There are so many reasons to have a hobby!

I often post about happiness at work.

And about the relationships between happiness and health and wellbeing.

But what about the happiness of … hobbies!?!?

Recreational past times are often underestimated; but as this article shows, they shouldn’t be…

via Entrepreneur by Dhavel Patel

Feeling stressed, overworked or overwhelmed? There’s a simple solution that can bring more happiness to your life and improve your working life:

Get a hobby.

Having a passion in life that is equal (if not greater) to your work can improve your professional life in an incredible number of ways. I say this from experience: In my own life, my photography hobby has been a lifesaver in terms of helping me attain balance in my career. Not only does switching gears to photography give me personal fulfillment, but it has also taught me creative and problem-solving skills that have actively helped me advance in my career. It’s also provided a well-needed respite from the daily grind.

Here, I’ll share a few ways that my photography hobby has made me better at my day job; these benefits are fairly universal to hobbies and careers of all sorts, though.

1. It makes you more interesting.

If you only care about work and nothing else, chances are you’re not a dynamic individual who people love to network with — you’re probably just another boring workaholic.

A hobby can help you hold a conversation and connect with people on a level that goes beyond just business.

2. It can increase your creativity.

One of the biggest benefits of having a hobby is that it makes you more creative. This increased creativity can have a number of positive effects when it comes to your profession.

For example, if I take the time to go out into nature and take photographs, I have a whole new set of creative decisions to make. How should I crop that shot? What angle should I take it from? Having the ability to problem-solve in such a pleasurable way can bring a new perspective to my work, too, allowing me to creatively and constructively come up with solutions when necessary.

3. It can help you decompress.

Having a hobby lets you take your mind off of work. Believe it or not, more work isn’t necessarily better. Constant email-checking doesn’t actually make you better at your job, and sometimes a break is necessary to be able to constructively look at your work again and increase productivity. This dovetails nicely into the next point . . .

…keep reading the full & original article HERE