5 Reasons why having a hobby is good for you
What’s your favorite hobby? Taking the time to practice an activity you enjoy every day, even if it’s just for 10-15 minutes, can be extremely beneficial for your mental health and well-being. And even if you’re busy, there’s really no excuse in neglecting self-care so much that you can’t even dedicate a quarter of an hour to your own happiness. A hobby is an activity that you love and enjoy, and engaging in such an activity will bring you happiness and pleasure.
1. Create opportunities for meeting new like-minded people
Hobbies are an excellent way to connect with and meet other people. This is incredibly beneficial for everyone, but especially people who generally find meeting others a bit challenging. Essentially, looking for workshops to sign up for and other groups that practice different hobbies together will allow you to meet plenty of people. And the best part? You obviously share at least one thing in common.
2. Free yourself from stress by doing something you love
When you practice a hobby, you’re engaging in an activity you enjoy; the act itself makes you happy and fulfilled. Therefore, this is one of the most effective stress-relieving techniques as well. These days, everyone has to deal with a lot of stress which is why self-care and hobbies have become even more important. Moments like these are treated as special, they relax you and allow you to get away from stress and worries for a while. In times of great pressure, don’t hesitate to turn to your own hobbies for help. After all, it’s only logical that doing something you love will help you relieve tension and stress, isn’t it?
3. Break the limits of your creative power
Regardless of what your hobbies are, they will often boost your creativity. Not only that, but hobbies can actually encourage you to explore your own creative freedom. Aside from boosting your own sense of self-worth, a creativity boost can come in handy. This is especially true for people who work as creatives, but it’s also useful in everyday situations where you may just need to deal with something quickly, fix or make something, etc.
4. Try something new and discover a whole new world
People nowadays often seem to forget that they’re not robots and definitely need some quality time to unwind. This is where hobbies can help as well. After all, they give you the perfect excuse to try new things and explore your own as well as the world’s possibilities. For instance, if you’ve always had an interest in the ocean, diving and marine life, you can simply get yourself top-notch scuba diving equipment and take up scuba diving as your hobby. A hobby like this one will be good for both your body and mind, while it will allow you to continuously marvel at and discover new things.
5. Welcome the eustress!
You might feel a bit confused now. Aren’t hobbies supposed to help you get rid of stress? Quite right. But eustress is not the bad stress you want to get rid of completely. It’s actually a beneficial kind of stress. For instance, let’s say that you’ve decided to take up rowing classes and after a while, you also sign up for a competition; doing so may cause you stress that you haven’t experienced before. After all, you’ll have to train more often and harder. However, this will still be something you want that gives you motivation and energy. Therefore, the activity will produce a stimulating and beneficial feeling in both your mind and body.
Your happiness should be at the top of your priorities, and considering that practicing hobbies makes you happy, you should definitely think twice before disregarding your need to do something you enjoy again.
