Summary
- Why hobbies are important in our life?
- The benefits of having hobbies for students.
The life of a student can be overwhelmingly hectic and demanding. Juggling between various classes, projects, quizzes, assignments, tests, and extra and co-curricular activities; everything seems too much to take in at times.
Deadlines need to be met, topics need to be covered, and academic performances need to be improved; well, that’s quite a lot to cope up with for young minds.
It is definitely fatiguing managing all these demanding tasks at once, then does a student have the time and energy to devote to a hobby? Are hobbies worth the time and effort they involve? Do hobbies add up to an additional burden or are there certain benefits of hobbies? The answer thus stating why hobbies are important in the life of a student lie here!
Importance of Hobbies for Students
1. Curb Boredom and De-Stress
An undisputed reason that advocates the importance of hobbies for students is the destressing effect that they induce.
The constant pressure on students to excel, and stand above the rest in all possible arenas builds up an unnerving amount of stress and constant pressure to prove themselves and keep up to the expectations of others.
Thus, enjoying a few hours of something that one loves to do takes off the pressure for a limited period of time, acting as a break, a passage to a different world altogether.
The happy hormones consequently created keep depression at bay, cure boredom, promote mindfulness and rejuvenate the student to carry on with regular monotony.
A hobby is thereby a mental escape, far and away from the student’s stressful to-do list. Promoting good stress also known as eustress, hobbies induce excitement, passion, and fun which are great for mental health.
For example, playing a game of Klondike Solitaire can not only be a fun pastime, but also a way to destress and create balance in your life.
2. Enhancement of Creativity
Creativity is not just limited to the educational curriculum but tapped in when one indulges in a hobby. Even something as simple as leaf collection or stitching requires a lot of creative skills.
The arrangement of leaves and the patterns stitched on a piece of cloth require the ability to design, and arrange in order – all this aesthetically.
And so, in the case of drawing, painting, dance, music, and literary hobbies such as that reading, writing, poetry, and the likes, a student is in for the utmost unleashing of one’s creative potential.
In addition, one having a hobby generally comes with skills and experiences to share of the specialized knowledge garnered, has a great memory, and is an interesting individual with noteworthy regard for the aesthetic and spiritual elements associated with any given activity. These skills when discovered along with that of creativity, serve as added benefits of hobbies.
3. Channel for Socialization
Social development is a crucial milestone in student life and so the importance of hobbies plays out when they engage themselves in competitions, performances at social gatherings, discussions, and spending time with peers indulging in common interests.
Hobbies initiate character building, make the student stand out from the rest, and also lead to parents taking pride in their children.
Meeting new people, resultant of the hobby one has taken up is also a great way of building new and fulfilling relationships.
Boredom and monotony coupled with negative encouragement from the peer community usually influence one to get into unacceptable and unethical behaviour such as that of drug and alcohol addictions, gambling, game addictions, and so on.
As the saying goes “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop”, too much time on one’s hands can lead to negative consequences. Thus, channeling it into productivity can do great good.
4. Cognitive and Emotional Health
Hobbies boost focus, and concentration and improve student’s analytical, reasoning, problem-solving, and decision-making capabilities exuding a sense of control and mastery that enhances self-esteem giving rise to feelings of accomplishment.
Turning into a better version of oneself, the acquisition of faith in oneself and confidence is why having hobbies is important. Accomplishing goals and targets that one set for oneself is a great way to believe in one’s capabilities and work on personal progress.
Mindfulness is yet again one of the benefits of hobbies that teaches a student to stay in the present moment, focus and connect the mind and body.
The making of clay art requires utmost focus, concentration, and the unison of mind and body in order to bring out the best end product.
Hobbies such as these make the student sharp, agile, and focused thereby manifesting the same qualities in all other areas of life.
5. Physical Fitness
The most significant of all the benefits of hobbies is the maintenance of physical well-being through hobbies such as that of outdoor sports, gardening, dancing, and so on in contrast to the idle time spent staring at TV and phone screens.
Forcing oneself to exercise, wake up at 6 am, go to the gym, run on the treadmill, and work out for hours together, can seem tedious, annoying, and more of stressful activity.
