Adventurous living leads us to cope with adversity, take healthy risks, embrace uncertainty, cultivate optimism for positive outcomes, meet disappointments with resilience, and live every experience with increased openness and vitality while deliberately seeking further experiences. Both those who learn to be more adventurous and those who are naturally adventurous experience greater psychological well-being in various areas. Most importantly, adventurous living can be fostered by anyone, at any time, without extreme measures.
Adventure Mindset: The Hero's Journey
So, according to Campbell, we like to read, watch, and learn about heroes because their mythical quest stands in for the psychological journey that we take every day. At the same time, Campbell points out that we are usually unaware of this journey, so we often take steps in the wrong direction. We are the detoured hero, distracted by side quests that prevent us from achieving our ultimate self-development goals.