# How to side quest...
**作者**: Mitchell
**日期**: 2026-07-22T16:02:36.000Z
**来源**: [https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292)
---
Your life is boring because you don't have side quests
Nobody is going to assign you the work that changes your life.
I learned that by accident.
At seventeen I was running a Fortnite Instagram page, which is about the least serious sentence a person can write.
That page set off a chain that ended with an Emmy on my shelf, working inside the world's fastest growing YouTube channel, and meetings with the co-founders of Pixar.
Not one step in that chain was a job posting. Every step was a side quest: optional, unassigned, usually unpaid at first, and almost always started before I felt ready.
This is a guide to running them.
What they actually are, why they quietly outperform career planning, how to start one this week with no money and how to keep them going for years.
Hopefully by the end of this article, you will know yours.
# The true meaning of “Side Quest”
If you strip down your life to its very skeleton and you get one assigned storyline.
Whether it is school, then a degree, then a job, then the ladder. That is the main quest.
You did not write it, everyone can see it, and your progress on it gets measured for you.
A side quest is everything else, the optional stuff.
Nobody assigns it. Nobody ever grades it.
Rarely anyone will pay attention to it.
The rewards are not listed anywhere
Have you ever played a game which had you do side quests?
Most suck.
Collect corn, find 5 chests, all bloat.
But sometimes you get lucky and find a good side quest”
These will force a technique you have never used before
And they will pay out what you cannot get anywhere else
“A side quest is anything optional you do because it seems fun, helps somebody, or just seems cool. It has an ending. And it can be seen.”
Money is nowhere in the definition.
I spent four or five years on side quests without earning a dollar from them
Pay in the early years is learning, and the learning is what money eventually chases.
# Why side quests work
## 1. Doors only appear when you are moving.
At seventeen I started an instagram page and grew from 0 to 200k followers
We used it to find Fortnite players with a few hundred subscribers who we thought were good, and told them: work with us, we will help you get sponsorships and grow.
We kept parlaying that into a creator accelerator.
It became a real company, working with hundreds of creators, tens of thousands of ppl filming "recruitment challenges" trying to get in, sponsors shipping us so much free stuff we stopped keeping track.
Basically a YC for content creators, invented by teenagers.
And then the door: creators we grew up watching started DMing us.
They wanted help with their channels.
At that there was no such thing as a “Youtube Strategist”
They just wanted help
Saw that i could do it
And asked me to join them.
It happens at every scale.
There is a Reddit story I think about a lot:
## 2. Every real quest pays in one of three currencies.
A skill. A person. A finished thing you can point at.
The currencies convert into each other over time
Every door I have ever walked through was bought with one of the three.
During my fortnite days I learned how platforms actually work and how to manage a hundred people
I met the crowd of teammates and competitors who still message me like a little cult
That converted into working with the second fastest growing channel on YouTube
I had to come up with 80 video ideas a week, we were doing over two billion views a month.
One brief literally had me watching every office tour Mark Rober ever posted and drawing a full blueprint of his office, where a person could hide, eat, or scare somebody.
Then I got an opportunity to work at an animation studio.
Suddenly I am learning how problems get solved from the smartest minds in Hollywood. The writer/director of Madagascar, the producer of Moana, among others.
Before you take on a quest, ask what it pays: a skill you want, a person you want to know, or a finished thing you can point at.
If the answer is none of the three, skip it without guilt, no matter how productive it looks.
## 3. The pay will compound (TRUST ME)
Every finished quest earns a little attention
In today’s day and age attention is very much tradeable
A page with 10,000 followers bought us our first creators.
Those creators bought us bigger ones.
That work bought me a seat at the studio.
Each quest was small, but none of them started from zero, because each one spent what the last one earned.
# How to start a side quest:
## Rule 1. Start from a problem you already have, or one person you can help.
A friend broke his iPhone screen and the shop quoted $250.
