Wish Lists: Ideas, Examples, & Quotes

By Angela Saulsbery, M.A.
​Reviewed by Tchiki Davis, M.A., Ph.D.
Do you keep a wish list? Discover how wish lists work and how to use this tool to advance your goals. Also, what to do when wishes change!
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Maybe you made wish lists when you were little and daydreamed about birthday and holiday gifts. Maybe you wanted to make sure that your parents picked out the right color clothes or the right version of a video game. I remember filling my list with titles of books and numerous carefully-noted shades of pink lip gloss.
As adults, our birthday wish lists might evolve into Pinterest boards, bucket lists, wedding registries, and lists of goals and New Year’s Resolutions. My Goodreads want-to-read list is essentially a grown-up version of those long-ago wish lists. As low-stakes as my teenage lip gloss picks may have been, wish lists can be a valuable tool for anyone of any age to identify and work toward meaningful goals. (Or just keep track of which kitchen gadgets you want–that’s okay, too.)
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What Is a Wish List? (A Definition)

A wish list is a tool to keep track of what you want. These lists are often organized by theme–for example, I’ve kept separate lists for potential travel destinations, wavy hair care products I want to try, and what I’m looking for in my next apartment. Wish lists can be fun, serious, private, shared, organized, messy, detailed, vague, practical, and/or fanciful. 

How Does a Wish List Work?

You can keep a wish list in many formats–in a notebook, on an app, or as a collage, for example. The list acts as a repository for and reminder of your wants. For instance, it can remind you to request a certain amount of vacation time when negotiating a job offer. The list can also keep wishes (or goals) at the forefront of your mind so you’re motivated to keep working toward them–if you remember that trip to Italy you want to take, you might be inspired to figure out a better savings plan or to ask for a much-deserved raise.

Wish lists could be a step toward creating clear written life goals. Writing down goals may help you achieve them (Matthews, 2007). Wishes, of course, aren’t quite the same as goals and can be as pie-in-the-sky as you want. Still, bringing wishes into written, spoken, or visual awareness seems like a prerequisite to making them real. After all, what is a goal but a wish with a plan and intention?

Wish List Ideas

  • Wish list for your next relationship–Similarly to a job wish list, a relationship wish list can remind you what you deserve and what matters to you when searching for romantic partners. In her book How Not to Die Alone, dating coach Logan Ury suggests not getting overly specific when imagining your ideal partner: She explains that many people look for fun “prom dates” instead of prioritizing qualities that promote long-term relationship satisfaction (Ury, 2022). (Of course, if you’re looking for a fun prom date, feel free to disregard this advice!) Instead of looking for someone of a specific height or hair color, or someone who shares all your specific interests, try listing qualities like, “is attractive to me,” or, “someone I enjoy spending time with and feel intellectually stimulated by.” This strategy may help you avoid settling for less than you deserve while opening the search up to potentially great partners you may never have considered otherwise (Ury, 2022).
  • Books to read–I recommend making a goodreads.com account for this list. It can help you keep track of the new books you want to check out from the library; you can even set a reading goal for the year. If pen and paper are more your speed, a basic notebook or a reading journal work just as well.
  • Movies to watch–Similarly, letterboxd.com is a good place to keep a watchlist of movies so you’re not stumped the next time a friend says, “So…what do you want to watch?” Basic accounts on both websites are free.
  • Wish list to curb impulse spending–Whenever I want (but don’t need) something, I put it on a wish list with a date at which I’ll buy the item. This strategy reassures my acquisitive side that I’ll eventually own the item, but keeps me from thoughtlessly dropping cash on it. Often, by the time the date rolls around, my enthusiasm has waned and I just delete the item from the list. Some scholarship supports this strategy: Groening et al. argue that keeping wish lists (especially private ones) might prevent purchasing items by allowing shoppers to “cool off” their excitement about the item or by making them feel that they own the item already (and so, don’t need to buy it; 2021). Adding an item to a wish list also introduces an additional decision point (to place the item on the list or not, and to buy it or not), which gives you extra opportunity to rationally consider whether the purchase is a good idea (and, maybe, decide you need the cash more) (Popovich & Hamilton, 2014). 
    • Also, see below for YouTuber CKSpace’s version of this strategy. He uses a hard-copy wish list with columns for item name, price, and what his purpose is in buying the item, and ends up purchasing only about 10% of the (most useful) items on the list.​​

Video: Minimalism Rule: How to Use Wishlist Strategy

  • Reverse wish list – Just as you can make a list of what you want and need, you can make a list of dealbreakers. It’s important to articulate what we will and will not tolerate–in other words, to set boundaries. For example, if you just got out of a troubled relationship, you can write down all the features you won’t accept in a new relationship. 
  • Gift-giving wish list – You can keep wish lists for others as well as yourself. For example, if a friend says they want something, I write down their birthday somewhere I can find it.

