Even though the internet can be a negative place sometimes, one study says the key to happiness may just be having a hobby!
The Guardian turned the spotlight on an a study recently that says a lot about what we do in our free time.
New research published by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (and not the Institute of the Completely Obvious, as you may have expected), says that valuing your time more than the pursuit of money leads to feelings of greater wellbeing. And by valuing your time, they mean spending it wisely on hobbies, exercising or being with your family.
So sure it’s not 100% about having a hobby, BUT you get the idea right? Just doing something that ISN’T your job helps you feel better apparently. It explains why the shoemaker’s shoes are always busted, why I never get to paint my own stuff any more, and perhaps to a lesser extent why some folks just follow one hobby but play another.
Here’s how the study worked:
The researchers even invented two characters, “Tina” and “Maggie”, and asked people who they preferred – money-grubbing sociopath Maggie, who would rather work more hours and make more money, or workshy hippy Tina who wanted to work fewer hours and make less cash. The option of working less and making more money was strangely absent, although that is of course the obvious answer, as evidenced by the hordes of people who bought lottery tickets this weekend.
After that the author kinda goes off track trying to figure out what hobbies even are, comparing notes from her boyfriend and looking back to being in the Girl Scouts. But I think for folks in the table top wargaming hobby, well we know what it’s like to spend hour and hours just putting ONE figure together.
Now some people make that big leap from hobbyist to artist that charges for their time performing hobby tasks, or even to the highly romantic idea of a Game Store owner. Both have a high turn over rate as it’s hard to charge for something that one loves to do, but to pay the bills the sad reality is that time BECOMES money at that point.
So at the end of the day, maybe it’s good to have a hobby that keeps us happy – just don’t over complicate it!
Whats in your hobby room?
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures.
Rob also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at Las Vegas Open, which attracts over 350 players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the Adepticon 40k Team Tournament.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), he advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1980s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
