Challenge 100: In the 100-Item Challenge, Those Who Move Before They Think Win
Challenge 100
In the 100-Item Challenge, those who move before they think win.
Hello, I'm Aki.
I decided to take on a 100-item challenge while in my 50s.
When I first decided that, I was excited.
However, I immediately hit a wall.
That wall was:
"Thinking too much about what to do."
A 100-item challenge.
It sounds simple when you say it.
But when you actually try to do it, your mind starts racing with all sorts of thoughts.
Will this make a good article?
Does this have any meaning?
Is this something I can show others?
Can I keep this up?
Won't it be embarrassing if I fail?
While I'm busy thinking like that, time just slips away.
And before I know it, I haven't even started anything.
I realized that this is the biggest waste of all.
The most important thing in a challenge isn't creating a perfect plan.
It's to move first.
Thinking isn't bad.
But thinking alone won't change anything.
Even if you line up 100 ideas in your head, reality won't move a single millimeter.
Conversely, if you actually try just one thing, something starts to move from there.
As I started this 100-item challenge, I realized it all over again.
You don't need to decide on all 100 perfect items from the start.
Just do one thing first.
Once you do that one thing, the next one will come into view.
You get stuck because you try to see everything from the beginning.
You see the next view because you take the first step.
I think this applies to work, study, dieting, and side hustles as well.
Everyone feels anxious before starting.
I'll start after I prepare more.
I'll start after I study more.
I'll start after I have more free time.
I'll start after I gain more confidence.
While you're thinking that, time just passes by.
But in reality, you don't start because you've gained confidence.
You gain confidence little by little because you started.
You don't move because you're prepared.
You notice what you're missing while you're moving.
I think this is what's important.
Honestly, when you hear "100-item challenge," you feel like you have to do 100 amazing things.
Things that aren't embarrassing to show others.
Things that look good as articles.
Things that would make someone say, "That's amazing!"
I find myself trying to look for things like that.
But if you stop there, it's meaningless.
What I'm trying to do isn't to list cool challenges.
It's to get myself moving again after I've been stuck.
So the first item can be small enough to be laughed at.
If you show it to someone, it's fine if they say,
"Is that even a challenge?"
But if it's something you weren't doing until yesterday, it's a respectable step forward.
For example, reading one book a day.
This looks easy, but it's not easy when you actually do it.
Choosing the book to read.
Making the time.
Reading it to the end.
Writing down what you felt after reading it.
Once you do all that, it's no longer just reading.
New words enter your mind every day.
You encounter new ways of thinking every day.
If you keep that up for 100 days, I think the world you see will change.
For example, uploading 100 YouTube Shorts.
This also looks easy when you're thinking about it in your head.
But when you actually try to do it, you need content.
You need the courage to film.
There's the effort of editing.
I'm sure there will be days with poor reactions.
I'm sure there will be videos that no one watches.
But the experience gained by someone who uploaded 100 videos is completely different from someone who just thinks about it without uploading a single one.
Things you didn't understand with the first video become a little clearer by the 10th.
Things you couldn't see by the 10th become visible by the 50th.
Things you were struggling with by the 50th might take shape by the 100th.
This is something only those who have done it can understand.
For example, practicing 100 types of card magic.
At first, your fingers won't move.
You can't remember the steps.
You don't know how to present them.
But once you learn one, it leads to the next trick.
It's not just the tricks; you start to see how to present them, how to time your pauses, and even how to cover up mistakes.
This is also something you can never master just by thinking about it in your head.
For example, researching 100 qualification materials in fields you don't know.
Peeking into worlds you've never seen before.
It could be Administrative Scrivener.
It could be Bookkeeping.
It could be Financial Planning.
It could be languages.
It could be nursing care.
It could be IT.
When you look into them, there are some you think,
"This looks interesting."
Conversely, there are some you think,
"This isn't for me right now."
But that, too, is something you only know because you moved.
You don't have to do big things.
But you must actually move.
This is what's important.
And I am actually starting today.
First, the first item.
