Impossible List — Louis Shulman

The Impossible List combines goals and a bucket list.

I got this idea from Thomas Frank who "got the idea from Joel Runyon, who created the world's first impossible list and defined the difference between it and a regular bucket list. Put simply, the impossible list is an ever-evolving list of experiences that build upon each other, help others as well as yourself, and implore you to take action."

I've been maintaining this list since Fall 2017, and made it public in September 2020. It's served to continually expand my sense of what is possible.

I hope this inspires you to make your own list and rethink what "impossible" really means.

REMEMBER: ALL LIMITATIONS ARE SELF-IMPOSED. You decide what is possible.

My Impossible List

Last Update: June 2023

Currently Working On:

Earn an independent, remote income in excess of $10,000/mo (after taxes)
Earn Blue Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Spend 1 Month in Latin America
Run a 5k in under 20 minutes
Lower resting heart rate to under 50 bpm (cold exposure, running, good diet)
Reach 250 newsletter subs (join here)
Combined Bench, Squat, Deadlift > 1000
1 minute handstand hold freestanding

Last Few Completed Goals

Sprint Distance Triathlon (November 2023)
1,000 YouTube Subscribers; 10,000 YouTube Subscribers
Publish 100 podcast episodes
Full front splits
Get A Job In Bitcoin/Crypto, Get a Second Job In Bitcoin/Crypto
Graduate in Computer Science at the University of Alabama (4.0, Summa Cum Laude)
75 Hard Challenge All Four Phases (Summer 2020) (What I Learned)
Start a podcast and publish 25+ interviews
Complete 100 FocusMate Sessions in 60 days (Sept-Nov 2020)
Pass the "weed out" CS classes (Spring 2020)
Complete a full marathon, run a half marathon under 2:15 (September 4th, 2020)
20+ Second Free Standing Handstand (August 2020)
100 Day Power List Streak (125) (August 12 - December 15th 2020)
Learn an alternative keyboard layout (Colemak) Publish an article typed using that layout. (May 2020)

Career

Writing

Make a portfolio website (June 28th, 2018), make it better and move it to Webflow (March 2020)
Have an article get 1000+ views on Medium (September 2020)
Start a newsletter, 10 strangers subscribe
Publish a book/ebook that sells over 1000 copies
Have notes from 25+ books on this website

Podcast Host

Start a podcast (April 2020), 25+ episodes (August 2020), 50+ episodes
1000 total downloads (June 2020), 2500 downloads (September 2020), 10000+ downloads
1000+ views on YouTube (Dec 2020), 10,000 views (Dec 2020)
Single episode 100+ downloads (May 2020), single episode 500+ downloads (Dec 2020, Evan Carmichael)
Interview someone I've been a fan of for years (Tomas Laurinavicius, August 2020)
Have inspired a listener to take action toward improvement
Interview someone who wrote a book I read before ever starting the podcast (Taylor Pearson)
YouTube Subscribers: 100, 250, 500, 1,000, 10,000
Some Goal Guests: Cal Newport, Ryan Holiday, Taylor Pearson, Andy Frisella, Yes Theory, Bro Science, Nat Eliason, David Perell, Tomas Laurinavicius, Seth Godin, Thomas Frank, Tiago Forte, Matt D'Avella, Nick Saban, Shane Parrish, Alex Banayan, Scott Young

Be a Podcast Guest

Jobs

Score >100 on performance evals during Co-Op terms at Mercedes Benz (Fall 2018 & Summer 2019)

YouTube

Publish a book related video on YouTube
Publish a video on YouTube about GOMAD
Publish a productivity themed video on YouTube

Misc

Exceed 500 Connections On LinkedIn (2019)

Athletics

Running

8:30 mile (May 8th, 2018), 8 minute mile (May 10th, 2018) (7:32) 7 minute mile (July 7th, 2018) (6:56, 0.5 incline), 6 minute mile, 5:30 mile, 5 minute mile
Run a 5k (July 10th, 2018), 5k sub 30 (July 31, 2018), 5k sub 25 (March 2019), 5k sub 23, 5k sub 20
Run a half marathon sub 2:30 (November 19th, 2018, 2:15:02), sub 2:15 (September 5th, 2020), sub 2 hour
Run a marathon (October 2020)
Attempt "4 miles every 4 hours for 48 hours (did 28 miles in 25 hours, June 29th, 2019), Succeed
Sprint triathlon, full ironman

Calisthenics/Gymnastics

Kipping ring muscle up (Fall 2017), strict ring muscle up
Kipping bar muscle up (2016), strict bar muscle up
Handstands: 10 second freestanding (July 2020), 30 second freestanding hold, 1 minute hold, 10 seconds on parallettes
Do a 1-arm handstand and hold for 5+ seconds (both sides)
Do a (wall-assisted) freestanding straddle press handstand, (wall-assisted) freestanding pike press handstand, parallettes press (fail-clip)
Handstand walk a full-length basketball court in one pass (fail-clip), Handstand walk up a full-staircase
True one-arm chin-up (both sides)
True one-arm push-up (feet together, both sides)
Full splits front (both sides), middle, full pancake
Human flag (at least 5 seconds, both sides)
Standing back-tuck on grass, sand, concrete
Learn how to "wall-flip" (backflip using a wall)
Flares 15+ seconds

