Why You Should Make Time for Hobbies
When we think about productivity, we’re usually focused on how to achieve more at work and home with those tasks that drive our daily performance. Reaching goals. Meeting deadlines. Staying focused. Completing chores.
You plan your work day and block your time so that you get what needs to be done finished during the work week. So, what about non-work/home things? What about your passions and hobbies? Do you allow space for those pieces of you that really make you who you are as a person?
The Importance of Passions
When left to our own devices, leisure time often amounts to watching TV or scrolling through social media. While some veg-out time can be a good thing, it’s actually the active leisure time that leaves us feeling invigorated, relaxed, and happy.
Having a hobby or passion you pursue regularly can give you a new social circle in which to find connection. Whether it’s a Tuesday night watercolor class or an indoor soccer league, you gain friends that enjoy the same things as you. People who count on you showing up. As humans, we’re wired for connection. Any opportunities to gain meaningful connection with others adds to our overall happiness and experience of life.
Pursuing passions also adds depth to your self-identity. You’re not just a business owner, spouse, parent, or employee. You’re also a runner, a guitarist, a writer, a gardener. When we identify with more than just one or two things, it can be easier to bounce back when we have a bad day or hit a rough patch. If you have a mom-fail moment and your entire identity is wrapped up in motherhood, it can be devastating. Suddenly, one incident has you identifying as a “bad mom,” which can easily spiral into more negative self-talk, anxiety, stress, and depression.
Being able to step away from those not-so-great moments and into passions and hobbies can put those bad times into perspective. It doesn’t define you as a person. Instead, you experience proof through your hobbies that you are talented, needed, and understood.
Finding Your Passion
In Self Care for Productivity: 3 Questions to Finding What’s Right for You, I walk you through ways to discover activities that can help you destress and find joy. Are there activities that you’ve always wanted to try, but you were just “too busy?” Maybe you enjoyed a certain hobby when you were younger, but you stopped pursuing it for one reason or another. When you think about that pursuit, does it light you up?
That’s a clear sign that it’s something worth trying out.
Making Time For Your Passions
When we allow active leisure time into our weekly schedule, it has the potential to reduce stress, expand our social circle, and add depth and happiness to our lives. All of this can then carry over to all areas of our lives, increasing our energy, focus, and drive. So, why would we not include it as an essential part of our regular time blocks?
Take a look at your unscheduled free time and non-essential work blocks. Where can you add a monthly book club or weekly culinary class? Start small with one--maybe two--pursuits. See them as an experiment. You are simply trying them on to see if they fit.
You’ll feel a shift in yourself, your outlook, and your productivity when you start pursuing that passion.