However, fun hobbies that are also alternate forms of exercise like yoga, Zumba, physical sports, and dancing can come to one’s rescue! Isn’t it indeed fun to play basketball with your group of friends? There are various clubs and associations that encourage such outdoor team sports and hobbies thereby promoting physical fitness.
Exposure to soil, sunlight, and fresh air, physical exercise, increased blood flow and calorie burning help one stay in shape and induce good, happy hormones to flow in.
6. Patience and Time Management
The acquisition of a hobby and consequent development poses quite many challenges to a student. A lot of practice combined with failures and success alike are a part and parcel of indulging in hobbies.
Thus, a great deal of patience and time management is gained when one takes up a hobby. There will be aspects that one would have never encountered before.
So, dealing with quite a lot of patience with oneself and the desired hobby is very essential to gain mastery and perfection.
Learning to play the piano requires persistence, great memory, an inclination towards musical aesthetics, the pressing of the right key at the right time, the ability to take criticisms, work on one’s weaknesses, and so on.
Thus, the importance of hobbies plays out when they help one acquire much-needed life skills that would benefit them in their journey in mainstream society.
7. Give Back to Society
As students a sense of moral responsibility and the drive to give back to society is inherent. With the new knowledge one has gained outside of the educational curriculum in the form of a hobby, there are various ways to put this to social use.
Volunteering at NGOs, saving animals, cleaning up your house to donate things that are no longer in use, teaching the underprivileged, and raising funds for a cause are some of the things that students can engage themselves in to give back to society.
These hobbies that help the needy, and promote a social cause can indeed bring about a sense of fulfillment and in turn, contribute to the building of a harmonious and responsible society.
It is obviously possible for all students to take out a few hours in a week and utilize them to work for these causes and thereby adding to the social benefits of having hobbies.
8. Become a Better Version of Yourself
Hobbies are generally a catalyst in the process of self-discovery. Just like the body needs food, water, and air for great health, the soul needs care and nourishment.
And here lies the importance of hobbies; in their ability to make one a better version of oneself. A great way of spending time with yourself, hobbies are a form of meditation, thinking, and a space to work on your skills and interests.
This also leads to one discovering a new identity, a part of themselves never seen before. One gains a perspective about life, growing in manifold ways.
A great form of motivation, hobbies push one to organize time and get things done at a quicker pace. Take for example that a student who has planned to paint a picture on a Saturday evening.
The excitement of it drives him or her to finish up homework in a quick yet efficient manner rather than using up quite many hours to do the same homework.
9. Boost Career
Some hobbies incline with one’s academic curriculum and add up to career qualifications. Yet others contribute as means of providing additional income.
Activities such as gardening, painting, artwork, crochet, and the likes are good ways of passions that bring in an income.
For example, if one is really skilled at baking cupcakes and desserts it is always a good idea to take that up as a hobby cum part-time job.
It serves two functions then; one as that of a favourite pass time to take a break from a stressful schedule and another as a source of income for minor conveniences.
The importance of hobbies thus is not just limited to the personal space but can also be taken over into the professional space by converting one’s hobby into a full-time job as well.
10. Promotes Better Sleep
Have trouble falling asleep? Then you should definitely know why hobbies are important! Most of us spend the last few minutes of our day scrolling through our phones, checking out social media, and binge-watching shows.
It is rare to find someone who possibly reads a book or indulges in a hobby. This takes a toll on the sleep cycle leading to insomnia and a hard time falling asleep.
Hobbies thereby help in inducing relaxation, slowing down the heart rate, and making a student tired in a good way, thus leading to the body feeling ready for a good night’s sleep.
Good sleep contributes to a fresh start to the day and a student who wakes up fresh can perform well all through the day. Thus, it is important to pick up a relaxing hobby and indulge in the same.
Conclusion
Hobbies are gateways to umpteen possibilities enriching a student in ways unimagined. Independence, proficiency, the ability to cope with problems, complete grooming of a student, and a smooth transition into mainstream society are quite many of the benefits of hobbies.
Each hobby varies in its requirement of time, energy, and skill. Nevertheless, every hobby is equally important and worthy.
