A Love Letter To Doing Things For No Reason: Sidequesting Without The Hustle

“So, what are your hobbies?” It’s a question that often pops up early in a conversation. We tend to associate hobbies with activities that help us unwind, get moving or tap into our creative side. But growing up, we also learnt to attach labels to them, often through the characters we watched on TV and in films.

Good at sports? You were the jock. Into debates? The Model UN kid. A fan of drama, music or dance? The theatre person. And if science or maths was your thing, you were probably leading the robotics club, much like Paris Geller. For a long time, hobbies seemed to shape how we saw ourselves, but they also came with an expectation: they had to be productive. Watching films, reading, journaling, trying new restaurants or visiting museums were often dismissed as ways to pass the time, rather than hobbies in their own right. Somewhere along the way, we drew a line between being productive and simply enjoying ourselves.

The Sweetness Of Doing Nothing

We’re living in an age where the Italian phrase dolce far niente, or ‘the sweetness of doing nothing’, feels more relevant than ever. A generation tired of turning every part of life into a productivity project is beginning to embrace a slower, more laid-back approach. With anti-hustle culture gaining ground and wellness taking centre stage, the idea of an ‘unproductive hobby’ is finding its place. Binge-watching an entire series in one night and spending the next day watching fan edits? That counts too. Not every interest needs to teach us something, improve a skill or lead to a goal. Sometimes, enjoying yourself is reason enough.

You Don’t Have To Be Good At It, Just Start

The phrase ‘you don’t have to be good at it, just start’ keeps popping up on my Instagram feed, and it’s slowly changing how we look at hobbies. Seeing people try new things without worrying about being particularly good at them can make you want to give something unfamiliar a go, too. I’ve felt that myself. You might know you won’t be great at something, but perhaps that’s not the point. Not every hobby needs a goal, hours of practice or the pressure to get it right. Sometimes, just trying something because it looks fun is enough.

Finding Joy In The Mundane

People are finding joy in everyday activities and trying things they might not be particularly good at, simply because they feel like it. Maybe some people who once hated running started because they wanted to share their Strava stats on Instagram, but at least they got out there and gave it a go. I was never much of a reader either, until I randomly picked up Tuesdays with Morrie. I still haven’t finished it, but somewhere along the way, reading became a hobby I could claim as my own.

You don’t have to finish the book, run a marathon, become the next Picasso or turn a passing interest into a side hustle. You just have to enjoy doing something without worrying about what you’re getting out of it. Not every interest needs to become a personality trait, and not everything you try has to stick. Sometimes, it’s enough to be bad at something, have a laugh and come back to it when you feel like it. Life already gives us enough things to be good at. Our hobbies don’t need to be another one.

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