Can Hobbies Promote Personal Growth?

There are a lot of quotes online about most subjects. When this topic came up on my blog post calendar, I do what I usually do when it’s time to write the next post. I research. One of my places of inspiration is quote boards. This topic was so nebulous, I needed a set of words to align my fingers with my brain to produce this post.

So I came across a Warren Buffett quote regarding hobbies. Here it is:

“Whatever you like to do, make it a hobby and whatever the world like to do, make it a business.”

That a pretty clear delineation between what hobbies can do, in retrospect to what we should do if we intend to make money. I don’t know about you, but making money is a part of personal growth from my perception. So, I considered Mr Buffet’s quote, and I thought perhaps he is right, and hobbies have nothing to do with making money. Perhaps they are two distinctly different beasts.

Then I found another quote on picturesquote.com. This quote says:

“A hobby is hard work you wouldn’t do for a living.”

Now I’m thinking, which is more likely? Business is business and hobbies have nothing to do with it, or a hobby is such hard work, you would be crazy to want to do it for a living.

Hobbies Can Be The Right Choice

After careful introspection, I decided that if I had a choice, I would choose to have a hobby that could turn into sustaining me financially. Sure, Warren Buffett is right in inferring that we should pay attention to what’s happening in the world and craft a business base on what the people like, need, want. But, here is the thing, I wouldn’t want to make a million dollars trying to sell to, say, the 70 million Trump voters, if I disparately disagree with everything they stand for. That’s a pretty strident example, but hopefully you get my point.

Now, if I were a Trump supporter and I saw an opportunity to get them to buy my take on make America great again tee shirt art. Tee shirt art being something I love to do, and have been making a hefty profit from on Etsy, then I am golden. I’m making tee shirt art, (my hobby) I’ve discovered what the people love or like, (According to Warren Buffett). Hence his example of the difference between a hobby and a business.

I suppose some would say that the second quote from picturesquote.com would also fall into the above example. The thought being, I love to make tee shirt art, but as hard as it may be to do, selling it to Trump supporters is the truly hard work you would do for a living.

Where ever you would fall in the above scenario, if you have a hobby that you love, that you spend a lot of time doing each day, each week, it can help to develop passion, perseverance, and satisfaction in life. Hobbies don’t just help to past the time, they can enrich your life, develop new skills, and boost your personal development.

Examples of how hobbies can positively affect your life

Build Skills

When you focus on a hobby, you want to do your best. If there is something you don’t know, you will go in search of that knowledge, or skill to do your hobby effectively. The better you become, the more dedicated you are towards achieving your hobby objectives.

Provide Productive Outlet

There is a reason you started the hobby. Were you trying to fill a void? Remove boredom from your life? Doing something you love can be beneficial when other options such as watching tv, or calling all your friends to gossip, isn’t something you want to do.

Reduces Stress

This benefit is obvious, because I’ve yet to meet someone who isn’t less stress out when they are doing something they love or believe in. Think of it from a different stance, when you are not stressed out, you are more productive and have better emotional and physical heath.

More Social

Hobbyist don’t just love developing their skills. Most also enjoy sharing their knowledge and helping others develop similar skills. Your knowledge and skills can help you interact with people you would otherwise not engage with.