How KC dad influencer uses side quests to better himself, his kids and followers
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Oliver Wright left his IT project manager role to focus on family and content.
- He shifted from scripted viral videos to authentic content he'd be proud his kids to see.
- He began developing his confidence, whimsy and kindness a year ago to model for his kids.
Oliver Wright used to be quite shy. He was raised in a town just outside Bristol, England, taught that being the best version of yourself is defined by other people’s lenses.
You know those people whose charisma and comfort just fills a room? He knew an Australian guy like that at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kansas, 15 years ago. He was kind and wasn’t overbearing, and made anyone in the room feel like they belonged there.
The Aussie needed to have some amount of ego to achieve that confidence, something Wright didn’t have or realize.
But now, Wright, or “Side Quest Dad” on social media, stands out in a crowd, not because he hopes for the attention. He’s simply learned that choosing whimsy and confidence no matter who’s watching, makes life much more worth living.
That, and his family.
For months around Kansas City, where he now lives, people have been able to hear the 34-year-old’s loud, pink soccer cleat footsteps approaching from around the corner. He’s been doing a personal experiment to see how long it takes for the cleats’ studs to completely wear down,.
His growing account of over 659,000 followers recently boomed following a viral video showcasing KC weather to World Cup travelers.
Playing soccer through part of college, and posting plenty of soccer-related content over the years, it was natural for him to post about the World Cup. After his viral weather video, he’s explored everything World Cup in KC — from Fan Fest down to the streetlamp banners — inadvertently becoming a sort of spokesperson for KC as a World Cup host city.
“Becoming this favorite version of myself, for myself and for my family and my kids, has caused me to be the social media personality that I have today,” Wright said.
He wasn’t always “Side Quest Dad” online. But the alias tells his story — a conscious and uncomfortable decision to model the traits he hopes to see in his own 4- and 2-year-old kids, while hoping to inspire others to confidently pursue their own whimsical side quests.
Journey to full-time content creation
Wright’s personal journey coincided with switching his approach to content creation, both fueled by unbridled authenticity and self-improvement.
Self-improvement is a journey that began back at Baker, when he read “The Pickup Artist: The New and Improved Art of Seduction” by Neil Strauss. He admits the book is silly, but helped him meet is now-wife.
Post-college, his focus shifted to align with his corporate career.
“(It) made me become a lot more serious, actually. Then I guess I turned myself into a bit of a square,” he said. He realized that life wasn’t fun anymore.
He never believed in those movie-esque, black-and-white decisions that change a life’s trajectory. And yet, three years ago and six years into content creation, he found himself in one.
Working at Commerce Bank as an IT project manager, his boss asked for his support on a project that would require long working nights and weekends.
His days were already long — waking at 5 a.m. to create content, going to work from 7 a.m. till 3 p.m., and then returning home to be his kids. He had to pick between his passion or stability.
You can guess what he picked. But that wasn’t the hard part — it’s what followed.
His viral moments were planned. Mistakes were edited out and re-shot. One of his most liked videos is one where he lies on a bed of nails. In true influencer form, tons of small clips are edited together and overlaid with bouncy captions.
Up until then, and for a while after, his approach to content creation was simply creating viral videos.
“How can I grab someone’s attention?” he said. “How can I do things that will maintain their attention, whether they’re interested in the video or not?”
Customizing his real-life player character from himself, kids and followers
Wright’s approach to social media began to reflect more and more of his approach to parenting. If he’s going to be a father, why wouldn’t he want to be the best version of himself?
He compares it to creating a player character in a video game.
“Let’s say a FIFA card or an NBA 2K card, where you can create your own player — you put them at max height, max strength, max whatever,” he said. “I was like, ‘What level of confidence do I have? What level of sincerity do I have? What type of person am I?’ The goal is to become that in the future.”
His content became more authentic.
Wright goes to the gym every day, and like most people, sometimes isn’t in the mood. He began to ask himself, how can he make it more fun?
How can he turn it into a side quest?
He could go to QuikTrip, get a slushie, and mix in his pre-workout. Why not, and why shouldn’t others try it?
One video he posted was simply admiring the KC skyline during his drive into downtown from the south. Being from England, he still isn’t used to seeing skyscrapers. Kansas Citians in the comments thanked him for putting a fun spin on their morning commute.
Moments like those began to filter out and replace his formulated viral videos. Nothing planned, never setting expectations.
“The life that my kids and my family see is the life that I also share on social media,” Wright said. “There’s no difference there.”
He now posts for the people who watch every video he posts because they want to, the same way people open up their friend’s Snapchat story or group chat. But it took months of practicing habits like awkwardly conversing with receptionists every day in order to see the signs that he is happier, living life in a more fulfilling way.
“Farming the XP,” as he calls practicing habits or trying new things for the sake of doing so, paid off. He’s noticed his kids complimenting people on their outfits or hair. They say hi to strangers walking or cycling past.
“I want my kids to not be shy,” Wright said. “When you go outside right now, and you start making conversation with someone, the initial idea in my head is like, ‘What if this person doesn’t like me? What if I say something stupid, say something silly? What if I do something wrong?’ Why is that the default? Why is the default not ‘I’m going to say the right thing?’”
No longer chasing success, but finding it in authenticity
Through becoming more confident, he let go of his need for external validation, whether that be metrics on his videos or just existing in public.
It’s ironic, because his authentic content and lifestyle has boomed his local fame. Last weekend, he went to the Overland Park Farmers Market with his family — he’s still trying to navigate keeping his wife and kids somewhat out of the public eye, because his wife doesn’t like to be on camera and his kids are too young to decide whether they want their faces online.
They were at the market for 30 minutes, and 30 people came up to him. And Wright alone has been on television, radio, podcasts. He even got invited to emcee at Power & Light for England and Panama’s World Cup game.
The old him would have been terrified of going onstage, a public humiliation waiting to happen. Instead of considering how his performance may look through someone else’s lens, he redirects to doing things exactly the way he wants.
It worked — he was invited back to emcee for Chiefs games in the upcoming season. But all the external validation he wished he had years ago doesn’t change his plan. He’s become like that Australian guy from college. He knows now that charisma is just authenticity.
In a roundabout way, he’s become more like his kids. They learn from each other. To enjoy life like a kid, he must remember to be in the moment. Life is a video game. All this time, he’s been worried about what other people think. Now, he’s exactly how he sounds.
He’s Side Quest Dad.
