Why All Female High-Flyers (Yes, You) Need a Hobby
I remember the days when all I would do is wake up, eat my breakfast, get ready for work, drive to work, work from 9 to 5, eat at my desk, drive back home, eat dinner and then go to sleep. Gosh, just typing that made me exhausted — no wonder my creativity melted away: there was just no space in my life for it. My life revolved around work, and only work — even on the weekends all I thought about was work. Present me can obviously see how unhealthy that is, but past me? She was in her first full time role, how could she have known that to get her juices flowing she just needed to do more of the things that she enjoyed.
I remember sitting at that desk dreaming of driving to the ice rink instead of home — but her fears held her back…
“Will I get there on time?” and “Is it really worth the 45 minute drive?”
I am literally screaming, YES YES YES. But sadly, time travel isn’t my superpower.
Thankfully covid came to my rescue. Yep, you heard me right…
While some people despised Covid, for me, it turned out to be a significant blessing. The shift to a work-from-home culture provided me with the opportunity to reflect on my lifestyle and dedicate more time to healing. This opened up space in my life to actually envision the kind of life that I WOULD like to live. Not only was this when I took the leap to finally start my own business, it was when I joined the waitlist for the adult skate school at my local rink — little did I know that these two actions would lead to a tremendous change in my life.
Once Covid eventually lifted, my time came to start adult skate school and I have not looked back. It is everything I had hoped and more (please take this as your sign to chase your dreams, they were given to you for a reason (it’s meant for you))! I enjoy it so much that I now encourage everyone I know to have a hobby as an adult — hence this very piece. I don’t think you truly realise how important it is to have a hobby until you begin, so if you’ve not yet begun… you’ll have to wait and see!
Sometimes there is a misconception about what a hobby truly entails. They think it’s “just for children” or it’s a “side hustle”. Don't get me wrong, side hustles are great too (that's actually how high-flying design began), but there's something special about dedicating time to an activity where success isn't measured by monetary gains. It could be gardening, learning to play an instrument, joining a chess club, attending a pottery class, or even going to the gym — whatever floats your boat!
But before you decide on the right hobby for you, let’s delve into the benefits of having a hobby, shall we?
1. A hobby can lead to reduced screen time, lower stress and more sleep
Don’t get me wrong, I owe my entire career to my digital devices. But at the same time I am very much aware that too much time on your devices is not healthy, especially if you are just scrolling through a never ending loop of content on feeds such as TikTok and Instagram. Spending too much time consuming lots of the wrong information in a short time period can lead to unhealthy comparisons and imposter syndrome, which as a business owner is not going to benefit you. Too much exposure to blue light from your devices is also not going to benefit you — you might experience problems like blurry vision, eyestrain, dry eye, macular degeneration, and cataracts. Some people also have sleep issues.
What will benefit you, however, is ditching your digital screen for a few hours a week for a hobby. Today I stay on the ice for around four to six hours a week. That's up to six hours of quality me-time doing something that makes me feel good in myself, thanks to the increased production of endorphins that keep my stress levels low and provide me with a better night’s sleep. It's up to six hours without a phone, without thinking about work. It’s healthy to pour our energy into things that help us grow as a person, and not just grow our bank accounts.
Believe it or not, we need to spend time outside, we need to be in nature, we need to feel the sunshine on our faces and we need to connect with others in real life. Please remember that keeping up with people on social media is not real socialising. You won’t miss out on anything if you close it off for a few hours a week. You really won’t look back!
2. A hobby can lead to new friendships, and therefore more joy
As an adult, it can be hard to make new friends.
After graduating university and moving back home, I found that the only friends I had were people that either a) lived far away or b) worked at the same company as me. It wasn’t until I left my first full time job that I realised that the people I was friends with at work, weren’t really my friends… I had just built a ‘situational friendship’ because I was forced to spend time with these people every day. In reality, they weren’t people that I would choose to be friends with as we didn’t have much in common except the job itself.
Friends that I have made at my hobby are different. They feel more genuine and long-lasting. Sure, some of the people I connect with just have ice skating in common with me. But others share similar values and want to lead similar lives to me, or are already living my dream life therefore inspiring me to dream even bigger in other areas of my life.
Doing an activity for yourself, with newfound friends has taken the pressure off of always trying to improve my skill and has helped me experience more joy, laughter and fun in my week. At first I joined skating for the activity itself (and honestly thought that it would just be me because who ice skates as an adult?!), but now it doesn’t feel the same if I’m not connecting with the friends and community I’ve made there.
3. A hobby can lead to better physical health
As someone who works in the digital world, I’m often sat down for extended periods of time…
Research has linked sitting for long periods of time with a number of health concerns. They include obesity and a cluster of conditions — increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist and unhealthy cholesterol levels — that make up metabolic syndrome.
Since investing in a private coach, in addition to my group adult classes, ice skating has become a great cardiovascular workout keeping my heart healthy, strengthening my leg and core muscles, and improving my muscle tone, balance, agility and flexibility.
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