Hobbies are great things, but do you know just how beneficial they can really be? Today we are exploring the positive effects hobbies can have in all areas of our everyday lives.
The benefits of hobbies
Hobbies shouldn’t be seen as just another task to tack onto the end of your to-do list. Dubbed “the royalty of life hacks” hobbies can enhance your physical, emotional and mental wellbeing in the following ways.
Here are 6 unexpected benefits from making time for a Hobby.
1. Improved mental health
We live in a world where the pressure to have and do it all is greater than ever. This means that we often get so busy that the first thing to get dropped is making time for the things we love and make us feel good.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, research conducted by the ONS found that this was especially true of millennial women, who across the board spend less time on leisure
It’s not always easy to find free time. Yet, these valuable hours when you’re not busy with your usual responsibilities can give you a chance to do things you really enjoy. Having a hobby means more than just doing something fun. It means putting time and effort into something that makes you happy and gets you excited.
2.Better Self-Esteem
When we do something over and over again, we tend to get better at it. And that’s why having a regular hobby can help you feel more confident and good about yourself. It improves your self-esteem.
3.Hobbies Reduce Stress
When life gets hectic, taking part in a hobby can provide some much-needed relief from the stress. You can unwind from the stresses of the day by indulging in a pastime, particularly one that consists of doing something that makes you feel happier or more relaxed, like collecting whisky and checking out an auction at https://www.australianwhiskyauctions.com.au. You can revitalize yourself and feel more prepared to deal with any challenges life throws at you if you make time for a pastime that you like doing on your own.
4.You’ll Be Creative
Creative activities like writing songs, knitting, making art, and playing music have all been shown to make people feel better. Especially for young adults, doing these kinds of things has led to a “upward spiral” of better health. Students found that spending more time on creative activities made them feel better.
Also, creative activities help you make more connections between neurons in your brain. This has been linked to the release of feel-good hormones like dopamine. Spending even just two hours a week doing something you like, like music or photography, can help you live a happier life.
5.You Can Make New Connections
Team sports are a great way to meet new people, make friends, and get support, all of which are important for mental health. A study found that depression, anxiety, and stress were less likely to happen to adults who played team sports regularly than to happen to the average person. Sharing experiences through sports or music hobbies makes the activity more fun and makes us feel less alone. So, if you want a new hobby, try doing something with other people, like joining a band or trying out a new team sport.
6.You Don’t Have To Be Productive
It’s important to keep our hobbies separate from our need to get things done and be productive. We live in a culture that values success, which can make it hard to stop thinking about our jobs, money, and deadlines. Think of hobbies as something different from things that need to be done. Our hobbies should be low-stress, relaxing ways to spend our free time and, most importantly, bring us real happiness.
3 Different types of hobbies
Not sure what hobby would be best for you? There are three different types of hobbies that each offer their own unique benefits.
Slow-mo hobbies:
Slow motion or passive activities, such as listening to music or reading a book, allow us to switch off, wind down, and get lost in something else with little to no effort. When done regularly and consistently, this kind of intentional hobby can regulate our heartbeat and reduce stress and anxiety.
Growth hobbies:
Hobbies such as learning a new language, travelling, and community-based activities help to push and grow us. They give us a chance to meet new people, go outside of our comfort zone, and widen our social circles.
Flow hobbies:
Including activities like going to the gym, sports, cooking, and creative or art-based projects, flow hobbies tend to be more focused and involve using or developing new skills. During hobbies like these, we swap being self-conscious and become so immersed in the activity that we lose sense of time. These hobbies can be a great stress-management tool.
So… which best suits you?
Articles written by our internal Daily Guru writers, who are certified & qualified growth & development professionals.