He learned to fix it, fixed a few for friends, and now he’s making $1.3M a year from strangers on the internet.
My whole gaming company started because I found one player I thought I could help.
## Rule 2. Decide what finished looks like before you begin, and give yourself seven days to get there.
Open loops will die sooner or later.
Set a deadline, and a definition of done that a stranger could verify.
That’s the point of it.
## Rule 3. Make it visible.
Post it, ship it, put it on a wall.
Attention is how one quest funds the next
## Rule 4. Use the current cheat code.
It has never been easier to finish things.
Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Replit.
A day today buys what took a small team a month in 2019.
Every era has one of these tools
Being early to the current one is the closest thing to a cheat code you will ever get.
## Rule 5. Say yes faster than you feel ready.
The biggest calls of my life were versions of: this video is due in two days, can you do it?
Yes, then figure it out.
In 2023 someone noticed the Emmy deadline was three days away.
We dropped everything we were doing to cut submission tapes, and I took a bus from Boston to New York on one day's notice to pitch the judges.
# How to keep going
It comes down to four habits.
## Chain your quests.
Willpower does not sustain anything.
Your brain does not do removal, it does replacement, and it comes back for open loops.
So before one quest ends, write down the next one it reveals: the tool you noticed, the person you want to talk to, the idea the last build sparked.
Endings are where the next quest hides.
## Don’t leave room for the “JOB”
Work expands to take whatever is left over
So ideally don’t leave anything over
Two or three protected hours a week is enough.
## Treat excuses as difficulty modifiers.
Tired, raining, busy season at work - that is the game on hard mode, and hard mode is still playable.
The run only ends when you stop showing up.
## Ignore people who do not agree with your ideas
From the outside, a side quest looks like wasted time, because outsiders can only measure with public units: salary, titles, things they recognize.
My parents watched me spend years on video games.
There was no unit they could see for what I was actually collecting, the skills and the people and the proof, until years later when it all converted at once.
The only questions you should ask yourself are : am I learning, is it fun, and is it still going somewhere?
