7 Ways to Bring Adventure Back Into Your Life

Human beings are creatures of habit. This can be a good thing, as the habits we form can allow us to autopilot through the more tedious aspects of life.

But as the years go by, many of us put not only a few habits, but our entire lives on autopilot. And when we do so, we develop a problem of sameness. We stagnate, and our once-steady supply of new experiences dries up.

So what’s cost of this?

When we stop engaging in the new, we stop developing as people. We stop growing. And when we stop growing, the monotony and boredom set in, often felt in the form of a nagging feeling that something just isn’t right in our lives.

If that sounds like you, it might be time to break out of the habits that are causing you to stagnate. To help you do this, let’s look at 7 ways you can bring adventure back into your life.

Shake Up Your Routine

You get up. You eat a lackluster breakfast. You rush to work. You get off at 6. You watch television for a few hours. You go to bed. You repeat.

Sound familiar?

Sameness has a way of making us feel like monotony is normal. We stop living, begin merely existing, and—amazingly—we feel comfortable in that.

But the simple act of shaking up your routine can open your eyes to the world of adventure that’s always just outside your door.

Maybe you take the time to cook a spectacular breakfast instead of eating a packet of instant oatmeal that you slurp from a cup as you rush to work. Perhaps you take a random day off. Maybe instead of watching television after work, you go for a walk with no particular destination in mind. Maybe instead of going to bed, you go for a night drive, your favorite music turned up loud.

Believe this—any deviation from your routine will lead to more deviations. You’ll encounter a new friend on that day off. You’ll discover that you like more time in the morning. You’ll find that the city lights at night inspire you to write a story. The possibilities are endless.

Even small changes can lead to big adventures. So get changing.

Add a Third Space

What’s a third place, you might ask? In short, it’s one of the keys to adventure!

A third place is somewhere that is separate from your two most-visited social environments: work and home. It’s the local coffee shop where you might go to work on your latest short story. It’s the barber shop where you’d go to have a chat about the latest happenings in the neighborhood. It’s the library you run for when you need a quiet moment of contemplation.

Unlike someone’s first place, which is the home, and the second place, which is work, the third place tends to be a blend of community life and self-expression. It’s a place where, unlike at work, you can relax and be yourself, and unlike at home, you’re pushed to explore new possibilities, often through social interaction.

Finding your own third place, whatever that might be, is essential to breaking up the monotony of life and for finding new adventures and new people. Start scouring your neighborhood for one today!

Visualize Your Goals

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For some people, every tip in this list will seem an impossibility. But whether this feeling of impossibility lies financial issues, health problems, or family drama, it’s just that—a feeling. It’s not real. Anyone can find adventure—even you. Especially you.

Remember this phrase—“Seeing is believing”. It’s absolutely true, and we’re going to use the power of this idea to help you change things up and bring adventure back into your life.

Start by writing down a list of your goals—even the ridiculous ones. If you’ve always wanted to dance to classical music at the top of the Eiffel Tower in an Iron Man costume, stick that on your list. Leave nothing out.

Now, start at the beginning and work your way through, visualizing yourself successfully completing each of these goals. Hold the image of each for as long as you can.

How does each one make you feel? Write that down, too.

Even the staunchest pessimist will end up finding something on their list that leaves them giddy. And before long, these things will feel wholly possible—perhaps even inevitable!

And when things seem possible, you’re that much better equipped to make them happen.

Travel—Big or Small

What’s more adventurous than travel? Not much!

Travel can help you do everything on this list—as you go, you’ll meet new people, learn new things, visit new places, and you’ll most definitely shake up your routine.

But what few people realize is that travel can be as big or as small as you’d like it to be. You don’t have to travel the Scottish Highlands in order to experience the new. There are plenty of brand-new experiences right there in your neighborhood! You have only to open your eyes to see them.

Does your city or town have a place you’ve never visited? Are there streets you’ve never walked or parks you’ve yet to explore? Are there historic homes or museums or opera houses? Are there orchards or fields or streams and rivers?

You can start small by visiting these place you’ve been taking for granted.

And if you feel like something bigger? The sky—and your budget—is the limit. Remember, though, that it doesn’t take that long to save up enough to go just about anywhere. An overseas adventure might be just the change you need, and while it might take you a year to save up for it, the experience and the memories will be worth it.

Get on the road and start exploring—big or small. You’ll be the happier for it.

Satisfy Your Curiosity

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Is there anything you’ve always wanted to know? Is there a skill you’d love to master? Is there a field you’d like to dominate?

Well, it’s your lucky day. You’re going to satisfy your curiosity.

Learning is an unexpected adventure. When most people think of education, they think of drab, concrete buildings, a monotone-voiced teacher, and piles of aggravating homework.

But learning is so much more than that. What travel is for the body, education is for the mind—it’s a mental adventure!

A university education is one of the best places to start—the variety of classes and subjects will expose you to a tantalizing array of new ideas, philosophies, and worldviews, not only helping you to become a more well-rounded person, but also helping you find fields of knowledge that ignite your passions.

But this isn’t for everyone—for others, libraries, museums, private lessons, and mentors will be the path to education. Whether it’s mastering the violin, learning to interpret literature, or learning everything there is to know about marine biology, the resources are out there, just waiting for you.

Engage your mind and you’ll find adventure—guaranteed.

Meet New People

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People are the most dynamic things in the world. They’ll surprise you, shock you, and above all, exposure to a wide variety of people is a sure recipe for adventure.

The most common source of stagnation is a lack of new people. Without fresh perspectives provided by other people, yours is the only viewpoint you’ll know. You’ll continue seeing the same things in the same way, day after day.

But with a few new friends, you’ll start experiencing life a little differently. They’ll push you to try the things they love. They’ll give you advice on your own life. You’ll be inspired by their fashion, by their work, by their lives and families. You’ll see things in them that you want, and they’ll affirm the things in you that are wonderful.

Don’t discount the power of people to bring adventure into your life—they’re one of the most important part of the newness equation, and without them, you’ll have little inspiration to change.

Take the Initiative

This is a big one. If you want to find adventure, you have to take what you want.

Don’t wait for things to happen to you. You are the main character in your story. You need to move the plot. You need to make things happen. Waiting around for the proverbial wizard to appear and whisk you off on a grand journey is what causes stagnation in the first place!

Those goals you wrote down and visualized earlier? Now is the time to act them out.

Go through each of them, one by one. Determine which ones you can do right now, and which ones are going to need some preparation, training, or savings.

If you can do any of them right now, do them. Pretend that Arnold Schwarzenegger is right beside you, flexing his muscles and screaming at you to “Go, go, go!” Play some music that inspires, motivates, and energizes you.

Now get out there and do it. Register for that yoga class. Attend a church for the first time. Join that photography club. Go for that awesome job. Start on that work of art.

The point is, you’re not going to ever be handed adventure—or happiness, for that matter. You have to take it.

So take the initiative in your life, and you’ll find your adventure.