Everyone should go on at least one side quest a week. It is the ultimate, and arguably the most fun, way to keep your priorities straight and your perspectives fresh. A side quest is essentially any impromptu adventure. Fishing at 10 p.m. on a Tuesday because playing cards was boring, soaking your jeans jumping in puddles after it rains, agreeing to a last minute weekend trip, go karting and drive-in movies with your sister — side quests are the good moments that shape a great life. 

Side quests got their name because in role-playing video games, there is a main plot that you must complete to win. Any optional or secondary task is a side quest, because it does not help complete the main plot in any way. In life, side quests will not advance your career, pay your bills, or further your education. So, what’s the point? Why bother? 

Well, for one, you can’t plan them, so thinking of them in terms of something that needs to be intentionally added into life is useless. A true side quest is something that makes you step back and say, “I did not expect my day to end up here when I woke up this morning.” 

No one truly expects to find themselves at a park at midnight eating an 86-cent pie from Walmart, or on a walk with the sole intent of rescuing worms and slugs from the sidewalk after the rain drew them out. 

Making side quests a regular (yet still sporadic) part of your life starts with being able to look at things as an opportunity to go out and discover more about yourself and the world around you. Almost everything offers the potential to be enjoyable if you choose to find the fun. Even being stranded on the side of the road for five hours on your birthday – speaking from personal experience – can turn out for the best. I ended up meeting a lovely couple that took me into their home and fed me leftover pizza while I waited for my dad to rescue me. It is one of my favorite birthday stories to tell. 

Another practical way to embrace a side quest lifestyle is to say yes to more. Just because an outing wasn’t a part of your plan to begin with doesn’t mean it would be a bad thing to allow yourself to do Oftentimes we get too set in our schedule to try new things, especially if these new things seem pointless or frivolous. I believe that if it makes you smile, deepens your relationships, or brings just fun, then it isn’t pointless.  

We were not born to wake up, go to work, go home, and repeat. We were designed to discover and to explore the world with childlike wonder, yet when the time comes that we are able to do so with the freedom of adults, we no longer feel the desire to explore. These silly little side quests are a big part of what give life true value. Accepting that life is unpredictable and embracing its spontaneity allows us to enjoy it to the fullest.