# ULTIMATELY
Most people I know cannot name their main job
Tbh I can’t name mine.
You can’t find your purpose by thinking harder.
You find it three or four side quests in, when a door opens that only exists because you were already moving.
So use your agency.
Pick one thing tonight that’s fun to you and useful to one person.
Give it seven days. Finish it.
Write down the next one.
Nobody knew where the Fortnite thing was going.
We just wanted to see how far we could take it, and how far it turned out to be an Emmy on my shelf.
Your first quest costs nothing.
Start it tonight.
## 相关链接
- [Machina reposted](https://x.com/EXM7777)
- [Mitchell](https://x.com/MitcheIl)
- [@MitcheIl](https://x.com/MitcheIl)
- [14K](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292/analytics)
- [Upgrade to Premium](https://x.com/i/premium_sign_up)
- [12:02 AM · Jul 23, 2026](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292)
- [14.5K Views](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292/analytics)
- [View quotes](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292/quotes)
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*导出时间: 2026/7/24 10:09:09*
---
## 中文翻译
# 如何开启支线任务……
**作者**: Mitchell
**日期**: 2026-07-22T16:02:36.000Z
**来源**: [https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292)
---
你的生活很无聊，因为你没有支线任务。
没人会指派给你那些能改变你人生的工作。
我是在偶然间明白这一点的。
十七岁时，我经营着一个《堡垒之夜》的 Instagram 页面，这大概是任何人能写出的最不严肃的一句话了。
那个页面引发了一系列连锁反应，最终让我的架子上摆上了一座艾美奖奖杯，让我进入了世界上增长最快的 YouTube 频道工作，还让我有机会和皮克斯的联合创始人会面。
在那条链条中，没有任何一步是来自招聘启事。每一步都是一个支线任务：可选的、未被指派的、通常起初没有报酬，而且几乎总是在我觉得自己还没准备好时就开始的。
这是一份关于如何执行它们的指南。
它们究竟是什么，为什么它们能悄悄胜过职业规划，如何在不花一分钱的情况下在本周开始一个，以及如何让它们持续数年。
希望在文章结束时，你会知道属于你的那一个是什么。
# “支线任务”的真正含义
如果你把生活剥离到只剩下骨架，你会得到一条被指派的故事线。
无论是上学，然后拿学位，然后工作，然后爬升职场阶梯。这就是主线任务。
这不是你写的，每个人都能看到，而且你的进度是被人替你衡量的。
支线任务就是剩下的一切，那些可选的事情。
没人指派它。没人会给它打分。
很少有人会去关注它。
回报也从未被列在任何地方
你玩过有支线任务的游戏吗？
大多数都很烂。
收集玉米，找 5 个宝箱，全是冗余内容。
但有时你会走运，找到一个好的支线任务”
它们会迫使你使用一种从未用过的方法
并且它们会提供你在其他任何地方都得不到的回报
“支线任务是你因为觉得有趣、能帮助别人，或者仅仅因为看起来很酷而做的任何可选之事。它有一个结局。而且它是能被看见的。”
定义里完全没有提到钱。
我在支线任务上花了四五年，没从中赚到一分钱
早期的回报就是学习，而正是这些学习最终引来了金钱。
# 为什么支线任务有效
## 1. 只有当你移动时，门才会出现。
十七岁时，我创建了一个 Instagram 页面，并从 0 个粉丝做到了 20 万粉丝。
我们用它寻找那些只有几百个订阅者但我们觉得很有潜力的《堡垒之夜》玩家，然后告诉他们：和我们合作，我们会帮你获得赞助并实现增长。
我们不断地将其转化为一个创作者加速器。
它变成了一家真正的公司，与数百名创作者合作，数以万计的人拍摄“招募挑战赛”视频试图加入，赞助商给我们寄了太多免费东西，多到我们不再去统计。
基本上就是为内容创作者打造的 YC（YC 创业加速器），由一群少年发明。
然后那扇门出现了：我们看着长大的创作者开始给我们发私信。
他们希望得到关于频道的帮助。
那时还没有所谓的“YouTube 策略师”这种职位
他们只是需要帮助
看到我能做
然后邀请我加入。
这种情况在各个规模上都会发生。
有一个 Reddit 的故事我经常想起：
