Side quest
ideas
Updated
The short answer
A side quest is a small one-off thing you do because it sounds fun, outside your main goals: a new recipe, a cold swim with a friend, a museum on your own. Below are ideas by area of life, for doing alone, with friends, with a partner, at home or at night, and a way to keep track of the ones you do.
01 What does “side quest” mean in real life?
It comes from video games, where side quests are the optional missions next to the main story. In real life, or IRL, it’s the same idea: something small, a bit out of your routine, done for the fun of it. Nobody’s grading it.
02 What are good IRL side quest ideas for adults?
Sorted by area of your life, so you can tilt a week toward the part that needs it:
- Fun: go dancing, see a band on a weeknight, learn one card trick.
- Social: host a dinner, go to a local event alone, write someone a real letter.
- Growth: find out the names of five birds near you, read a book off your usual shelf, learn ten words of a new language.
- Health: go for a cold swim with a friend, climb the highest hill nearby, try a sport you’ve never played.
- Home: rearrange one room, grow something from a seed, hang the picture that’s been leaning on the wall.
- Self Image: get the haircut, wear the outfit you keep saving, take one photo of yourself you actually like.
- Wealth: have a no-spend weekend, find one bill you can lower.
- Career: have coffee with someone in a job you’re curious about, go to a talk in your field.
03 What side quests can I do alone?
Solo ones are the easiest to start, because nobody has to be free:
- Take yourself out: a film, a museum, a long lunch.
- Walk a route you’ve never taken, and stop wherever you like.
- Watch the sunrise from somewhere new.
- Try a café on the other side of town.
- Spend an afternoon in a library.
04 What side quests can I do with friends?
Ones that turn “we should hang out” into an actual plan:
- Cook a dish none of you has made before.
- Take a day trip to the nearest town you’ve never visited.
- Go to a quiz night.
- Swap books, then meet to talk about them.
- Try a class together, badly.
05 What side quests can I do at home or for free?
No ticket needed:
- Bake bread from scratch.
- Have a picnic on the living-room floor.
- Write a letter to yourself to open in a year.
- Learn every word of one song.
- Clear out one drawer and sell what you find.
06 What side quests can I do with a partner?
For a date that isn’t the usual one:
- Cook each other’s favourite childhood meal.
- Get off the bus three stops early and find somewhere new to eat.
- Learn a dance from a video, together.
- Plan a walk that ends at a view.
- Take turns planning a surprise afternoon.
07 What side quests can I do at night?
After dark:
- Take a night walk without headphones.
- Find somewhere dark enough to see the stars.
- Spot the International Space Station passing over.
- Find the best late-night food in town.
08 How do you keep track of your side quests?
In ONA, an iPhone and Android app, side quests sit next to the chapter you’re working on. You write your own, give it an area of your life wheel and add a photo if you like. There’s no deadline and no limit, and each one you finish earns 5 Spark XP. You tick them off in the evening check-in, and the chapter’s issue keeps the ones you did.
When is something else a better fit?
- For big experiences to do one day: a bucket-list app, or a notebook.
- For plans with friends: a group chat or an events app.
- For a whole game where quests drive everything: a gamified app built around levels and rewards.
FAQ
Questions about side quests
Is ONA a side quest app?
Side quests are one part of it. ONA is built around one goal at a time, and side quests are the extras around it, for when you want something just for fun.
Where can I find side quest ideas?
The lists on this page are a good place to start. Add the ones you like to ONA as your own side quests.
How many side quests should I do?
As many as you like. In ONA there’s no limit and no deadline, so they wait until the mood’s right.
What if I never get to a side quest?
Nothing happens. A side quest in ONA never expires, so it stays on your list for whenever you want it.
Get ONA
ONA is on iPhone. It’s free to set up, and after that it needs a subscription.
