How to ‘Hobby’ as an Adult 

Adulthood is defined as the state or condition of being fully grown or mature which is short for crap, we’re on our own now. Excess amounts of work, financial worry and getting drunk off one glass of wine are just some of the full-time benefits you get when you sign up. 

Adulthood is defined as the state or condition of being fully grown or mature which is short for crap, we’re on our own now. Excess amounts of work, financial worry and getting drunk off one glass of wine are just some of the full-time benefits you get when you sign up. 

 

A recent study, published in Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics found that engaging with a hobby had a positive effect on adults with self-reported depression, helping them to feel more relaxed, energized, and inspired. Having a vested interest in a skill or activity can leave every day open for new discoveries. Hobbying as an adult may sound a little strange and you might not know where to start but here are five hacks for your new hobby habit! 

Take Fear out of the Equation 

Taking a test run on a new activity is daunting and most people don’t dare to ever take the leap. Why you may ask well, there’s a lingering fear of the shameful failure. Let’s break this down:

 

A report titled, “The Shame of Failure: Examining the Link Between Fear of Failure and Shame” states that shame is a painful emotion, and thus, it is not surprising that individuals high in fear of failure orient to and seek to avoid failure in achievement situations. Indeed, when possible, such individuals seek to select themselves out of achievement situations in the first place. Ironically, and poignantly, in so doing, those high in fear of failure keep themselves from the mistakes and failures. 

 

Counteracting this fear of a doomed future with a more open-minded approach can help you tackle new projects and ideas. 

Get in Touch with Your Younger, Cooler Self

But where do I start with figuring out how to spend my unlimited free time, you ask? Channel your younger self and revisit how you used to spend your afterschool time. Let’s say you were on the track and field team then maybe it’s time to start running again. Or if the yearbook club was your jam then maybe purchase a new camera and get back into photography/graphic design. 

 

Hobbying is most successful when immense joy and relaxation comes out of it instead of struggle. Oftentimes what we loved as children will resurface in adulthood and hobbying is a great way to relive these loves. 

Use the World Wide Web 

One of the greatest things about the internet is the unlimited access there is to new people, ideas and activities. If you’ve always wanted to get into hiking, check out some Facebook groups for hikers in your area (use common sense and extreme caution, always). Nowadays there are websites to help adults develop new skill sets and transition their focus into a new line of work. 

 

Use the resources at your fingertips and get involved. Hobbying can also be volunteering so check local sources for those opportunities as well. 

Start Today

When that mouse closes out this article, you start your new hobby. Not tomorrow, or next week or 2022 no, today. Dive in and get immersed in all the new opportunities, crafts and activities waiting to be seized. Hobbying isn’t supposed to be mentally straining or fatiguing, so don’t let it!  Start today and thank yourself later when your full-time adulting feels part-time.

By Keely Cohen-Breen 

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