5 Tips To Help You See The Adventure In The Every Day
I'm going to let you in on the biggest, brightest secret. Adventure is out there. Regardless of your location, whether it's in the deepest nooks and crannies of suburbia or in the fifth floor of an apartment complex in a large city, regardless of your age or career status or income or relationship status. Adventure is out there. In fact, it's right here. Right now. There's an adventure around the bend every single day you're alive. All you have to do is seek it out. You in? You down? Awesome. Here are five little tips to help you find the adventure in the every day.
DO ONE THING DIFFERENTLY EVERY SINGLE DAY
Tired of what's around you? Change it.
Stop at the town over. Switch up your commute. Resist the urge to order your "usual" in the morning. Take the scenic route to work. The simplest and quickest way to feel reinvigorated is simply by getting out of your everyday routine.
You want the truth? Even as the biggest cheerleader of everyday adventure, I find myself stuck in ruts all-the-time. I know the frustration of feeling bored and (dare I say it!?) uninspired by my area. But, if I'm being really honest with myself in those moments, those feelings typically come from a lack of new-ness in my life.
So get out of that rut... get out! Now! It doesn't mean you have to even plan a weekend away. Take an extra fifteen minutes out of your day to switch things up and see new things, whether it's a stop at the park you pass on your way to your mom's house or a different running route. You got this! Whether it's ordering a different coffee in the morning, re-organizing your daily ritual in the morning, going out for drinks with a co-worker who you haven't gotten close with yet... mixing up the routine is the simplest way to find the mini adventures waiting around the bend.
SEEK THE MAGIC & NOTICE THE UN-ORDINARY
Ask yourself: If a complete stranger were to come along with you for a day... what would they find strange, one-of-a-kind, or unordinary?
Seek out the kookiness that you've just become so accustomed to. Is it that odd ball graffiti outside of the bike rack? Is it the doorman outside of the hotel who has the most amazing greetings? Is it the weird flavor they offer at the donut shop? Make a list of all the oddities and weirdness that surrounds a typical day in your life. Then, love it to the absolute max.
Write a short story about the lady you always say hello to on the subway. Draft a food critique of your town's best kept secret. Attempt to sketch the strange billboard you drive by on the way to your boyfriend's house. Snap a picture of most colorful object on your desk. Love that weird stuff. Celebrate it!
DESCRIBE YOUR COMMUTE IN DETAIL
In the most eloquent way, write out the nuances you run into every day to and from work.
Who is the character who fixates your fancy? Make a background story for them. Write out their inner thoughts. Drag a pen or pencil on a blank piece of paper, stopping to blot or write out the name of each subway or train stop you pass before you exit. Count the number of steps you have to take from the parking lot to the doorway of your work. How many times do you pass by a person wearing red?
You might be surprised with the creative touches that influence your couple of minutes to and from your 9-5.
DIG DEEP
Get realllllll with yourself for a second. What exactly is it that you're unsatisfied with your location? I mean, really.
Get honest and see if there are any steps you can take to making a change. It might mean learning more about your community and what it has to offer... or it might mean that you need to take steps to make a bigger change. Each person's situation is different from the next, but I promise you that by taking a few minutes to remove the boredom factor by replacing it with a sense of self-curiosity, you might be surprised at what you really and truly need.
COLOR STUDY
One of the most fun exercises I've come across! Take a second and document the colors you run into in your day to day.
Notice the textures, take a picture of every thing you find that's blue, or red, or yellow... you get the idea! Search for one color a day. Monday is red, Tuesday is blue, Wednesday is green, etc. For every occurrence that you run into that color, find a way to document it creatively (picture or otherwise). Bonus points: make a hashtag around your findings and get your friends in on the fun.
The truth is, only you can be the true observer of your own life. So dig deep, find the magic, research for opportunity, change things up and "re-see" the mundane. More than anything, a change in perspective is the simplest way to finding all the adventure abound in your very neck of the woods.