There's a lot of truth to the saying that you regret the things that you didn't do in life more than the things that you did. Summer is the perfect time to start crossing items off your bucket list, and it'll be even easier when you learn how to win $500 through 5 Gum's #NoRegrets Campaign. While financing new experiences and travel plans can quickly add up, this initiative will help 500 people around the country live their best lives this summer, and you could be one of them.
According to a press release from 5 Gum, the company got the idea for this sweepstakes after conducting a survey and finding that one-third of American seniors and teens said that finances oftentimes got in the way of their bucket list goals. Who can totally relate? After all, booking a trip to your dream destination or seeing your favorite band on tour isn't as easy as you might wish. That's where 5 Gum comes in. Inspired by the results from this survey and five mini-documentaries that it released last month that explore the lives of five seniors and their biggest regrets in life, the retailer decided to give 500 people the summer of a lifetime. Thankfully, it's really easy to enter.
If you don't have a Twitter or Instagram account, first create one and follow @5Gum. Next, take a minute to post or tweet about how you would spend the $500 to live your life with one less regret. They'll be picking the 500 lucky individuals from these submissions, so think long and hard before posting. You even have the option to share a text-only post, single photo, a photo collage, or a video (up to one minute long) illustrating how you’d live your best life, so it's the perfect time to get creative. Make sure to include the hashtags #NoRegrets and #5GumContest, then post it.
According to the fine print, you need to be at least 13 years old to enter and your post needs to be set to "public" so that 5 Gum can see it. I'd also recommend looking over your social media before the submission, because the company says that it will also be checking to make sure "that each potential winner has not engaged in public conduct [...] that could damage the reputation of Sponsor or any of the Released Parties."
As for the selection process, judges will be considering other factors than the amount of "likes" you got when they're picking who will get the $500 prepaid Visa card. Fifty percent of the score will be based on the entrants' passion for life, plus their willingness to conquer a potential regret and live life to the fullest, while the quality of the submissions and the posts' personality and authenticity will account for the other half. Winners will be contacted through social media on or around July 16, and their names will be posted online.
Even if you have too many bucket list items running through your mind, you have until July 9 at 11:59 p.m. ET to decide on one, so that gives you a little breathing room to make your selection. 5 Gum's suggestions of taking a solo trip to Australia, riding in a hot air balloon, and going sky diving all sound pretty great to me, so picking just one is definitely going to be the hardest part about these sweepstakes.
If you're looking for a little inspiration in the meantime, I'd recommend heading to 5 Gum's YouTube channel and watching the touching stories of five seniors who talk about missed opportunities and how they'd do things differently if they could. Martin's #NoRegrets video about waiting 85 years to come out will make you cry and re-think all your priorities.
With less than a month to go until the contest closes, there's never been a better time to start making your bucket list and bringing your dreams a little closer. Who knows, you could be living your best life in a few short weeks.
