get bored and we start looking for ways to have a more interesting life. For most people, their life is built on doing the same things every day. We have routines and structure. And those can be good at times — but not all the time. Sometime you just need to do something to make your life more interesting.
Not sure how to do that? Here’s 50 ways to have a more interesting life:
1. Get rid of your car. Most of us depend on our cars to get around but they aren’t usually necessary. Start taking public transportation. You’ll meet new people, you’ll be forced to slow down, and you’ll have more time to think. You might even find that you have more time to do things like reading!
2. Log off for a month. When was the last time you were not online? Do you remember? Unless you need to be online for work, try logging off for a month. You might not know what to do with yourself at first but after a few days you’ll start finding things to occupy yourself.
3. Have a conversation with a stranger. Strangers tend to have interesting stories. Talk to someone that you are sure that you’ll never see again and hear their story. It might inspire you.
4. Flirt with a stranger. Of course, you need to make sure you are in a safe environment but a little flirtation can be very exciting. Be subtle and end it if it gets out of hand.
5. Go out for a meal by yourself. Go to a restaurant you’ve never been to and order a meal. Don’t bring a book. Look around. People watch. Enjoy the taste of the food. Think.
6. Do something you said you’d never do. Everyone has things they have said they would never do. Is there something that you’ve said you wouldn’t do simply because you didn’t know about it? Break out of your comfort zone and try something unexpected of you.
7. Take a course. It doesn’t have to be a college course (but it can be). Take a course in cooking or photography or knitting. Just pick something and learn to do something new or learn about a new culture.
8. Join a club. When you join a club you’re forced to meet people you might not have met otherwise and you get to do something you like. It could be a book club, a scrapbooking club, or a walking club.
9. Get rid of the television. This is a big one for most people. What would you do if you didn’t have the television to occupy your mind? Would you read more? Would you go out more? Would you exercise more? Would you have more conversations with your family (or your pet)? You’ll never know until the television is gone!
10. Listen to a new kind of music for a week. Try pop, rap, opera, jazz, soul or something else entirely. Find out who the best musicians are in that genre, read about them and their music, and immerse yourself in a whole new musical world.
11. Get a penpal — a real one. Do you remember penpals? I had two when I was a kid. There are a few sites on the Internet where you can still find snail mail penpals. Get to know someone in a country where the Internet doesn’t rule their life!
12. Go to a sporting event you’ve never been to. If you normally go to hockey games, try football, tennis, polo, or something else that you’ve never tried before. Learn about the sport so that you can figure out what is going on. Or don’t learn about it and just get caught up in the excitement.
13. Eat a new kind of food. Food is meant to be enjoyed but people get bored when they eat the same food all the time. Try food from a different country that is cooked in a way that you’ve never tried before.
14. Write your biography and self-publish it. Everyone has a story. Write yours. Self-publish it. You never know — you might become famous!
15. Get a makeover. A new look always makes life more interesting. People stop and look and compliment you. The more drastic your new look the more interesting it is likely to make your life.
16. Wear something that is not your style. We tend to get stuck wearing the same kinds of clothing we always wear, day in and day out. If you only wear jeans, put on a dress. If you always dress up, try dressing down.
17. Try a new sport and master it. You don’t have to become a professional. Just get as good at it as you possibly can.
18. Train for a marathon. Does that scare you? Good! Figure out how to do it and make a plan and then put that plan into action. Marathon running not your thing? Try distance walking or a 24 hour dance-a-thon.
19. Have a party. Unless this is the kind of thing you do every weekend a party will always shake things up. Invite people you don’t normally invite and let each guest bring a friend. You’ll meet new people and have a good time.
20. Test drive a fancy car. There’s nothing like getting behind the wheel of a fancy sports car. Pretend it is yours and enjoy.
21. Go house hunting. Have fun pretending to be looking for a house and go look at homes that are way beyond your budget.
22. Learn to cook a new dish. Even if you’re not a cook on a regular basis learn to cook something new and do it really well. Then have a few friends over and amaze them with your culinary skills.
23. Get a pet if you don’t have one. Pets are awesome. If you don’t have one, give a pet a home. And don’t just go for the easy goldfish. Get something you can get attached to or something interesting like an iguana.
24. Start a fundraiser. What charity are you passionate about. Take part in a fundraiser to help make someone’s life better.
25. Get a new job. Unless you really love your job, get a new one.
26. Move to a new city or even a new country. Discover a new life or a new culture.
27. Make friends with someone that is not someone you’d normally be friends with.
28. Drastically cut your budget. Cut your budget down as low as you dare to go. How little could you live on? You’ll discover how much “stuff” really means to you and you’ll be forced to entertain yourself more creatively while not spending money.
29. Speak only the truth for a day.
30. Call your high school BFF. That’s bound to be an interesting conversation. Or maybe it won’t be.
31. Try painting (or another art form).
32. Volunteer. When you are helping other people you don’t have time to think about yourself. Get immersed in something that will be beneficial to others.
33. Enter a contest. Competition is fun and it definitely makes life more interesting.
34. Read a different kind of book. If you normally read romance, try a historical novel, a biography, or true crime.
35. Start a blog. If you’re not already a blogger, try it. It is strangely addictive and you get to connect with really interesting people.
36. Join Toastmasters. Public speaking is not everyone’s cup of tea but the more you do it the better you get!
37. Live your day backwards. Get up and eat supper, lunch, and then breakfast. What else could you do in the wrong order? Have your shower in the morning if you normally have it at night, exercise at night if you normally exercise in the morning.
38. Start a side business. What do you love to do? Grow flowers? Read? Dance? Find a way to make money doing something you love and start a side business. You never know — it might lead to a whole new career!
39. Sell everything you own and start from scratch.
40. Perform in public as a busker. Put out a hat and sing, dance, play the guitar, or recite poetry. Just be careful that you are not performing in a no busker zone. Either that or be ready to run if the police come along!
41. Try to discover a new thing to love about your hometown.
42. Take pictures of everything and anything. You never know what you are going to catch pictures of and when you look through them you’ll have a kind of photo-diary of your life.
43. Go on a blind date. I know, you hate them. But take a chance. What are you going to do instead? Watch more television?
44. Get out a map, close your eyes, and point. You can point far from home or close to home but go visit the nearest town, lake, or attraction to where your finger landed.
45. Create an ongoing bucket list. Start that bucket list and keep it with you. Add to it whenever you come across something you’d like to do. Cross things off as you accomplish them. You’ll be reminded of all the interesting things you have done.
46. Teach something. Everyone is good at something. So teach someone how to do whatever it is that you are good at.
47. Pay it forward. Do something nice for someone and then ask them to pay it forward.
48. Sleep naked. Or if you normally sleep naked, sleep fully clothed.
49. Learn to use new technology. There are so many cool new technological gadgets being created every day. Learn how to use something new.
50. Stop doing things you hate to do. It will leave you with more time to do the things you love to do.