Read one book a day.
I won't just end it at reading.
I will write down at least one thing I noticed from the book I read.
If possible, I will also connect it to content for NOTE or videos.
If you only read a book, it's just input.
But if you read, think, write, and share, it becomes a challenge.
And the second item.
Upload 100 YouTube Shorts.
I'm making this into a form where I can no longer make excuses.
Did I do it?
Did I not do it?
Because it's clear in the numbers.
Once I decide to upload 100, there's no time to worry about the first one.
I might not film it well.
My speaking might be stiff.
My editing might be poor.
It might not get views.
But I'll upload it anyway.
Because nothing starts unless I upload it.
Starting today, I will:
Read one book a day.
Upload 100 YouTube Shorts.
I will make these two the first pillars of my 100-item challenge.
Not just thinking in my head, but making it into a form that is actually clear by the numbers.
The number of books read.
The number of videos uploaded.
This cannot be faked.
Did I do it?
Did I not do it?
That is clearly understood.
That is precisely why I will start by moving with these two.
I have done various things until now.
Sales, English, Seitai (bodywork), computer instruction, nursing care, NOTE, AI, card magic, and studying for the Administrative Scrivener exam.
I didn't understand everything perfectly from the start.
In fact, at first, I was full of things I didn't understand.
But there are things I understood because I tried them.
What I'm suited for.
What I'm not suited for.
What I can continue.
What is more interesting than I thought.
What is more difficult than I thought.
What I can be serious about.
This is something you can never understand just by thinking about it in your head.
It's something only those who have actually done it can understand.
The 100-item challenge is the same.
It's not a project to find 100 correct answers.
It's a project to get to know myself while trying 100 things.
So, if you look for the correct answer from the start, you will stop.
It doesn't have to be a beautiful challenge.
It can be a small challenge.
It doesn't matter if it's not a big deal to others.
If you have taken one step forward, it is a proper challenge.
Of course, not everything will go well.
I think there will be things I can't continue.
Along the way, I think there will be things I think,
"This is different."
But that's fine.
Rather than stopping while thinking in your head, if you actually move even one step, you will see the next answer.
If you do nothing, you won't even know if it's different or not.
This time, through the 100-item challenge, I am telling myself once again.
Don't think too much.
Move first.
You can think after you move.
In this day and age, there is information everywhere.
If you want to research, you can research for hours.
But if you collect too much information, you might conversely become unable to move.
You get lost because there are too many choices.
You stop because you look for the correct answer too much.
You look for ways not to fail, and you can't take the first step.
But life doesn't change just by researching.
It changes as much as you move.
Of course, I'm not saying to do reckless things.
I'm not saying to dive in without thinking at all.
It's just that if you spend too much time thinking and nothing starts, it's better to move in small ways first.
It doesn't have to be a big step.
A small step is fine.
That small step will bring the next step.
I decided to take on a 100-item challenge while in my 50s.
Honestly, not everything is decided yet.
But I think that's fine.
Instead of starting after everything is decided, I will find them while starting.
And starting today, I will do what I have decided.
Read one book a day.
Upload 100 YouTube Shorts.
While doing these two, I will find my next challenge.
In the 100-item challenge, those who move before they think win.
This doesn't mean winning against someone else.
It means winning against the self that was stopped until yesterday.
Winning against the self that was making excuses.
Winning against the self that was only preparing.
These are words for that purpose.
What changes life is not a grand plan.
It's the first step.
And only those who have taken that step can see the next view.
I am also still in the middle of it.
But because I am in the middle of it, there are things I can write.
100-item challenge.
First, without thinking too much, I'll try doing one thing starting today.
Starting today, I will:
Read one book a day.
Upload 100 YouTube Shorts.
I'll start from here.
What will you start moving with first?
If you'd like, please let me know in the comments.
If you could press the "Like" button, it will be the strength for my next challenge.
And if you think this article was even a little bit helpful, I would be happy if you could support me with a tip.
The support I receive will be used as strength for my next challenge and sharing.