#19 Why we all need a hobby with no agenda
Hobbies are meant to be fun, but it is natural to want to be good at them.
We want to feel pride in our paintings, we like to win when we play videogames or see some progress in our 5km run times.
But there is also a great joy in hobbies where we are utter amateurs at them.
Think back to when you were a child.
We all larked about playing, creating and imagining with no agenda but still having countless hours of fun.
More and more people connect the hallowed and sought-after ‘flow state’ we talk about as adults with the pure presence children demonstrate while playing.
How does this relate to having a hobby we suck at?
If we have a hobby without an agenda that we still thoroughly enjoy, we recreate that sense of wonder we felt as children but also remove our self-imposed expectations of what we should achieve by doing the activities.
Speaking from personal experience, I’ve had spells as an adult where I did daily doodles and turned my hand to tennis with my partner even though we both have zero experience in the sport between us.
But how do we choose a hobby with no agenda?
Well, think back to your childhood.
Are there any activities you loved as a kid that you no longer do as an adult that you could do?
The point is to be playful, embrace being bad at the activity but also know that you might see yourself grow and improve as you do it, which is a magical feeling.
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Benjamin Craske
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