There is a belief that to succeed in becoming your best self, you need to clear the decks first. To ‘have all your ducks in a row’, as they say. And I get that.

But here’s the truth: your affairs will never be completely in order. There is always something new on the horizon. Even if you get your ducks neatly lined up for a moment, there will always be one that steps out of line. Your adventure simply won’t work that way.

The best adventures (and becoming your best self is the greatest adventure of all) are messy. They’re ragged around the edges: unpredictable, loose, fluid. They stand far removed from the humdrum of normal life, crying of freedom, excitement and surprise.

But these epic, ragged adventures seem out of reach for those of us rooted in the mundane. Trapped in a version of who they’re meant to be, these people (perhaps you’re one of them) crave adventure while embracing the ordinary.

Most will never taste the freedom or excitement offered by the adventures they secretly crave, or experience the surprises they hold.

Because adventures—especially the messy kind (and all adventures worth taking are messy)—are supposedly reserved for risk-takers: the action heroes and crazy fools with no regard for rules; the brave and reckless who live in the moment with abandon.

Or at least, that’s what films, books and social media would have you believe. But these narratives don’t align with real life.

A life filled with adventure—one that colours outside the lines and walks undiscovered paths—isn’t born from hedonism, carpe-diem attitudes, or recklessness. Rather, it stems from intention and purpose. It makes room for the unexpected and embraces the unknown.

As perverse as it may seem, adventure flows out of order.

Every adventure, whether small or epic, depends on order. Whether tackling Everest, building an enterprise, or even (maybe especially) raising a family—the outcome rests on the foundation from which the journey began.

And so the paradox emerges.

To live a life filled with adventure and navigate all its messiness, you must first craft a place of order—a tidy space from which to step into the unknown.

But tidy doesn’t mean rigid. Order doesn’t mean all ducks must be perfectly aligned. It simply requires knowing what ducks you have, where they are, and how they affect your capacity to embark on your adventure.

Establishing this flexible tidiness takes effort. Lots of effort.

Effort to rid yourself of distractions, so your brain isn’t consumed by matters of no consequence. Effort to protect yourself from the physical and mental boulders that threaten to destabilise your wellbeing. Effort to stand firm against all that would draw you away from your true path.

Only when you’re distraction-free—when your capacity focuses on the essential rather than the irrelevant—can the adventure into your best self truly unfold.

Begin with an average day. Where does your time go? What obstacles block your path? To what extent do your activities move you towards becoming your best self?

Review your team of ducks and set aside those with no business being present. The ducks that don’t move you towards your epic adventure have no place on the team.

Then set to work. What can you eliminate? What effect will that have? How will the space without those ducks allow you to focus more on those that remain?

So figure out your distractions and obstacles. Get a fix on your ducks. Decide which belong, which don’t, which need securing, and which can run free.

And accept that, at no time, will all your ducks be in a nice, neat row.