Using a Hobby to Get Ahead of Others
How do most people spend their free time? Aimlessly browse social media, binge watch their favorite tv shows, perhaps play video games for several hours? Most people use their free time engaging in entertainment that provides temporal happiness with very little ROI (return on investment). If you ever find yourself bored or unsure of what to do with your free time, I have a solution. Find a hobby. This may seem like cliche advice but having a hobby, especially a unique one, can really separate you from the crowd.
Using your free time to pursue a hobby can be very beneficial for several reasons.
- Increases Happiness. Having an activity that you can practice during your free time can be enjoyable and can give your life more purpose.
- Encourages Uniqueness. People love unique people. As students, we follow a system that undermines the idea of being unique. School suppresses our creative characteristics so it is important to exercise being unique and what better way to do that than to take on a new hobby.
- Can Be Life Changing. There are many ways that a hobby or activity can change your life. Perhaps the most obvious way would be if you can turn your hobby into a profession and make money from it. For most people, however, this won’t be the case. A hobby can simply change your life by providing your mind an escape from reality. It can make your life seem more fulfilling and productive. In any case, pursuing a passion is a much better use of your time than catching up on season 7 of Game of Thrones.
I want to give you a personal example of how I have utilized my free time over the past years and how it has benefitted me. I have always been an extremely ambitious individual and have always tried to think of ways that I could stand out and get ahead of other people. During my freshmen year of high school is when I had my epitome. I realized just how unambitious and boring most people were and how society had made them stagnant through social media and other forms of entertainment. Instead of following this model, I chose to begin using my free time for developing skills that would provide me with a much higher ROI. So I decided that instead of using my time to play video games, I would use my time to practice magic tricks. I don’t quite remember why I chose this hobby but the point is that I was doing something more beneficial than just sitting in front of a tv. So now for the ROI. Practicing magic had some incredible benefits for me. I was able to make friends with ease by doing simple card tricks, impress the ladies with my acquired sleight of hand, and I even got some extra credit in one of my classes for showing a trick to the class! This may not seem like a huge deal but through this hobby I diversified my skill-set and added a layer of uniqueness to myself. Eventually I lost interest in magic and picked up a new hobby which I still love and practice today and that is producing music. Again, I chose another unique skill but this time I also chose a marketable skill. The sound industry is rapidly expanding and music can be monetized. Perhaps if I continue using my free time to hone my musical abilities I can begin selling my music or even turn it into a full time career!
Wishful thinking? Maybe, but the point is that I made opportunities for myself using the time that normally would’ve been wasted browsing twitter.
Now I am all about application and practicality s0 I have a very simple challenge for you. Pick a hobby right now. It does not matter how old you are, it is never to early or late to learn a new skill. Think about some things you like. It could be sports, music, books, talking, cars, money, technology, art etc. Once you have this decided it’s time to choose a specific skill that is both beneficial and enjoyable. If you like technology maybe you can consider learning how to program apps. If you love Italian food maybe you can become a local pasta reviewer. If you like talking, start a podcast or a blog. Stay committed to practicing your hobby at least once a day. Even if you only practice for 20 minutes a day you are developing a beneficial habit and are improving your work ethic. You may not see an immediate ROI in your hobby but just remember that if you consistently practice your skill, you are opening up opportunities and connections that may not have existed otherwise.
