From Heart Attack to Bucket List Crosser Off-er with Roger Williams

In today’s episode, Jeff interviews Roger Williams, the self-proclaimed Crosser off-er of his Bucket List. Roger got his inspiration from the movie “The Bucket List (2007).” He was in his 30s when he watched it and wasn’t in any hurry to start crossing things off his list as the movie implied that you had to be old to get started. Sometime later Roger had a heart attack that opened his eyes and he began to evaluate what he had been defining his self-worth as. After jokingly changing his social media job title to the “Crosser off-er of my bucket list,” he decided to take action. Not only did he take action, he decided to be intentional with his list. This mindset led to him doing the Camino de Santiago and other things he wouldn’t have had the courage to do.

Roger and Jeff discuss:

1. How did you get to be the head crosser off-er of your bucket list? Self proclaimed title he gave to himself.
2. Roger had a heart attack in December 2020 and came out more intently asking where he found his self worth.
3. Educator for 30+ years and although he loved it, it was hard work.
4. With 168 hrs in a week, he sold 40-50 hrs to someone else, slept 40-50 hrs and had 60-80 hrs left in the week for how he wanted to be known.
5. On his social media accounts he changed his work title to "crosser off-er of my bucket list” and changed his company to “bucket list” as a joke.
6. What made you want to create a bucket list? A movie that came out in 2007 called, “The Bucket List.”
7. Roger saw the movie in his 30’s and thought to himself that he has time as the movie implied that you do the bucket list items when you get old.
8. Time went by and he had his bucket list only in his head until the heart attack.
9. First major bucket list item was the Camino de Santiago, a 790 kilometer trek across northern Spain. This was on his bucket list for 10-11 years.
10. After taking an Adult gap year (in the book) what other big things did you do? Getting knuckle tattoos and traveling to Europe and to Costa Rica.
11. One big takeaway from the book was to be intentional with your bucket list; don’t just have a list of things but why do you want to do/experience them.
12. What are you doing now? Started a podcast right when he started his Adult gap year called “The Crossing It Off” podcast. To promote it, Roger has been on 30+ podcasts this year.  Also in the process of creating online courses based on the book.
13. Setting an intention at the beginning of writing your bucket list is to help you use it as a guide (mission statement) as you do them.
14. You’d be surprised at how somethings on your bucket list will just happen or how you are guided towards them; Roger is much more open to what the universe provides.

Fast Five Questions

1. If you woke up and your business was gone, you have $500, a laptop, a place to live, and food, what would you do first? “I would rebuild the podcast.” 

2. What is the biggest mistake that you have made in business? “Paying to be on someone else's podcast.”

3. What is a book that you would recommend? “Howard Zinn's; A People's History of the United States.”

4. What is a tool that you use everyday that you would recommend? “Calendly.”

5. What’s your definition of freedom? “Freedom is the ability to say yes to what I want to and the ability to say No to what I don't want to.” 

6. What is the best way to contact you? “Website: https://crossingitoffpodcast.com/