I used to think Bucket Lists were, for lack of a better word, stupid. It just didn’t make sense. Why would I write everything I wanted to do down when I wasn’t going to come remotely close to completing it? I would only be setting myself up for disappointment and failure. After all, with all the factors needed to complete an item, I would never finish everything. Whether it be time, money, opportunity, things would have to be absolutely perfect for me to check even one thing off my list.

But things have changed. Such is life.

And what I’ve realized is that bucket lists aren’t meant to be completed. There should always be things we’re striving towards. Because in a life full of things we have to do, we need those things that we want to do. But that answer seems rather general. So let me break it down for you. And hopefully, when I’m finished you’ll already be taking pen to paper.

1. It Gives You an Incentive To Save.

My own bucket list mostly consists of places I want to travel to and explore. But here’s the thing, flying is expensive! The going rate to for a flight from Los Angeles to London is around $1000. And that’s just getting myself from LAX to Heathrow. There’s still hotels, transportation, obligatory souvenirs and Christmas gifts. And the costs doesn’t stop at travel. Most things worth doing include some sort of expense. Whether it be time or money, having a bucket list provides a physical incentive to save– put some money aside, start hoarding vacation days! Having that scratch paper on the wall while you’re online shopping reminds you that you’re resisting the urge to spend for a good reason. Because I don’t know about you, but I’d rather spend a week in New Zealand than replace my iPhone 6 with an iPhone 6S.

2. You Work Harder When There’s Something On The Line.

A lot of work is monotonous, repetitive, dull, smack-my-head-against-a-wall boring. And when you have nothing to look forward to it may seem like the rest of your life will consist of sitting in your cubicle. But when you’ve have a To Do list that you actually want to do, you will work a little harder to finish your work so you can go out and play. So really it’s a win-win situation; you’re efficient in getting your work done and you get to one-up everyone else’s Christmas card photo.

3. It Reminds You To Keep Dreaming Big.

As a kid I used to say “When I grow up I want to…” But now that I’m actually approaching “grown up,” I’ve discovered I haven’t accomplished most of what I wanted. Between school, sports, family, and life in general, growing up has a way of putting “wants” on hold…and never taking them off. That’s where the bucket list comes in. The physical task of writing down what you want to do reminds you that there’s more to life than “going through the motions.” And there’s far more to life than living in your comfort zone. Bucket lists are the adult way of saying “When I grow up I’m going to….take risks, have fun, make memories worth telling.” Bucket lists say “just because I’m not a kid anymore doesn’t mean I stopped dreaming big.” And when everything’s checked off, there’s always more to add.

So what’s on your bucket list? Wait, don’t tell me… my list is already too long.