David Silberkleit, author of “A New Adventure Every Day: 541 Simple Ways to Live with Pizzazz,” will be at Borders in Danbury for a booksigning on Thursday, at 7:30 p.m.

Helen Keller once said "life is either a daring adventure or it is nothing at all.”

David Silberkleit would wholeheartedly agree. But he knows that most people will never get to climb Mt. Everest or trek through the Amazon rain forest. Yet, to him, adventure lies on everyone’s doorstep.

"I discovered I didn’t need to go anywhere or plan any trips in order to be adventurous,” says Silberkleit, who has flown a blimp, dined at the White House, and biked from Hanoi to Saigon.

"Adventure was all around me.”

A Master Certified Life Coach, Silberkleit is the author of "A New Adventure Every Day: 541 Simple Ways to Live with Pizzazz” (Sourcebooks, Inc., $12.95).

"I wanted to write about the spirit of adventure — making adventure available to everyone,” the Branford, CT, resident admits.

The grandson of the founder of Archie Comics, Silberkleit started out with a life many would envy.

In 1984 at age 23, he went to work at his family’s business. As the director of marketing and VP of licensing projects, Silberkleit stood to take over Archie Comics when his father retired.

But all that changed in May 1993 when Silberkleit quit his job, leaving his inheritance and the company behind.

"I’m not passionate about comic books,” he admits. "I needed to get out and see who I was. I didn’t want something handed to me — I wanted to create.”

For the next year, he drifted, not sure of what he wanted to do. He was ready to change his life but didn’t know quite how. On the advice of a friend, Silberkleit started working with a personal coach in 1995 to find out what direction he should take.

One of the first things he discovered was that he wasn’t alone — many people want to change their lives but don’t know how to do it. It was then he discovered what he wanted to do.

"I wanted to help people discover their own mission, their own career,” he recalls. "I wanted to find a way to express people’s passions.” And thus, Silberkleit discovered his own career path.

He became a Master Certified Life Coach in 1998, putting in 200 hours of coach training and coaching hundreds of clients.

A client of his, Karen Heffner of Westport, met the author in February of this year at one of his book signings.

"David gave a mini group coaching session there, asking a few simple questions and I saw several people in the audience change a perception about their life. He impressed me by his ability to really listen,” Heffner recalls. A week later, she signed on as a client.

"I am an artist and David is helping me reincorporate my creativity into my very left-brain job (at a mortgage company). I am learning to live in the moment in my whole life, not just my art,” attests Heffner. "Through David’s coaching, my perspective on my career, my finances, and even my spirituality has changed.”

As a life and career coach, Silberkleit says, he helps people make their lives extraordinary. "I support people to create a life that’s a glorious adventure.” Benefits include more freedom, more courage, and more vitality.

"There is an everyday adventurer that lives inside each of us,” the author says. "What I like to call ‘adventure coaching’ is about setting free that inner spark for life.”

Most clients hear of Silberkleit through word-of-mouth. Since 1995, he’s worked with more than 500 clients in private practice. Rates run $400 monthly, which includes either two 60-minute sessions per month or four 30-minute sessions. Meetings either take place in Silberkleit’s office, by phone, or, for an extra fee, the coach will come to the client’s office.

"It’s an investment,” Silberkleit says. "Clients will get a lot more out of it.”

A four-month commitment is required which also entitles a client to unlimited e-mail coaching whenever needed.

For those who don’t need the services of a Master Certified Life Coach, Silberkleit wrote his book to demonstrate that adventure is within us all and as near as our own home.

"My book is a guidebook to get adventures out of life,” he says. "I’ve taken apart everyday life and demonstrated ways anyone can find adventure, regardless of their lifestyle. All you need is a new attitude and a willingness to see adventure as your undeniable right.”

His book includes sections on adventures at home, with nature, with (and without) money, career adventures, adventures with relationships, and adventures with your health and well being.

There are four basic principles of adventure that Silberkleit, 42, names in his book.

The first — you are responsible for your own adventure —it’s not up to a tour guide or anyone else to provide it.

The next says that there is more risk in living a sedentary life than a life full of fun and excitement. "A life focused solely on safety consumes vitality,” the author writes, "but an adventurous life creates vitality.”

The third principle states that you are absolutely entitled to enjoy adventure in every day of your life no matter who or where you are. Even a housebound senior citizen can find new adventures by playing bridge with someone halfway around the globe on the Internet, the author states. Or they can learn to grow orchids at home, or cook a new ethnic cuisine.

And the fourth principle says that novelty is adventurous. Look for a new discovery in the most mundane routines of your life. "We’ve become so serious about life,” the author notes. "My book invites people to have childhood innocence and wonder back — to let go of cynicism.”

Tips for getting started

Some of the things he recommends in his book are: