8 Ways Pursuing a Hobby can Transform Your Life

You have a good job, a happy family and financial stability. You have invested in term insurance policy, guaranteed income plans, health insurance policies, stocks, mutual funds etc. You have taken care of all your financial risks and ensured that your family will remain protected in your absence.

Now what? Are you really enjoying the freedom you get from a risk-free life?

In spite of having a reasonably stable and financially secure life, you don’t know how to spend your free time. The irony of our time is we don’t think anything other than how to make money. Many people have a major problem of spending their time on Sundays.

If a financially stable life does not help you to do what you like in life, what is the purpose of this stability?

“There’s got to be more to life than fighting for fish heads.” Jonathan Livingston Seagull.

Eighty-five percent of workers worldwide admit they hate their jobs when surveyed anonymously, according to a Gallup poll. When 85% of the people hate their jobs and if they don’t pursue any hobby, imagine what kind of life they are living.

Hobbies are an important form of creative expression. Just as exercise releases and increases energy in the body, creative energy also needs a form of expression. Whatever hobby we choose, it is an important aspect of our wellbeing. It can enhance our ability to relax, rest our brain and recharge our spirit.” Claire Hall, the principal life coach at Authentic Empowerment.

Ways to Pursue any Hobby

There are several benefits to pursuing a hobby:

• Stress Buster
  Doing something non-routine is a good way to deal with the stress. Non-routine activities take away your mind from routine and stressful activities. Thinking and doing things which we like relieves our stress. It replenishes our energy. It recharges our brain.
• Makes you Happy
  Anything which relieves your stress makes you happy. Even looking forward to doing something you like also makes you feel happy. You feel happy when you are planning your holidays or when you look forward to going to an entertaining evening. Research has shown that anticipating something positive unleashes positive emotions that can help us live happier lives.
  Imagine how much happiness a hobby can unleash when you look forward to indulging in your daily hobby. Pursuing a hobby gives you this opportunity to feel happy even before you actually indulge in your hobby.
• Builds Confidence
  When you learn something new and pursue it as a hobby, your overall confidence level goes up. You feel happy and confident about what you know. This has a positive impact on your career and personality.
• Makes you a more Interesting Person
  When you know something very dearly and are passionate about it, you master the activity. Masters are ‘go to’ person for others. People would like to know more about your hobby your passion, and yourself. Your insight into what you know makes you an interesting person for others.
  Imagine your office colleague is pursuing a hobby of singing. How much would you like to know about his journey?
• Helps you deal with boredom
  This is a very big challenge. Recent surveys indicate that anywhere from 30 to 90 percent of Americans report feeling bored at some point in a typical day. Young people seem particularly vulnerable, with surveys showing 91 to 98 percent reporting daily bouts of boredom. We Indians are no different.
  A good hobby is an answer to this boredom phenomenon.
• Makes you waste less time
  If you have nothing to look forward to doing in your free time, you will waste your free time doing nothing. We all know a free mind is the devils workshop. Rather than wasting free time for useless activities and engaging the mind in negative thoughts, keeping it engaged in activities like a hobby is a good investment of the time.
• Good for your mental health
  Engaging in an interesting activity boosts your mental health. Anything which gives us happiness is an antidepressant. You have read above how hobbies can boost your happiness. Good mental health is as good as good physical health. Pursuing a good hobby is a good way to deal with the depression.
• Good for your physical health
  If you pursue a hobby which is an outdoor sport or swimming, it not only gives you happiness but it also makes you physically fit.
  Hobbies and activities beyond your routine chores give you an important perspective on life. Some people pursue volunteering as their hobby. It also has a great advantage.

Dr. Kevin Eschleman, an assistant psychology professor at San Francisco State University, “Anything that provides you with a real cognitive shift in how you see the world, that’s going to be an asset in terms of your overall health and wellbeing, and also how you solve problems, whether it’s in personal relationships or in a work environment.” (Source: Fast Company)

Find time for a hobby. We all are time-starved career professionals. But hobbies are not the things to be pursued after retirement. Life is not to be lived in sequence, it all happens parallelly.

Do you eat only on Mondays, work on Tuesdays, and sleep on Sundays? No, daily you find time for our routine activities. Likewise, your hobby also deserves some time from you, daily.

The change of perspective a hobby can bring has the power to transform your life. At Edelweiss Tokio our vision is to help people fulfil their dreams and mitigate the hindrances. Live your dreams. Find time to pursue a hobby.

Hobbies are like flowers on a plant. They make the plant look beautiful and feel proud.

Share your stories. We would be delighted to read your experiences of pursuing your hobbies.

Our popular post:  How can the easy availability of loans ruin your life?

Aastha Mestry - Portfolio Manager 

An Author and a Full-Time Portfolio Manager, Aastha has 6 years of experience working in the Insurance Industry with businesses globally. With a profound interest in traveling, Aastha also loves to blog in her free time.