Micro adventuring (Part 1 of 2)
The turn of the year tends to be the time when people evaluate where they are at and what they want from life. I call this 'resetting the compass'. This can be a prelude to a new chapter, a new direction or a new adventure. How is this year working out for you?
Reimagining Adventure: Micro-Adventures for Everyone
My guess is that your answer may depend on whether you were clear about what you wanted from your year and whether you created the plan to make great things happen. Advertisements all around us tell us to be adventurous, to live life to the full; messages that can lead us to feel that we should have big hairy audacious goals that involve visiting exotic places or jumping off cliffs. If that is what you want… by all means go grab it!
If this doesn’t feel possible or reflect your idea of fun, it is easy to write off the idea that adventure could be part of your life. For me, the challenges of a busy life that includes parenthood, an NHS job and running a business have led me down the route of micro-adventuring. I can enjoy activities on a shoestring and go on small but fun escapades on a regular basis. I have come to learn that adventures, no matter how big or small are at my fingertips on a daily basis.
Adventures in the Ordinary: Finding Joy in Everyday Moments
In my Adventurous Polly video series, you will see me up a hill, on the beach, biking, wild camping, building a fire with the kids, having hot chocolate by moonlight, exploring new spaces and other such things. Not rocket science, but it gives me so much joy, allows me to meet people and creates time for family experiences. It goes to show that adventure can be found in the ordinary.
I decided this year that I wanted to have more fun, create new memories and have a great energy about my life. This is entirely possible for you too, so long as you get clear on what exactly that will look like and take a proactive approach. I like to write down my ideas, tell other people, begin exploring possibilities, and make plans. You can read more about this here.
Overcoming Obstacles: Challenging the Inner Critic
Often the things that can stop us doing more - the everyday practical challenges - can be resolved with some simple problem solving. It is also possible that the obstacles can come from the internal barriers in our minds. These blocks are experienced when our inner critic dampens our belief in our entitlement or our potential to have more.They tell us that we will fail, or make a fool of ourselves.
They can show up as excuses such as: "I don’t have time” or “I can’t afford it”.
This usually means: “I choose not to prioritise this right now”. Sometimes it can also mean: “I need help to look at a creative way to make it possible”. I love coaching people to challenge these ‘gremlins’. This helps them to have a more powerful message and champions them to take the leap and get more out of lifes’ adventure. Paradoxically, I almost talked myself out of an escapade recently because I had too much work to do. Given that my job is to help people to find ways to lead a more adventurous life, the irony was not lost on me. Thankfully I gave myself permission to have a fantastic biking weekend.
Along the way, I visited wonderful new places, challenged myself physically, met interesting people and enjoyed that sense of accomplishment that goes with being 'the man that can'. I also noted that my creative juices flowed allowing the development of business ideas. This helped me to conclude that time off always helps with time on.
Whether it means creating memorable time with family and friends, trying something different, challenging yourself or learn a new skill what would a micro-adventure look like for you?
#100% Pure Polly - Living Life’s Adventure... I plan to dedicate my next blog to sharing some tips that will help you create more micro adventuring possibilities. Look out for Part 2 - Micro adventures - Creating possibilities.
Want to know more about how to live an adventurous life?