Here's the idea: you do one big, year-defining thing every single year. Something that is challenging and meaningful enough that when the year ends, you remember it forever. When you’re 80 years old, you will say "2026 was the year I did… THAT.”

You need 3 things for it to be a Misogi:

• Needs to be hard. Hard for you, physically or mentally. There has to be a chance you fail. 
• Needs to be earned. You have to plan, save, train, or sacrifice to do it.
• Needs an end date. A goal without a deadline is just a dream. Make it real.

Say you're 40 years old and you live to 80. If you do one year-defining thing every year, that's 40 year-defining things on your life resume. That’s an incredible life.

Now do the math for you. 80 (average lifespan) – Your Age = How many opportunities for Misogis you have left. 

It's usually a smaller number than people expect. That's exactly why it's worth starting this year (even if it is in the middle of the year), not "eventually" or "next year".

Remember: life is a collection of the amazing stories and memories we’ve experienced! Start living BIGGER.

Misogi is an old Japanese Shinto ritual. It translates close to "water cleansing" and traditionally involves standing under a freezing cold waterfall. Doing something uncomfortable to purify the mind, body, and spirit. Shinto monks have been practicing it for centuries. 

Kyle Korver, our founder Jesse Itzler’s friend, experienced it, and over the years they have applied a new meaning to the word that has completely changed their lives! One big year-defining challenge that, in essence, cleanses the mind, body, and spirit.

Misogi is pronounced miss-oh-ghee (rhymes with "kiss, oh, key").

Yes! Put the intended future completion date. It will be tagged as “Planned” and you can update the description and add a picture once you complete your Misogi!

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Everything from getting a license or certification, to crossing a race finish line, to going from zero experience to performing an instrument for an audience. It has to be challenging and meaningful to you. It has to be something you will remember this year by forever!

Misogi is a traditional Japanese Shinto purification ritual, literally translating to "water cleansing" and traditionally performed by immersing in cold water or standing beneath a sacred waterfall to purify the mind and body. Our adapted version of Misogi takes on a different meaning where you plan one big, challenging goal every year.

It's a modern, adapted version of the ritual: one big, physically or mentally demanding, genuinely uncertain challenge you take on once every year, popularized by Jesse Itzler and The Big A## Calendar Company.

No. It has to be hard and have a chance of failure. Writing a book or launching a business can qualify if it's meaningful and memorable to you, and genuinely challenges and scares you. What disqualifies something is ease and certainty, not the category.

If you're confident you'll succeed, it's a goal, not a Misogi. A real Misogi carries something close to a 50/50 chance of you not finishing. It needs to be hard for you, really pushing your limits, and, once completed, expands your self belief of what you’re capable of doing!

A resolution is usually a habit you're trying to sustain all year (exercise more, drink less). A Misogi is a single, dated event. The point is that there's a specific date when it’s completed and you either did it or you didn't.

We’ve had plenty of multi-year-defining events! “2025 was the year I had my first baby and finished my first marathon!” Don’t overthink it. Start by picking one BIG goal and get after it!

Jesse is the founder of The Big A## Calendar and popularized our definition of Misogi. He does one every year. His are normally physical challenges, but they don’t have to be: 

2015 — Wrote Living with a SEAL

2017 — Launched 29029 Everesting

2019 — Last Man Standing Ultramarathon

2020 — Calendar Club (ran 1 mile on 1st day of the month, 2 miles on 2nd, all the way up to 31 miles on 31st)

2021 — Ultraman (an ultra-distance triathlon)

2023 — Biked Across America (San Diego, CA to St. Augustine, FL)

2024 — Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim Grand Canyon

2025 — 2025 miles in 2025 (failed)

Some of those are physical. One's a book. The common thread isn't "extreme sport" — it's that it was hard and important for JESSE to prioritize these things. Yours doesn't have to look like his, but if you’ve never done one, a physical challenge is a great place to start. You’ll also notice he failed his 2025 Misogi… your goal should be challenging enough that there is a real chance of failure. That’s where you break through self-limiting beliefs!