Imagine, you’re eight years old and in two weeks it’s your birthday. On the wall in your bedroom hangs a calendar with the number of nights you have to sleep before the day is there. You drew it yourself, with your favorite colors, and your favorite animals and flowers on it. Every night before you go to bed you count the day’s. Next to the calendar, there’s your birthday-wishlist. Your biggest wishes are on it. You can’t wait which one you’re going to get! Now imagine, it’s 25 years later. You’re an entrepreneur in an era full of transformations and adventures. It isn’t your birthday, but you still have a wishlist. This time it’s not hanging on your bedroom wall, but you’ve written it on your personal website. So every one can find it. Even worldwide. How awesome that would be? I’ll tell you – Awesome! In 2010 I discovered this magical tool. Nils Roemen introduced it, for his co-founding organization ‘Durftevragen’ (Dare To Ask). Many inspiring entrepreneurs followed his idea, and all created a personal wishlist. Everything you can think of, you can put on the wishlist. You can ask for anything. As big or small as you want. For example:
- Train tickets
- Specific books
- Stuff for your project
- Wine
- Flowers
- Personal stuff for your house
- Digital gadgets
- Coffee dates with certain people (CEO’s etc.)
- Contacts at companies you want to work with
- Services like: free massage, workshops, administration wizards, etc.
But if it isn’t even your birthday, so HOW TO USE IT as a grown up entrepreneur? Well, there are several options. In the Share- Economy in the Netherlands at the moment we trade everything. You can just put your wishlist online, and sing in open space ‘Hey everyone! If you have something left that happens to be on my wishlist, I’m happy to receive it!’ It is very easy. And you never know what brings it. My experience is this way works best when you’re doing a project. For example: With KeepitCleanDay in 2012 (a one day cleanup from illegal waste), we had such a wishlist and worked without the use of money (of course indirect there was money involved). The second option is this: As a self sufficient entrepreneur you’ve been asked for many tiny tasks, all the time. And when I say ‘all the time‘, I mean ‘all’ the time. People will find you, and because you’re a solist you’ve been asked very quickly to help out with all the things people can think of. This is fun! It is very easy to have a cup of coffee, share free coaching, your network and support and say ‘bye bye’ at the end of the coffee date. However.. You can only do this for a short amount of time, until your landlord asks you who is going to pay the rent this month. And you end up frustrated. That’s not the way! This is were the wishlist enters the game! When some one wants your help, but they don’t have money to offer you, you follow your personal checklist (I’ll explain it in a minute), and you show them the wishlist. Maybe they can help you out with something that’s on your list. Maybe they have connections, or know somebody, who knows somebody, who knows somebody that happens to be on your wishlist. It’s all possible, when you open up to the magic. An important add to this whole story is the personal checklist.This checklist is an important part of the wishlist-game, because you will never-ever be certain to receive anything from your wishlist! A wishlist is an open collection of things you wish. It is not a must. There must be more reasons to offer your services, than only the certainty of getting money or a wishlist-item in return. When you agree to help a person out without a money-exchange, you must be sure not to feel disappointed when somebody is not bringing you an extra gift! As an example, this is my personal checklist. I use it for 1,5 years now and it helps me a lot! When 3 of the 4 points are positive, I agree on a meeting without money. 1. you like the person 2. you have spare time left. 3. it brings you energy. 4. your gut feeling says ‘Yes!.. Only then it’s a good idea to help the person out. Make your own, with check-points that matter to you! Here are some wish lists of people in the Netherlands. It’s in Dutch, but google can translate a lot these days ;)
- Sanne Roemen: http://www.sanneroemen.nl/verlanglijstje
- Fanny Koerts: https://fannykoerts.tadalist.com/lists/298356/public
- Anne-Monique: http://www.anne-monique.nl/wie-ben-ik/verlanglijstje/
- Jan Peter: http://www.janpeterbogers.nl/wie/verlanglijstje
- Nils Roemen: http://www.nilsroemen.com/verlanglijst/
- Marrije Prins: http://www.madameprimula.nl/Wensenlijstje
- Juul Martin: http://www.juulmartin.nl/verlanglijstje/
- Nienke Tode – Gottenbos: http://www.groenevrouw.nl/dit-ben-ik/verlanglijstje/
- Organization for high educated young people without a job WADT: http://www.werkenaandetoekomst.nl/wensenlijst/