List of Wishes for the New Year

Many of us compile a list of wishes and goals for each new year–a.k.a. New Year’s resolutions. This practice has become less common in the past few years, with 43% of Americans making resolutions for 2021 but only 29% reporting that they planned to make resolutions for 2022 (Backus, 31 December 2021). Health, diet, and weight are the leading resolution themes (Oscarsson et al., 2020). If you're looking to create resolutions, keep in mind that resolutions to do or have more of something (e.g., getting more exercise) are more successful than resolutions to avoid something (e.g., cutting out caffeine) (Oscarsson et al., 2020).

Wish List for Work

If you’re in the market for a new job, a wish list might help you decide where to apply, what questions to ask in an interview, and what to negotiate for when you receive an offer. You might, for example, need a certain salary, a certain amount of paid time off, and good health insurance options. You can also list features of the job environment and skills you hope to improve. 

Although you might not get everything on the wish list, articulating what you want and deserve could help you come out ahead. A wish list might also make your search more efficient and focused since you’ll know exactly what you’re looking for. You can make similar wish lists for a house, car, or apartment search.

Wish List for Retirement

Many retirees experience a phase of “disenchantment,” in which they realize that retired life doesn’t live up to their expectations (Atchley, 1976). If you’re retired (or preparing for retirement) and want to avoid this outcome, a wish list for retirement might help. What do you want to do in retirement? How will your priorities and values shift? How can you arrange your new schedule to reflect these values and continue living a meaningful life? The answers to these questions could be expressed in the form of a list. Items might include, “steady volunteer work at the library,” “a new pet,” “occasional freelance work in my field,” “Sunday lunch with friends,” or any number of other wishes and goals. Similar lists might help provide structure and direction to other life transitions, as well–I can imagine writing a wish list for marriage, an interstate (or international) move, or a college graduation.

Life Wishes List

A life wishes list is more commonly called a “bucket list.” This term is derived from “kicked the bucket,” a euphemism for death (Merriam-Webster, n.d.). In a study conducted in 2015-2016, about 91% of survey respondents indicated that they kept a bucket list (Periyakoil et al., 2018). The most common bucket list wishes were travel-related, followed by wishes related to personal goals, life milestones, personal finances, quality time with loved ones, and daring adventures (Periyakoil et al., 2018). The authors advise medical professionals to ask about patients’ bucket lists (or life goals) and use them to inform care plans (Periyakoil et al., 2018).

In another study, 74% of participants either agreed or strongly agreed that “a bucket list could help me remember things that I want to do” (Zascerinska et al., 2022, Table 5). This study also helps to clarify the relationship of bucket lists with our awareness of mortality, with 61% of participants agreeing or strongly agreeing that, “if I was to have a terminal disease, completing meaningful activities would be necessary for me”; most participants claimed that their bucket list items did not have anything to do with a fear of dying, however (Zascerinska et al., 2022, Table 3). Regarding motivation for creating a bucket list, most participants did not endorse the bucket list as a status symbol but did agree that “my bucket list could tell others a lot about me”. The authors conclude that bucket lists are largely centered around consumerism and personal identity (Zascerinska et al., 2022).

How To Make a Wish List

When making a wish list, you don’t have to be practical or realistic–you can write down anything that you’d get in your ideal scenario. You can try the strategy of setting a timer for 5-10 minutes and writing down everything that comes to mind, without self-censoring. You don’t have to worry about what anyone else might think of your wish list, either–you don’t have to share it with anyone if you don’t want to. A wish list is a great place to dream big. There’ll be plenty of time to edit and rank items later if you want to. 
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When you review the list, you can amend anything that seems too out there. For example, in most fields, you’re unlikely to end up with a 6-figure salary right out of college. If something on the list seems out of reach at the moment, you can leave it on the list as a longer-term goal while acknowledging that a more modest goal is more attainable right now (in this example, a living wage that also allows for some comforts and makes sense for your career field). A second draft is also a good time to do research. If you’re making a wish list for a car, for example, you can read online reviews and search available models.

When Wishes Change

One of the merits of wish lists is that they don’t commit you to anything on them. You’re free, at any time, to decide you’re no longer interested in buying that thing, working that kind of job, or pursuing that experience; you can revisit your list and realize a certain quality is no longer important to you in a potential partner. People grow and change–as we do, so do our needs and wants. So, if you open your wish list back up and realize some of the items no longer apply, just delete them or cross them out. Wish lists are works in progress, not binding contracts.

Articles Related to Wish Lists

​Want to learn more? Check out these articles:​​​​

Books & Products Related to Wish Lists​

If you’d like to keep learning more, here are a few books and products that you might be interested in.

Final Thoughts on Wish Lists

Wish lists aren’t just for kids–they can be a powerful tool for people of all ages to clarify and remember their goals and desires. Wish lists can allow us to exercise our imaginations, expand our ideas about what we deserve and what is possible for us, and begin turning our half-conscious desires into active goals and real achievements. Making a wish list can also be an act of hope and an investment in a brighter future. Given the uncertainty of the modern world, I think many of us could use a little wish list whimsy.

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