How to Choose Better Hobbies That Don’t Waste Your Time
“What do you do in your free time” is one of the most dreaded open-ended questions. Of course, some are eager, ready to let sparks fly, as they rattle off 17 things they enjoy in their spare time.
Others, they’re caught completely off-guard. Watch uncomfortably, as they scramble for reasons to justify themselves and their behavior — typically preceded by a revealing elongated “uhhhhh…”
What are YOUR hobbies?
If you are one of the people thinking “I don’t have hobbies,” you’re full of it. Anything you willingly pursue in your leisure is a hobby. You have time outside of school, work, and sleep, right? I assume you do something during that time, no?
We all have hobbies; some are proud of them, others aren’t. If you’re one to claim you don’t have any “real” hobbies, that’s a good indication you fall into the latter category—which is perfectly normal. But it’s not okay.
Interests that solely entertain you are terrible things to be interested in.
Sure, hobbies are meant to be entertaining and amusing, but not everything entertaining and amusing is necessarily good or productive for you. Sitting in front of a TV, grazing over social media, taking naps — these all very common hobbies in America.
Yet, we don’t consider these things hobbies.
I wonder why?
Notice we use the word “pursuit” when we talk about hobbies; we pursue them, we try to get better at them, we exert energy into them because they lead us to a better day.
Sorry, “pursuing” the end of a season on Netflix is not a valid pursuit. It’s not proactive. In fact, it’s reactive, the complete opposite. You’re just sitting there, solely entertained. No brain power required!*
Unless you’re okay with identifying as “really good at consuming stuff,” you’ll want to change the way you approach spare time.
Choose hobbies you can enjoy for 10+ years.
In my opinion, A+ hobbies are timeless, or at least have the potential to be. They are activities you can part-take in at any decade of your life. Ask yourself:
“If I became utterly consumed by ______ for the next 10, 20, 30 years, would I be willing and able to do so?
If the answer is no, that might be a signal it’s not worth investing huge amounts of time into.
Take video games for example. Are you willing and able to be “really into video games” for the next 15 years when you’re 40 years old? That’s a personal decision you make. But at least consider the long-term implications if you sustain that activity into the future.
Find interests that earn interest over time.
You need to pursue hobbies that provide some return on investment. This means two things:
- You improve the longer you do it
- You gain a higher social standing by association
Let’s look at a silly, but illustrative, example. Let’s say you want to get into playing Bingo (yes, the game where you fill spaces until you get 5 in a row and shout). This is likely to fail both qualifications set forth.
For one, you can’t really get better at Bingo. There’s no improvement the longer you do it. Two, depending on your age and personality, it’s unlikely you’ll proudly fit in with the folks who frequent the local Bingo hall on Sunday night.
Find hobbies that not only challenge you, but redefine who you are.
Can’t think of any good hobbies? Okay, here’s 20:
- Animal Training
- Frisbee Golf
- Music / Singing
- Anything hitting a target
- Gardening
- Martial Arts
- Fishing
- Photography
- Industrial Avocations (i.e. design, architecture, geography)
- Health Remedies
- Art
- Sports (e.g. bowling, golf, tennis)
- Ceramics
- Writing
- Cooking
- Fitness (e.g. hiking, kayaking, running, yoga)
- Investing
- Camping
- Crafting
- Film-making
Age is not a limiting factor for most of those listed. For instance, you can garden till you’re dead. You can shoot a gun until you’re a rustic old man. Anyone can hold a camera, brush, or club for the rest of their life.
You improve the more you engage in these, too. What’s even better? You can create life-long friendships, or even businesses around these!
There are so many things you can dive into at any given moment. Keep this in mind next time you have some free time.