## 2. 每一个真正的任务都以三种货币之一支付报酬。
一项技能。一个人。一个你能指得出的成品。
这些货币随着时间的推移可以相互转化
我走过的每一扇门，都是用这三者之一换来的。
在我的《堡垒之夜》时期，我学会了平台实际上是如何运作的，以及如何管理一百人
我结识了一群队友和竞争对手，他们至今仍像一个小型邪教团体一样给我发消息
那转化为了与 YouTube 上增长第二快的频道合作
我必须每周想出 80 个视频创意，我们要实现每月超过 20 亿的浏览量。
有一次简报真的让我看了 Mark Rober 发布的每一个办公室参观视频，并画出了他办公室的完整蓝图，标注了一个人可以躲藏、进食或吓唬别人的地方。
然后我得到了一个机会去动画工作室工作。
突然间，我正在向好莱坞最聪明的头脑学习如何解决问题。《马达加斯加》的编剧/导演，《海洋奇缘》的制片人，等等。
在开始一个任务之前，问问他支付什么：一项你想要的技能，一个你想要认识的人，还是一个你能指得出的成品。
如果答案都不是这三者，无论它看起来多么富有成效，都请毫无愧疚地跳过它。
## 3. 回报会复利增长（相信我）
每一个完成的任务都会赢得一点关注
在当今这个时代，关注是非常可交易的
一个有 10,000 粉丝的页面为我们买来了第一批创作者。
那些创作者为我们带来了更大的创作者。
那份工作为我买来了工作室的一席之地。
每个任务都很小，但没有一个是从零开始的，因为每一个都花费了上一个任务所赚得的。
# 如何开始一个支线任务：
## 规则 1. 从一个你已经存在的问题，或者一个你能帮助的人开始。
一个朋友摔坏了他的 iPhone 屏幕，维修店报价 250 美元。
他学会了如何修理，帮朋友修了几部，现在他每年从网上的陌生人那里赚取 130 万美元。
我的整个游戏公司之所以开始，是因为我发现了一个我认为我能帮助的玩家。
## 规则 2. 在开始之前决定“完成”是什么样子的，并给自己七天时间到达那里。
未完成的闭环迟早会消亡。
设定一个截止日期，以及一个陌生人可以验证的“完成”定义。
这才是重点。
## 规则 3. 让它可见。
发布它，交付它，把它放在墙上。
关注是一个任务资助下一个任务的方式
## 规则 4. 使用当前的作弊码。
完成任务从未如此容易。
Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Replit。
今天的一天能买到在 2019 年需要一个小团队一个月才能完成的东西。
每个时代都有这样的工具
尽早使用当前的工具，是你能获得的最接近作弊码的东西。
## 规则 5. 在你感觉准备好之前更快地说“是”。
我人生中最重要的电话都是这样的：这个视频两天后就要交了，你能做吗？
说是，然后搞清楚怎么做。
2023 年，有人注意到艾美奖的截止日期只有三天了。
我们放下手头的一切工作去剪辑提交样带，我在接到通知的一天内坐巴士从波士顿赶往纽约，向评委推介。
# 如何坚持下去
归结为四个习惯。
## 将你的任务连成链。
意志力无法维持任何东西。
你的大脑不做减法，它做替换，它会回头找那些未完成的闭环。
所以在一个任务结束之前，写下它揭示的下一个任务：你注意到的工具，你想交谈的人，上一个构建激发的想法。
终点是下一个任务藏身的地方。
## 不要给“工作”留空间。
工作会膨胀以占据剩余的所有时间
所以理想情况下，什么都不留
每周两三个受保护的时间就够了。
## 把借口当作难度修正器。
累了，下雨了，工作忙季——这就是困难模式下的游戏，而困难模式依然是可以玩的。
奔跑只有在你停止出现时才会结束。
## 忽略那些不认同你想法的人
从外面看，支线任务看起来像是在浪费时间，因为局外人只能用公开的单位来衡量：薪水、头衔、他们认可的东西。
我的父母看着我花了好几年在电子游戏上。
他们没有单位来衡量我实际收集到的东西：技能、人和证明，直到多年后所有这些东西一次性完成了转化。
你应该问自己的唯一问题是：我在学习吗，它有趣吗，它还在往某个方向发展吗？
# 归根结底
我认识的大多数人都叫不出他们的主业名称
老实说，我也叫不出我的。
你无法通过更用力思考来找到你的目标。
你在完成了三四个支线任务后找到它，那时一扇门打开了，而那扇门之所以存在，仅仅是因为你已经在移动了。
所以运用你的主动性。
今晚选一件对你来说有趣且对一个人有用的事情。
给它七天时间。完成它。
写下下一个任务。
没人知道《堡垒之夜》那件事会通向何方。
我们只是想看看我们能把它带到多远，而结果多远，就是我架子上的一座艾美奖。
你的第一个任务不需要任何成本。
今晚就开始。
## 相关链接
- [Machina reposted](https://x.com/EXM7777)
- [Mitchell](https://x.com/MitcheIl)
- [@MitcheIl](https://x.com/MitcheIl)
- [14K](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292/analytics)
- [Upgrade to Premium](https://x.com/i/premium_sign_up)
- [12:02 AM · Jul 23, 2026](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292)
- [14.5K Views](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292/analytics)
- [View quotes](https://x.com/MitcheIl/status/2079960309935272292/quotes)
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*导出时间: 2026/7/24 10:09:09*