Making Time for Hobbies

QUESTION

Joey, with a forty-hour job, how can I make time for hobbies that I enjoy (candle making, soap making and painting) and "hobbies" that are necessary for personal development (reading books, python programming, languages, podcasts) and hobbies for health (walking, cycling, and working out)?

I am struggling to choose because I want to do all these things—and I used to do all these things on an everyday basis when I was younger—but now I end up not doing anything as a result of feeling deeply depressed without knowing what to do.

—Natalia

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ANSWER

Natalia, it sounds like you’ve got a serious case of FOMO (fear of missing out). It’s a real thing these days with so many options to entertain ourselves.

I’m a curious person by nature, and I love experimenting with new practices. Just in the last few years I’ve picked up: programming in Swift and Python, playing the trumpet, exploring blockchain, writing a book (which came to fruition), intermediate cooking, and even chess.

As much as I enjoy all of the above, I eventually have to set one thing down to do another. It often breaks my heart—I wish there were more hours in the day.

When we choose to do an activity, it’s also a choice to not engage in other activities. This means that no matter what, we’re going to miss out on things. Which means the first step is accepting that you can’t do everything.

There are, however, simple activities for personal development that are worth maintaining in your schedule. You pretty much named them. Every morning, I get up early to:

• Meditate: Five to ten minutes is all you need.

• Read: Aim for five minutes, and you’ll find some days you naturally go beyond.

• Exercise: A short routine is better than no routine at all.

All three of these activities, which I categorize as Development, can be completed in one hour. Doing them all together not only sets up your day for success, it keeps you motivated by chaining good habits together.

If you’re struggling to bring your hobbies and routine together, I recommend you lay out your week and block out times for Work, Hobby, Development, and Leisure. Then assign activities to the Hobby and Development blocks ahead of time.

Hope that helps.

—Joey

Creator of Baronfig
Author of The Laws of Creativity

An example of how you can structure your week, loosely based on my own schedule. Unlabeled areas are for Leisure. Once you get this down, then assign various hobbies to your blocks—and you're off.