After a stressful (and hopefully successful!) midterm season, I wanted to bring you some guidance on discovering hobbies that might help balance out the stress that comes along with college. I cannot begin to describe the improvement I have felt in my work-life balance from finding activities I genuinely enjoy doing and I can only hope the same for you!
Finding hobbies you like can seem daunting, but reflecting on what your general interests are helps narrow down what you would want to explore. I personally prefer to be alone and in quieter spaces, so going on runs, baking, and reading books have definitely been enjoyable for me. It’s also refreshing to explore parts of your personality that you may not pay too much attention to. Currently, I’m trying to learn how to crochet after admittedly seeing a few TikTok videos and taking interest. Some advice I would give is to take some personality quizzes online and figure out what hobbies you could ascribe to that! I was always so focused on school and my job that it was really hard to find things that helped with motivation and mental clarity. Prior to finding things I truly enjoy, my daily routine was pretty mundane and seemed to lack variety. Now, if I’m ever having a rough week, I have things that I truly enjoy to fall back on.
It sincerely helps to have a distraction from the general workings of life and jobs, so finding hobbies can help alleviate some of life’s natural stress. Taking a journey for yourself helps a ton not only with balance, but will help you get to know yourself better!