Are you struggling with finding time for your hobbies and interests?
Many people are because they’re overwhelmed with work and family responsibilities. Feeling tired, overworked, and just stressed also impacts whether you have the personal bandwidth needed to work on things that make you happy.
It’s possible that even when you do have time, you wind up neglecting your hobbies because you need to re-energize yourself.
In this post, we’ll explore ways to help you find time and energy for the things that you love. With these tips, you’ll start building your skills in your favorite art form, write the book you always wanted to, or even launch a lifestyle blog based on what you love to do.
Let’s get started!
Schedule time for your hobbies
While this tip seems simple and obvious, it’s surprising how many people don’t use it.
Many people don’t make time for hobbies simply because they don’t plan for them.
Just think about it, do you set up calendar events and reminders for meetings and appointments? Then why not for a skill or hobby class?
It’s possible that the only nudge you need is clarity in your daily schedule. Try adding half an hour of writing every day or 3 hours of Yoga practice a week to your calendar. And be specific about when and where you’re going to work on your passion projects.
Just seeing these practices clearly defined in a calendar or project management tool can help you plan your work around your passions instead of the other way around.
Work on your hobbies first
Another reason why people fail to work on the things they love is that they try to do it after all their other work. Or they wait for a ‘perfect’ time to dedicate their attention and energy to their art and hobbies.
Instead of waiting until the end of the day to practice your music or learn about sewing, dedicate the first hour of your day to your personal goals. Do things like go for a walk, work on your blog, sketch, or read a book.
You’ll start your day on a positive note and you’ll do the things you love when you’re fresh and awake. You’ll see steady progress in the tasks that you like and you won’t find yourself unable to work on them when you’ve had a long day at work.
Do a one time clean up
Did you know that two very different and famous approaches to organization have something common at their core? I’m talking about David Allen’s Getting Things Done method and Marie Kondo’s method of tidying up.
While they are two different approaches for different purposes, these two philosophies have something in common – they recommend that you clean up your entire workload and environment in a one-time effort.
The reason why it’s important to do a one-time clean-up of your work and home environment, as well as your goals and tasks, is as follows: chances are that your environment has so many things in it that it’s virtually impossible to focus on any goal at all.
When you tidy up and get organized in your physical environment, you get rid of tasks and objects that weigh you down. You’ll create more space and even energy to focus on the things you love.
I recommend the following two steps in particular
- Following Marie Kondo’s method of tidying up – fully discard everything in your home and workspace that does not truly give you joy
- Using David Allen’s method of productivity – finish all tasks that can be done in 2 minutes flat. And organize all your work so that you know exactly what has to be done and when – leaving your mind free to focus on only one task at a time
These two methods of productivity and organization are challenging. But they are also personally fulfilling and life-changing.
It often happens that many of us accumulate clutter in our homes. We also create too many goals for ourselves and spread ourselves thin. But by doing a thorough physical and mental clean-up, we can free up time and energy. You might find yourself with more time than before and focus on your creative work.
Conclusion
I’ve shared the best ideas I know for making time for your passion projects. It’s critical for every person to work on something that truly makes them happy.
But it can be difficult to do this when you lack the time and energy. I hope the tips I shared are meaningful and help you give yourself the focus and attention you deserve.,
Apply these tips today and you’ll make progress on the hobbies and skills you love sooner than you realize.