I have quite a few hobbies, 16 in fact. Knitting, sewing, reading, traditional pencil sketching, digital art, weightlifting, ukulele, piano, embroidery, listening to music, creative writing, letter-writing, Dutch, origami, baking, and playing video games. This might seem like quite a lot and you might think that I wouldn’t have enough time to do all of these. You would be right! Some of the hobbies on that list I haven’t done in weeks! I still consider them hobbies of mine though because I know I’ll be doing them in the future when inspiration hits. I’ll be telling you how I keep tabs on all of these different hobbies and am able to keep steadily learning all of them.

First Step: Make a list

It may seem like I would be in a constant balancing act with all of these hobbies and while it does feel that way every once in a while, they are actually pretty easy to keep track of. Firstly, make a list of all of the hobbies you have been doing, did do, or want to be doing. If it seems like a lot, feel free to get rid of some of the hobbies you don’t feel like you’ll be doing any time soon. You can always come back to add to the list whenever you want to. If it seems like not enough you can always ask your friends for hobbies, scroll through Pinterest or just root around in your closet to get some inspiration.

Second Step: To schedule or not to schedule

Secondly, you have to find a balance between a strict schedule and having the freedom to do things on a whim. Some hobbies work best when scheduled while others are not. Hobbies that take upkeep like playing instruments or any sort of physical exercise work best when you align to a schedule while you do them. It doesn’t have to be a super restrictive schedule though; my schedule for ukulele is simply for me to play ukulele at some point during the day for at least 15 minutes. I can still choose when in the day, what songs to practice and for how long I want to play ukulele. However, some hobbies don’t benefit from this sort of strict schedule, especially artistic hobbies that you aren’t too serious about. Sometimes the embroidery inspiration just isn’t there for me and to force myself to still do it would hurt more than help me. Schedule the hobbies you need to and leave the others open to do whenever you feel compelled to do them.

Third Step: Mistakes WILL be made

The most important thing to keep in mind while doing any hobbies is that you can and will mess up. It is inevitable, but the wonderful thing about that is that it doesn’t matter. You aren’t going to be selling what you make, so it’s free from the tough scrutiny of capitalism. You aren’t going to be an expert at any hobby at the drop of a hat, so to expect that of yourself is ridiculous. If you were teaching someone how to play violin you wouldn’t expect them to be adept in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons concertos within even the first year of their study of the instrument. Of course feeling nervous and shy about hobbies may be prevalent even when remembering that mistakes will happen and that’s totally normal. Sometimes those mistakes and nervousness are  easier to handle when they aren’t on display, so you may consider not showing off your hobby until you get a bit better at it. Regardless of if you are shy with your hobbies or very outspoken about them, know that you will get better, but only if you keep at it.

Now go out, mask up, and buy some yarn, beads, or a helmet for whatever hobbies you want to pursue. Maybe you’ll find out something about yourself in your endeavors to make an origami crown that you otherwise wouldn’t have- I know I have. Have fun, be safe and stay confident!