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Finding your hobbies
urchin
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
The last couple weeks I've been going through some health problems and problems with a friend. As a result, I've had a lot of time to just sit around and do whatever (during the times I'm feeling ok). And I'm discovering that, aside from just being around people and talking, I don't actually have any personal hobbies. I don't (often) think to myself "If I work hard and get ___ done quickly, that means I can do ______". I think this has been the case for a couple years and it is quite depressing realizing it now.
How do you guys figure out what you enjoy doing? Thanks!
How do you guys figure out what you enjoy doing? Thanks!
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Plus there's always gaming. Never really let that one go.
I wouldn't call that pathetic. The OP must have enjoyed some things as a child and if so what were they? I've kept hobbies that I had as a child and they still provide enjoyment. It is a great place to start.
Or is there something out there that you always wanted to try, but never got around to. Like hey I always thought it would be neat if I knew how to _______ (play guitar, become a chess master, civil war buff, etc...)
Use all that time to have film marathons. Like one week all horror movies, the next romance, then sci-fi.
Or if you are a sports fan then start following the team religiously, watch all the games, start a fantasy sports team.
Just take anything you have any remote interest in and crank up the intensity a few notches and BAM you have a hobby now.
edit: I just found out recently that my local community center has all kinds of classes for hobbies for unbelievable cheap prices. The wife is doing a chinese painting class $10 for like 16 weeks of classes every Tuesday night. Both of us signed up for the Karate class they have 3 days a week. It was only $20 for an entire year of classes. You do get what you pay for so it isn't the most fancy, but it does give a good sample of a hobby at a nice cheap price. If we decide we don't enjoy that hobby very much we are only out a very small entry fee. Keep sampling until you find one that keeps your interest. Then later down the road you can invest more time and money into that hobby.
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When you say you have alot of time to sit around, are you sitting because of the health problems, or just 'cause?
I for one, love to juggle. I can see it being hard if you can't chase the props though.
Do you want a list to help you brainstorm or what?
edit: btw, here's a list
Examples of how I got into hobbies-
1. My brother introduced me to gaming and collectible card games.
2. I went ice skating for fun and saw that there was a hockey league and then found my way into that
3. A girlfriend of mine got me into swing dancing which led me into other forms of dance
4. My mother and father forced me into calligraphy, which made writing (journals, fiction, poetry) into a habit, eventually led me to doing pen pals.
5. I did boy scouts when I was younger so I jumped through some hoops and went with a local troop to go backpacking which led me to a lot of outdoor activities.
6. Curiosity has led me to read a lot. Books, magazines, articles on the internet.
7. Pen Pals led me to learn new languages.
8. I played cello in middle school and have continued that post high school. Interest in music led me to play on my mother's piano and my brother's guitar and my sister's string bass and a friend's violin and my dad's harmonica.
9. A friend of mine made cool photos with their Diana camera, which made me interested in photography and led me to a Holga camera. Eventually with all of my photos I made scrapbooks and photo albums and photo journals and such.
10. Another friend played a ton of tennis. Most the time I wanted to hang out he wouldn't because of tennis. Eventually I got him to teach me tennis.
11. Getting bored with fast food led me to cook which led me to learn finer points of cooking and becoming a good chef.
12. Community service such as big brother introduced me to new people and (BigBrother) brought me back to old interests such as chess and Axis and Allies, getting deeper into that led me to paper and pencil RPGs.
13. My brother volunteered for the fire department, my sister volunteered for EMS before becoming a basic/intermediate emt/paramedic.
Guess that's why a lot of us here are into video games/comics/pokemon etc.
I remember running around with a tape recorder as a child because sound and sound effects fascinate me. This led to my music editing hobby.
My childhood love of roller coasters has persisted into my adult hood and has led to skydiving.
I started taking language classes and rowing recently, but I feel like I should do something that is a little less work and maybe more fun. It seems like whenever I do something new I go for the utilitarian approach and ask myself "How will this help me." I wish I had something that I could honestly look forward too with passion or something that makes me a more interesting person.
I think I might start photography because I have been wanting to get into it for years. This Christmas might be my chance.
See what your friends and peers are into. Maybe go hit up a hobby shop and take a look around?
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If you're having trouble finding a hobby, I'd consider the scenario: If you had a whole three months free, with no worries about money, or the cost of your hobby...how would you spend your time? It may help you come up with ideas, or at the very least help you consider the types of things you enjoy doing...which can then just translate to something you do in your spare time.
It looks like you're kind of artistically inclined - there are a handful of really cool origami books out there (I also remember one from my childhood that was how to build like 20 different types of paper planes, it was awesome). It would probably be a good idea to check out some books on that, if you're interested. Also papercraft, perhaps - it seems really popular, is similar in a way to origami...and I'm sure you wouldn't have a hard time finding templates, or even creating your own, when you're ready.
[edit] found a link to my old paper airplanes book: http://www.amazon.com/Planes-Jets-Helicopters-John-Bringhurst/dp/0830644512/ref=sr_1_20?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1226446923&sr=1-20