Lifting

Squat 135x5 (January 2019), Squat 225x5 (March 2020), Squat 275x1
Bench 135x5 (April 2018), Bench 225x1 (February 2020), Bench 275x1
Deadlift 225x5 (January 2020), Deadlift 315x1
Combined Bench Squat Deadlift > 1000 lbs

Self-Education

Learning

Take a basic photoshop course (took one at Alabama, APR 260, Spring 2020)
Take an finish a self-paced online course (The Modern Python 3 Bootcamp, July 2018)
Self Study and Pass a CLEP Exam (December 2018) (Introductory Business Law)
Learn the Colemak keyboard layout and be as fast as I was on QWERTY (March->July 2020)
Free Code Camp: Responsive Web Design Certification (February 20th, 2019)
Copy the Great Gatsby word for word
Identify an additional great book and copy it word for word
Buy a textbook and complete every exercise question
Go to a Toastmasters Meeting

Reading

Read 25 books in 2018 (June 2018)
Read 50 books in 2018 (If including audio books, but around 40 regardless)
Read an entire series (3+ books)(Dune Series (1-6) Nov 2019 - March 2020)
Read all of Cal Newport's books (Deep Work, Win At College, Straight A Student, So Good They Can't Ignore You, Digital Minimalism, High School Superstar, A World Without Email)
Read all of Tim Ferris's books (Four Hour Workweek, Four Hour Body, Four Hour Chef, Tools of Titans, Tribe of Mentors)
Read a Hemingway book
Finish the Incerto Series (Nassim Taleb): Antifragile, Procrustes, Randomness, Black Swan, Skin In The Game
Read The Stoic Trifecta: Meditations (Marcus), Letters (Seneca), Enchiridion (Epictetus)

Experiments and Challenges

Diets

Be strict vegetarian for at least one month (January 2014 - September 2019, no that's not a typo)
Be strict vegan for an entire year (January 2018 - January 2019)
Be strict carnivore for an entire month (beef, eggs, fish, dairy) (March - April 2021)
Quit Alcohol (cold turkey) for an entire year (November 2019 - November 2020)
Quit Nicotine (cold turkey) for an entire year (October 2019 - October 2020)
Try 4 Therapy Sessions (Weekly for one month)

Meditation

Meditate>=10 mins daily every day for an entire month (April 2019), Meditate >=10 Minutes Daily for 30 Days Unbroken (March-April 2019, hit 47 days), Finish Headspace 30 Day Managing Anxiety (10 + Mins Sessions, 0 Missed Days, March -> April 2019)
Explore Wim Hoff Method

Miscellaneous

75HARD (May - July 2020), 75HARD Phase 1 (September - October 2020), Phase 2, Phase 3
Take Only Cold Showers For One Month (April 2019)

Fun and Adventure

College Football

Attend a National Championship (January 2018, Atlanta GA)(Alabama vs Georgia)
Attend an Iron Bowl at Bama (November 2018, Tuscaloosa AL)(Alabama vs Auburn)
Attend an SEC Championship (December 2018, Atlanta GA)(Alabama vs Georgia)

Miscellaneous

3D Print Something (Fall 2018, ended up having a 3d project at work)
Attend an Alabama Baseball Game (Spring 2020)
Go to burning man (2019)
Sunrise hike camelback mountain in Scottsdale (June 2020)
Sky dive
Build a wall-bed
Scuba dive
Take a pole class (you know that sounds fun)
Take a hip-hop/breakdancing dance class
Go to a nascar race

College Stuff

4.0 First Semester, 4.0 First Year, Graduate With a Latin Honor (Summa Cum Laude, 4.0 Overall)
Finish Math Minor, Business Minor, Honors College Reqs, CS Major Requirements
Do Sinai Scholars & Win the $100 bonus for "best paper" (Jan 2019, this became Torah & Deep Work)
Be fraternity rush chair (Spring 2018)

Travel

Study abroad (Bangkok, Thailand, Fall 2019)
Intern/work abroad (Jerusalem, Israel, Summer 2018)
Be conversationally proficient in Spanish, Thai, or Hebrew

Destinations

Asia: Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Cambodia
Europe: Greece
The Americas: Canada
US States: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, U.S. Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands

Finances

Read a book about FIRE (August 2020), Achieve basic FI (passive income exceeds basic cost of living)
Open an IRA (Fall 2019)
Set up a budgeting app (Mint, Fall 2018)
Buy a car in cash
Buy a house in cash
Build a Rogue home gym (squat rack w/ bumper plates, free pull up bar, free rings, stall bars)

Why do I write this list?

Quoting Gary Keller and Jay Papasan's, The ONE Thing, "individuals with written goals were 39.5% more likely to succeed... Individuals who wrote their goals and sent progress reports to friends were 76.7% more likely to achieve them."