The Long Way Home Is Paved with Side Quests—What’s Yours?
Plus you may notice this Substack has a new name...
You may have noticed this Substack has a new name. The previous one was “It’s Your World” and now it’s “Long Way Home Chronicles”. Welcome to a new era. But first, let’s go on a side-quest…
What’s a side-quest?
We’ve all heard of side-hustles. Part-time jobs or projects we do in our spare time outside of our regular work. Sometimes they are related to hobbies like leading a local run club. Other times they are creative projects like painting or coding. They might be the farm we volunteer at or the non-profit we’ve dreamed of starting. They are ways we put our skills to use outside of our nine-to-fives.
A year ago, I vividly remember a conversation with my friend Estrella during which we discussed our many projects. Except during our call I accidentally called them “side-quests” instead of “side-hustles.” Instead of correcting me, she said she loved my new phrase. That’s how the new word was born. Life is full of little side quests that take us off the beaten path. Since then, the term “side-quest” has earned a permanent spot in my vocabulary and trickled into other friends' vocabularies.
Even as a kid, I loved side-quests. I made and sold bookmarks at school (I made them with glue… patent pending still), started a country music radio show, joined the swim team, and took on leadership roles encouraged by my parents. That early habit of juggling projects beyond school shaped my growth and carried into adulthood. In my mid-20s, I launched a vegan food blog, which later evolved into a digital community magazine mixing writing, photography, design, and video… which then transformed into this very Substack. (Shoutout to you, OG readers of Prickly Pear!) Actually those editions still exist, and you can look at them here, wow!
The power of side-questing
Side-quests don’t have to be big projects. Even hobbies can lead to them. For example I dabble in guitar, painting, drone-piloting, videography, and a love of travel. Stuff that has nothing to do with my day-job, yet everything to do with it. We don’t have to master everything, but creativity sparks when we connect the dots between seemingly unrelated things. That’s the power of side-questing.
Pick out any impactful person in history or in modern day, and we spot the same pattern— they likely have many side-quests. For example, Leonardo da Vinci wasn’t just an artist. In fact he side-quested in anatomy, engineering, mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, music, writing, and much more. (Highly recommend this book about him for your next reading side-quest).
Last week, I had a conversation with my friend James Dowell, co-founder of Prolyfyck Run Crew, about how his side-quest in running led to creating an impactful and strong community. His crew in Virginia has uplifted hundreds, improving mental and physical health while fostering empathy and belonging—all sparked by a simple side-quest into running.
Side-quests may sound scary, especially when we discover each one has a million other side-quests hiding inside of it. But James didn’t begin with this big vision in mind. He started small, with just curiosity and hope.
The Long Way Home
A side-quest is a pursuit. A search. An expedition. It’s a mini adventure we choose to embark on beyond our regular work we do for a living. Sometimes the side-quest might turn into a career, and other times they remain as side-projects that fulfill us and bring us meaning. These projects don’t have to last forever, they can evolve. The important part is that they are journeys toward something. They keep us in motion.
Side-projects require great effort. But it’s in their pursuit that we learn to overcome challenges and obstacles, which lead to tremendous growth. Growth leads us to unexplored places within ourselves, which allows us to not only rise, but uplift others too.
We never know where a side-quest can lead, which is why we have to try. Some fizzle out, like my food blog, but evolve into something new—like this Substack. At times, side-quests may seem like detours, but they often take us exactly where we need to go, even if the journey is longer. After all, life is better when we take the long way home.
The magic of side-quests is that detours often lead to the best destinations.
"At times, side-quests may seem like detours, but they often take us exactly where we need to go, even if the journey is longer." going on multiple side quests right now in pursuit to search for my main quest! Truly what makes me hopeful and brings me spark in life 💫