I can’t think of any “side quests” beyond work and chores—how do I find them for this prompt?

Scan your timeline in small slices. Try: (1) people: who did you spend an unexpected afternoon with? (2) places: any classes, meetups, parks, or cafés you tried once? (3) skills: anything you dabbled in—languages, crafts, instruments, coding, baking? (4) seasons: what was last summer’s mini-obsession? Scroll photos or your calendar for clues. In Stoic, jot a quick bullet list of 5–10 “quests” without judging them—tiny counts, like “learned one chord,” “tried a new hiking trail.” Stoic tip: note how each side quest made you feel (energized, calm, curious). That feeling—not the outcome—helps you see what’s worth revisiting.

What if most of my side quests feel like failures I quit—how should I journal about that without spiraling?

Reframe them as experiments. In your Stoic entry, make two short columns: (1) What I gained (skills, moments, insights, new friends), (2) What I learned about myself (values, limits, preferences). Add one sentence per quest: “Even though I stopped X, I kept Y.” For example, pottery → patience with mistakes; running → sunrise appreciation. End with a Stoic-style line: “The outcome is outside me; the effort shaped me.” If a harsh inner critic pops up, respond with one compassionate line: “I experimented, I learned, I continue.”

How can I turn the side-quest idea into a low-pressure plan for this week?

Pick one micro-quest that takes 20 minutes or less and is fully in your control (read 5 pages in Italian, sketch one object, message one old friend). Define a single next step: “On Wed at 7 pm, I’ll do X at Y place.” Focus on the process, not the result—showing up once is success. In Stoic, write today’s intention (“One playful step”) and tomorrow, add a 2–3 line reflection: What did I notice? Energy after? Would I repeat it? Keep it light; side quests are for curiosity, not performance.

Journaling Idea - On Side Quests.

If your life were a game, what side quests have you picked up along the way?

Try to make a short list, and enjoy it. Do you remember that pottery class, the travel blog, the summer you tried to learn Italian?

Journal in Stoic

Written by

Natalia Łobodzińska

Published on

Aug 24, 2026

Journal in Stoic

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Natalia Łobodzińska

Head of Content at stoic.

Natalia oversees all content inside the Stoic app — from guided journals to daily prompts. She works closely with therapists and writers to make sure every word helps users reflect and grow. She also manages translations to keep the experience thoughtful and consistent across languages.

If your life were a game, what side quests have you picked up along the way?

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