Questing is an essential part of any computer adventure game. In a quest the hero receives a mission from the bland like “fetch 10 tree bark samples” to the extravagant “find your lost son that was taken from your wife while you were in cryo sleep.” The longer quests are the more steps involved. Fetch wood bark is simple – find trees and collect the bark. To find your son in the Wasteland from Fallout 4 you start out with no idea who took your son, where they went, or any clues. You start out surviving and eventually you gather enough information to follow the breadcrumbs of a trail.
When trying to make healthy choices I like to think of new habits not as chores or “work,” but as quests. When you master one quest you get the reward and the ability to take on more challenging quests.
Today I took on the quest of walking. This is a fairly simple quest. But let me take you through the steps:
- I chose a time to walk
- I chose how long to walk – about 20 minutes
- I chose the right sneakers and clothes to wear
- I got a partner to walk with me
- I decided on a route
- We actually took our walk
- After the walk I drank some water and rewarded myself with some TV time
Sure, this is a very beginner quest, but without the beginner quests here isn’t the opportunity to take on the more advanced quests – like running a 5k.
Walking is a daily quest. A set of walks is called a weekly quest. Maybe the reward for completing a weekly quest is something greater than TV. A string of weekly quests is an adventure.
It starts with the one daily quest.
Future Self 