"What I Wish I Had Known Before I .....Didn't Even Leave On My Mission" List

As I have been preparing for my mission in Ukraine L'viv, I have been utilizing social media tools such as Blogger (both here on my own blog as well as other missionaries' blogs), Pinterest (ohhhhhhh Pinterest how I do love you xoxoxo <3), Facebook ("Many are called..... but few are sisters" - 'nuf said), and so on.

And one of the most beautiful creations in this world of Pre-Mish Preparations is the RM-written "What I Wish I Had Known Before I Left On My Mission" lists. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, YOU PRECIOUS SOULS.

I have found what feels like an ABUNDANCE of these glorious lists, and I have decided to buckle down and merge these suckas.

Here is the current (and ever evolving/growing/improving) "What I Wish I Had Known Before I .....Didn't Even Leave On My Mission" List. I hope this somehow helps your blessed little self (because it's helping me)!!!!

What I Wish I Had Known Before I ... Didn't Even Leave On My Mission

• Study from Preach My Gospel. You will be using this ALL. THE. TIME. The more you learn before you hit the MTC, the better off you'll be. Remember: hit the ground running, not crawling. That's the goal for when you arrive at the MTC. Do all you can to prepare now :)
• READ THE BOOK OF MORMON. AND THE BIBLE, DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS AND PEARL OF GREAT PRICE. READ UP. At least once all the way through before you leave! If you've already read it, read it again. And once you finish it, start it over again. KEEP READING. This is the Book that sets us apart from ALL OTHER FAITHS, Christian or not. You don't have to know it all, but opening up The Book of Mormon and all other scriptures (Bible, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price), you will be blessed with a far greater understanding than you would be if you let these precious gems collect dust on your shelf.
• Don't delay going through the Temple. Don't rush it, but don't put it off. Remember that you may want to go through at least once or twice more after your first time before leaving on your mish.
• Take Temple Prep classes, and enroll as soon as you can. (Talk to your Bishop about how to do that - it's simple.) This is a 7-lesson course that The Church offers to help prepare you for the Temple. It's a review of basic doctrine but you will have an opportunity to ask questions about the Temple. :) DEFINITELY worth it. :)
• Take the Mission Prep course! (Also ask your Bishop for details on this one..... on anything, actually.) In my Stake it was a 3-class course that was spread out over many months (less than a year). I'm not sure if it's this way in every Stake/District, but we were able to select a mentor (aka: a returned missionary in our ward who would be able to help us to go through the course and complete our assignments, and who would attend the 3 meetings with us). The meetings gave us an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the important details of a mission - including things like loving your companion.
• GET YOUR PASSPORT ASAP. Don't wait until you get your call, don't wait until the last minute before you have to submit your visa, don't..... don't wait. At all. Just get it over with my friends! For real. It will save you SO much stress to just get it over with and not have to worry about it. Also, the process can sometimes be lengthy (not always) so it's better to be safe than sorry.
• Get in shape now, and if you are in shape, STAY IN SHAPE. Exercise for half an hour daily. Walk when you can avoid taking the car. You will be able to focus far better as you prepare and you will be more accustomed to the exercising once you report if you begin now. If you wish to take up the amazing sport of running or biking, etc, there are week-by-week programs that you can find online to help you get started. My go-to running program is C25K, which you can find here.
• Organize your brilliant mission ideas and the ideas you discover in an easy-to-understand way. I have done this on my Pinterest account (see my Mission Prep boards here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here). This will make it FAR easier to access these ideas when you want to, instead of having to rummage through piles of unorganized mess. Trust me, you will thank yourself later.
• Collect your favourite inspirational quotes and a few of your favourite General Conference addresses. Put them together to take with you. You'll want the encouragement when you are out there. Remember that you won't be able to just hop online to search for your favourite uplifting things when you're feeling down the same way you can now. You won't have the same uplifting friends around you, and sometimes your companions may not be the most positive. You need to be able to spiritually nourish yourself without relying solely on others to do it for you. :)
• Figure out an effective note-taking system for yourself. It will be easier to take notes during meetings and conferences if you have an effective way of recording your promptings, thoughts and feelings on the spot, and will save you the feeling of being unorganized (both in the moment and later on when you want to refer to those notes).
• Collect other people's addresses. And collect them now. Don't wait 'til you get out on your mission to start asking for people's postal codes and email addresses. Get them now. And don't expect them to write you first - they may not. Your family should be your top writing priority but you never know when you may feel prompted to write someone else - and how much easier that would be if you had their address already.

Further reading: http://www.bellainberlin.blogspot.ca/2013/01/i-wish-i-wouldve-known.html

http://kelciemykell.wordpress.com/2013/06/29/my-advice/