And Wow on Wednesday
Dear friends. Meet Sally Millington, a 45 year old woman who has been setting herself 52 challenges a year since 2018.
In addition to completing 336 challenges (so far), Sally also has a side activity of running every single day. She recently passed the milestone of 700 consecutive days.
The challenges range from physical, creative, relaxing to travel related and some Sally describes as plain daft. Here are 5 of the challenges to show how varied they are. We also have some tips on how you can become an everyday adventurer, like Sally.
Stand Up Comedy
Most of us would be horrified at the idea of doing stand-up comedy, but Sally gave it a go in her home city of York's Fringe festival. She says: "It was tough but I'm fairly used to standing up and presenting to a crowd. Trying to make them laugh was a very, very scary prospect.
"It was as nerve wracking as I’d anticipated. My palms were sweating and I spoke too quickly, but, I didn’t get booed off, and I did get some laughs. Even better, it didn’t sound like pity laughter! The feeling afterwards was incredible. It was a huge step out of my comfort zone and a massive surge of confidence."
Snow Hotel
A few of the challenges involve travel and staying in unusual places. Back in 2019, Sally and her partner booked in to stay in a Snow Hotel in Finland. She recalls: "It was an unforgettable experience. Eating dinner among intricate carvings in the ice restaurant, where we dined at tables and chairs made from ice, to drinking out of glasses made of ice in the bar, and snuggling down into our extra thick sleeping bags for a night in the most incredible pure chilled air. To top it all off, the unpredictable northern lights put on the most phenomenal display. It was a real goosebump moment."
80 Mile Walk
One challenge resulted in blisters and losing two toenails. It was hiking to south Manchester, where Sally grew up, from York, an 80 mile walk. Quite an undertaking for someone who hadn't walked more 15 miles in one go.
Says Sally: "I planned my route and over 4 days I managed to navigate my way across the country on foot. I spent two nights in a tiny tent, and one night in a cheap hotel, crossing incredible scenery and meeting some lovely people. I learnt that I could trust myself to safely get myself across 80 miles, and that I was capable of perseverance and physical hard work.
"I hadn’t told anyone apart from my partner and a friend that I was doing it, as I wasn’t sure I would ever actually step out of the front door, never mind actually complete it. My mum needed a brandy when I got to the house as she couldn’t believe I’d just walked there!
"I got some horrific blisters, my feet felt as though they were on fire by day 3 and I lost 2 toenails, but the sense of achievement completely overshadowed the temporary discomfort.
"I’ve since completed a long distance walk at least once a year, including challenging myself to walk every street within the York city walls which turned out to be 22 miles!"
Cliff Camping
We're back in "eek" territory as Sally describes sleeping in a camp bed dangling off the side of a cliff in Anglesey, Wales.
She remembers the waves lulling her to sleep as they crashed against the rock below. "The stars in the night sky were especially bright, and the rising sun washed pastel colours across the horizon."
Busking - Dressed as a Turkey
This one comes under the "Daft" heading. It was just before Christmas and Sally dressed up as a turkey (as you do), playing the kazoo. "It took a lot of nerves and a lot of courage to rock up and dance like a loon whilst attempting to kazoo some festive favourites in a turkey outfit! Some very generous people did pop a couple of coins in my pot, and I nobody asked me to stop, which felt like a small win".
Another "daft" challenge was wearing a wetsuit to work.
Finding the Time
If you're wondering how Sally has the time for the challenges, she and her partner have been able to take some time out from work, and she doesn't work full time now. She used to work for a charity. She didn't want to wait until she was retired to start challenging herself because we never know how long we will be in good health.
While the goal is 52 new activities a year, she is not too strict about it being one new thing a week. Instead she keeps it flexible and does new things when they crop up. For example, a trip to London for work saw her climbing to the top of the O2.
Not all the challenges are time intensive. Making a balloon animal was a 30 minute challenge resulting in a slightly lopsided frog. Trying a solid shampoo bar was another quick challenge, and she liked the results.
During lockdown, 2020, Sally had got off to a good start with activities including tap dancing and axe throwing under her belt.
Once the restrictions came into place she ordered kits so that she could try some crafts at home. This included candles, which smelt incredible; needle felting which was very satisfying, and making an Airfix model, which needed so much more concentration than Sally had ever realised.
She also added cookery to the mix, whipping up a few things she'd never made before, including mayonnaise, ketchup and marzipan. Their New Year's Eve buffet featured a variety of goodies made from scratch.
The Benefits of Challenging Yourself
It's evident that some of the challenges are very demanding, taking Sally out of her comfort zone. All good! Sally lists the benefits:
Spending less time watching TV or on my phone
Being much more open minded
Less procrastination. I take things on now, rather than putting them off.I’m much more comfortable about entering a room full of strangers as I’ve done it so many times, and I love not knowing who will be in that room and meeting a variety of people.
More at ease with stepping out of my comfort zone. I definitely still feel nervous, but I recognise that some new things will be scary and I’m ok with that. It’s definitely helped me to feel more confident, and given me so many more stories.
The challenge has definitely made me look at travel differently too. Whilst seeing new places is in itself a wonderful thing, I often look for activities unique to a place that I can try, which is a fantastic way to meet local people and learn more about a place.
Want to copy Sally?
Her advice is tell people what you’re up to. You don’t have to share the specifics of each new thing you want to try, but letting people know you’re hoping to achieve a certain number of experiences gives you some accountability to making it happen. People may want to join you, or be able to help you make some of the new things happen.
Plan, but be flexible - book in anything that you definitely want to do, to make sure it happens. You may like the structure of a time frame, so create one for the year if that works for you. Sally says she prefers doing things as and when they crop up, alongside some date dependent activities.
Don’t let your preconceptions determine whether you try something. Sally says she gave laughter yoga a go thinking it could be incredibly awkward and cringe inducing, but it was amazing how much energy was used, and how genuinely fun it was.
She also tried morris dancing which has a bit of a negative reputation, but the group were so friendly and welcoming. It turned out to be a workout for the mind as well as the body as there were so many steps to remember.
Sally says: "We're more more capable than we think we are. You never know unless you give it a go, and if it doesn’t quite go to plan, you’ll still have a unique story to share and an experience to remember."
Finally, remember it doesn't have to be expensive, there are lots of cheap and free new things that you can try. Sometimes taster sessions are on offer if you look.
Wow on Wednesday Link-Up
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