Wondering how to find adventure in your life? Here are my top practical tips!
For years, I’ve used adventure to measure the quality of my life.
Now don’t get me wrong…adventure is lovely, captivating, invigorating, and magical. And most of us need some of that magic in our lives.
The Truth About Adventure
But here’s an important truth: Adventure doesn’t require you to board a plane, take two weeks off of work, save up thousands of dollars, or adopt a completely non-traditional lifestyle.
Sure — that works for some people who have really unique jobs, feel content as a vagabond, have infinite amounts of money, or don’t require stability to be happy.
And I can’t lie. The idea of a vagabond existence or living a very non-traditional life inspires and excites me! But I also know this isn’t a reality for me, because I crave roots, community, family, home, and consistency on some level.
{If you’re one of those exceptions, more power to you! I will continue to follow you on social media and be forever inspired as your blaze your own path.}
But for most of us? I think the majority of us want to find that sweet spot — the one where we live happy, healthy, balanced lives with a big dose of adventure mixed in.
And I truly believe we can all find adventure in our unique, individual lives.
How to Chase Adventure
Do you ache for adventure?
Even if you don’t have enough money or time off to embark on that next grand adventure, there are definitely ways to find adventure in your everyday life.
Here are 7 simple ways to find adventure in your own life:
1. Become more mindful.
As cliche as it might seem, life itself is truly an adventure.
We just get so caught up in the monotony of day to day responsibilities that we lose sight of the childlike wonder we were born with.
Try to breathe a little more slowly and deeply, be present in the moments you find yourself in, and notice the world around you.
The more mindfully you live your life, the more you’ll realize that there is always something new to appreciate and revel in.
I always find myself learning from children. I watch the way they remain so fully present in each moment — not distracted by past memories or future plans. They see a butterfly and they want to chase it. They smell a flower and their eyes grow wide at the pleasant aroma.
As I’ve learned to live more mindfully, I have discovered adventure in watching the sun set, listening to birds in my neighborhood, tasting new foods, and forming relationships with other human beings.
2. Try something new.
Trying new things can be such an adventure and add so much excitement to life!
Need some ideas? Try one of these:
- Learn to play a musical instrument.
- Cook one new recipe for dinner each week.
- Try out a new cuisine. (Indian food is my favorite, and I never would have known this if a friend of mine hadn’t cooked it for me when she was visiting one time!)
- Choose one craft to try each month.
- Plant a garden.
- Join a book club.
- Try yoga or pilates.
- Make your own essential oils blend.
- Make stovetop tea.
- Take up knitting, crocheting, or quilting.
- Volunteer locally.
- Adopt a pet
If you’re still looking for inspiration, I highly recommend Adrianna Adarme’s book The Year of Cozy.
You never know what might happen as a result of trying something new. You might even discover a new hobby, talent, or love that you never knew existed deep inside of you!
3. Embrace spontaneity.
You might not be able to hop on a plane whenever you want, but try saying
yes more often when you want to say no!
Invite to a concert? Say yes.
Hula-hooping in the streets? Say yes.
Running through the rain? Say yes.
Yoga on the beach? Say yes.
Local arts festival? Say yes.
Weekend road trip? Say yes.
Board game night? Say yes.
Late night coffee chats? Say yes.
Slow dancing to vinyl in the living room? Say yes.
Gazing upon the night sky after midnight? Say yes.
This has been a hard lesson for me to learn. I am extremely Type A. I like plans and to-do lists. I like knowing what I’m going to be doing two weekends from now. I live inside my planner.
My boyfriend is the king of spontaneity. Often times, we’ll be driving along with a plan in mind for the day, and he’ll suddenly make a turn down a street that takes us a different direction.
I’ll ask, “Ummm…where are we going?”
His reply? “You’ll see!”
It’s always SO much fun to see where we end up.
And you know what? Some of my favorite memories in life involve saying yes to adventure spontaneously when I really didn’t feel like it.
