Nothing exceeds like excess.
As a student, our school teacher would insist on going for a wide variety of hobbies.
He would stress how hobbies take a person further than their studies and professions.
So, oftentimes, I’d sing hoarse, fracture my arm in the rugby pitch, and still find time to try my deejaying skills on the decks, all in the spirit of trying to build a range of hobbies.
So, Is It Good to Have Multiple Hobbies? Can You Have TOO MANY Hobbies?
Yes, but it depends on how you select your hobbies. While a variety of hobbies may help you cast the net wider and find one or a few areas that really interests you, failure to specialize could mean you aren’t a master of any. Many people struggle to focus on multiple interests.
You will spend a lot of time thinking about the many things you need to do, that you don’t do enough. Nonetheless, pop culture doesn’t endorse the idea of having scattered and varied interests. People who put their hands on many different things or try to maintain different hobbies and dabble with more than one domain are quickly labeled as jacks of all trades; masters of none.
But that can be only true if you don’t choose your hobbies the right way. Experts recommend that, if you want to pursue multiple interests, you distribute them in carefully picked areas that won’t bore you easily along the way (more on this later).
And HOW MANY Hobbies Are TOO MANY Hobbies?
If your hobbies make you money in a creative way, go for the maximum.
Let’s start by understanding why multiple badly chosen hobbies aren’t a great idea:
1. Too Many Choices
The challenge with pursuing multiple interests is that you are presented with many choices but don’t know what’s best for you.
Do you game?
Do you sing?
Can you be the next Picasso?
The possibilities are not endless, yes, but they will overwhelm you with so many things past your mind’s focus threshold.
2. Zero Specialization
You can’t be good at everything you lay your hands on, but you’ll excel at certain things you try.
If you look around, there aren’t many athletes who are good painters, deejays, and cooks at the same time.
That’s where specializing comes in the mix.
True, you might have a strong interest in painting, soccer, and video games but only one of these areas will truly excite your heart.
Specialization is everything if you want to excel in a specific interest.
3. The Time Lag
Another reason why it would be a bad idea to pursue more than one hobby at the same time is that you won’t be up-to-date with each.
That’s because you are always trying to juggle things with less focus on each of them.
Have you ever been involved in so many things to the point of missing the season finale of your favorite TV show?
If you have ever been forced to watch a movie several months after it had been released trying to pursue other interests, congratulations!
You’ve discovered the time lag that comes with pursuing many things at the same time.
So What You’re Saying Is, You Can Have Multiple Hobbies Sometimes?
Yes – that’s the point. Just ensure you don’t choose more than four hobbies and if you do, distribute them in 4 different areas.
There’s a trick to juggling several hobbies with adequate focus and less conflict – the 4-interest rule. This rule encourages any hobbyist to choose hobbies from these 4 areas: physical, cerebral, creative, and community.
1. Physical
Start by taking an active hobby that will keep you fit and improve your general wellbeing.
Dancing, hiking, yoga, and pretty any other physical activity of your interest would be perfect.
Physical hobbies let you get out of your mind and retreat into the rest of your body. As such, they bring the feel-good factor you need to pursue other things.
2. Cerebral
Your second hobby should be aimed at safeguarding your mental wellbeing.
They say mens sana corpore sano – a healthy mind in a healthy body.
If your mind is not in great health, you will find it hard to succeed in anything.
Cerebral activities like solving puzzles, playing sudoku, reading a play or a book, and meditating keep your mind active and boosts concentration.
3. Creative
Thirdly, find a hobby that will encourage your creative side.
This can entail such activities as writing, painting, cooking, or singing.
Creative hobbies will let you feel accomplished in the end.
So think about how you will feel upon perfecting a certain hobby that captures your imaginations.
4. Community-oriented
The fourth and last hobby should be about your community.
It can be used to either help improve the community or help you relate with friends and strangers.
You can sign up with book clubs, clean the beach, or help out at your soup kitchen.
As you can tell, the 4-hobby rule removes the boredom factor and helps you overcome the first disadvantage (‘too many choices’).
What If I Can’t Follow The 4-Hobby Rule?
You must not adhere to the 4-hobby rule especially if you can’t find something of interest in all or some of the 4 recommended areas.
You can still apply the same concept in different areas and end up with a diverse set of 3 – 4 easily manageable hobbies.
Just be careful not to choose hobbies that only develop one segment of your life.
If you can’t follow the 4-hobby rule, I’d suggest you research these fields:
- Languages
- Music
- Traveling
- Art
- Culinary (can be baking or mukbang)
- Mental wellbeing (can be exercise, yoga, or meditation)
- Get smarter every day (can be science, mathematics, and accounting)
Choose a few you like and give yourself time to discover one or two amongst them that you like most and proceed to focus on them.
How Can One Prioritize Hobbies?
Even the most organized among us does get things mixed up at times.
Whether you prefer the 4-hobby rule or any other way to pursue different interests at the same time, these tips will help get your priorities right:
1. Clear the clutter
The brain is always on the lookout for stimulation. Modern society bombards the mind with lots of stimuli: endless news, emails, notifications, etc. start by cutting all the clutter out of your life.
2. Track and adjust
Always monitor and measure your progress, then make changes where necessary.
3. Experiment, explore, shuffle
Don’t work with a static plan. Indulge in a range of activities to find what makes you tick, then focus on it.
Conclusion
So, is it good to have multiple hobbies? Can you have TOO MANY hobbies?
Yes, but it depends on how you select your hobbies. While a variety of hobbies may help you cast the net wider and find one or a few areas that really interests you, failure to specialize could mean you aren’t a master of any.
Many people struggle to focus on multiple interests.
You will spend a lot of time thinking about the many things you need to do, that you don’t do enough.
The maximum number of hobbies one can realistically pursue is four.
References
The Perks of Being A Renaissance Man
Consequences of Too Many Hobbies
Why Having Too Many Hobbies Can Make You Suffer, Unless…
Too Many Hobbies, Too Little Focus