Time is our greatest investment opportunity – we should invest the time that we have in a diverse portfolio of activities that will provide us with positive returns.
Having a solid routine helps us to squeeze utility out of our time. However, if we get stuck in the same routine for too long it can start to feel monotonous and laborious. Especially so if we are spending our down time on low value activities such as watching TV or browsing social media.
Sometimes we need a break, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be doing or achieving something with our time. A hobby can provide us with a sense of purpose, an outlet for stress, a creative challenge or all of the above!
Career coaches have confirmed that having a hobby can help you be better at your job. Not only does it show your employers that you have passions and a drive to do something with your time, it also helps to prevent burnout. When we are bored at home our workload can prey on our idle minds, a hobby provides us with a welcome distraction – engaging our brain on an enjoyable and unrelated pursuit.
With the massive success of websites like Etsy (an e-commerce platform focussed on handmade goods) it is clear that hobbies can do more than merely fill our time. Many hobbies are practiced in solitude and as such we often don’t realise how much our skills have progressed. Whether you are selling succulents, making bespoke leatherworks or teaching a craft, there is always an opportunity to turn a hobby into a side-hustle.
Hobbies can also help us adapt to retirement. Many people are left wondering what they will do with all of the extra time they have on their hands once they retire. But you will never hear that from a golfer, woodworker, painter or fisherman!
Perhaps the most important facet of a hobby is the (often indirect) social aspect. It provides us with interesting stories to tell. It lets us explore and play and be young at heart, shirking the stresses of life, one game of Bridge at a time. It connects us with people on a level that is fun.