4. Explore your local city.
I’m going to let you in on a little secret: your local city is a goldmine of adventure just waiting to be discovered.
For years, I hopped on planes to travel to the other side of the country looking for adventure out West.
And while I had amazing mountaintop experiences, I have slowly learned how to really embrace the city I live in.
I look around and I am so grateful to live in my city.
I live in an adorable little beach town where community flourishes, art thrives, waves crash down, and love abounds. I can walk to the beach in just 10 minutes. The local breakfast cafe choices on a Saturday morning are overwhelming. I can bike to just about anywhere I’d like to go. I’ve found 10-15 Free Little Libraries. Geocaches are everywhere. The sea breeze never dies.
I didn’t appreciate any of this — this real-life, everyday adventure waiting for me — because I always had my eyes looking towards the mountains on the other side of the country.
Don’t get me wrong. I still long for the mountains. But I’ve also managed to find SO much adventure in my local town!
If you’re really craving adventure, I encourage you to look to your local city. State parks are all around. Free local community events are always happening. If you’ve never researched the appeal of your own town, hop on the Internet and do so! It’s important to appreciate why people travel from far away to experience the place you’ve grown so accustomed to.
5. Plan for fun at least once per week.
My boyfriend and I set a goal this year to make Saturdays “adventure days.”
Almost every Saturday, we have a fun, outdoor adventure planned — geocaching, biking around town to check out the Free Little Libraries, exploring the local state parks, kite flying, hunting for shark’s teeth, camping, and more.
We also allow ourselves 1-2 hours of screen free time every evening where we do something fun of our choosing — either together or separate. Sometimes we play a board game, other times we read a book or work on projects separately.
Until this year, I never realized how important it is to have these pockets of time planned out.
While spontaneity is important, I think it’s equally as important to have blocks of time set aside for “fun” or “free time.” Life easily gets busy and calendars quickly become full.
I challenge you to set aside at least one hour each week to do something fun — whatever it is that really fills up your soul. This can make all the difference when it comes to feeling like you’re living an adventurous life!
6. Take weekend trips.
The first five suggestions on this list were meant to be extremely budget-friendly so that money doesn’t hold you back from finding adventure in your life — no matter the season you’re in.
If you have extra wiggle room in your budget, though, I think weekend trips are a sort of magic ticket to really getting your fill of adventure on a regular basis.
I used to block off weeks of vacation at a time and go on one huge trip each year. And though those few weeks were amazing, my adventure tank was running on empty the remainder of the year. I felt deprived, cooped up, and burnt out.
Over the past year or so, I’ve experimented with using my vacation time sporadically and more spread out. And it has made all the difference for me!
Furthermore, I often take weekend trips that don’t require any time off at all.
Weekend trips are also great, because they are typically more budget-friendly than longer trips. You can drive instead of fly, take snacks on the road and pack your own lunches/dinners to avoid eating out, and split the cost of lodging with friends.
Some of my favorite weekend trips have cost less than $100 for food, gas, and lodging! We love camping because the lodging is so inexpensive — typically no more than $20 per night (and sometimes as low as $5 per night!).
If you’re on a really tight budget, consider taking a weekend road trip to stay with family or friends so that lodging is free.
Getting outside your routine a few times per year really helps — even if just for a few days!
7. Always have something to look forward to.
I once read in Gretchen Rubin’s book The Happiness Project that we should always have something to look forward to on our calendars. It’s a facilitator of happiness.
I remember reading that chapter and having an epiphany about just how important it is to have things to look forward to in life!
It doesn’t have to be anything big at all, but it’s SO important to be able to flip a couple months ahead in your calendar and see that you have at least one or two things that you’re looking forward to.
Maybe it’s a concert, seeing a friend, a birthday party, a wedding, a huge trip you’ve been planning and saving up for.
Go look at your calendar. Flip through the next six months. If you don’t have anything planned that you are looking forward to, add a few things!
Anticipation and excitement are pre-cursors to adventure!
How do you find adventure in your own life?
May your life be an adventure today and always…
