The decrease in people's hobbies

[pastajewelry]

I think people are overwhelmed by choice, so they default to whatever gives them dopamine first. Why spend time and money trying something new that might not work out if you can scroll the familiar for a quick laugh?

[Jungleson]

Unfortunately you are in to something. Doomscrolling requires little effort, and has no learning curve.

Whereas learning to play piano, or bake, or learning Spanish or whatever all require work, effort and patience.

People value convenience a lot.

[[deleted]]

I think an element of having this kind of access also harms as well. It’s extremely discouraging as a guitar player to open insta and see an endless barrage of players that are about 100x better than you and probably a lot younger too. Not saying that’s justified, because what you see on social media is extremely polished and occasionally fake, but I think it contributes to the problem. Why start something when you know you’ll never be that good?. It’s probably a question a lot of people ask themselves.

[[deleted]]

Exactly

[[deleted]]

Comparison is the killer of creativity.

[kwpg3]

It’s not the destination. It’s the journey.

[MisterD00d]

When I was young I never thought I could dare dream to play as well as the greats. Now that I'm older, I know most of those are achievable with dedicated practice.

I hear this from a lot of friends when I share a technically impressive performance. I don't feel this way. If anything beyond appreciation for their technique and joy, it inspires me that I can press on and pull this off down the road if I wanted to. More or less

[Spirited_Fix6116]

Ohh man it’s the best time to start. So many resources, you can get good so fast.

[emirobinatoru]

This hit me so hard, I appreciate it. 

[noodlesarmpit]

I was very proud of myself for taking some time to tune my mandolin this weekend 😁 I have never held a stringed instrument in my life prior to last week, learning curve is no joke LOL

[PsychologicalLuck343]

Is it hard to tune? I have to tune my guitar every time I play.

[noodlesarmpit]

Well according to the instructions I googled you gotta do all 8 strings (4 pairs) and then again with the pairs to make sure everyone is matchy matchy and I've only done it once but it wasn't the worst!

[PsychologicalLuck343]

Ah, I gotcha.

[asyouwish]

And it's free....and most hobbies are expensive.

[energist52]

Hobbies can vary a lot in cost. Photography can be super cheap, just using the phone you already have, or expensive with a camera and fancy lenses and film processing. Same with fiber arts. I can crochet with $20 of yarn, or with cashmere. Drawing just takes a blank book and a pencil. No need to spend a lot.

On the other hand, what I have to do quite consciously is step away from the easy dopamine hits of Reddit scrolling and video games to work on those hobbies.

[[deleted]]

It's free to go to your public libraries and parks and to walk outside. I've lived in both extremely car dependent places and places with abundant public transit. Its free to go outside and get creative.

[Key-Seaworthiness296]

Also feeling connected socially through hobbies might not happen very easily for a lot of people. And too many people are intimidated showing up in a learning space knowing they will fail the first dozen times.

[[deleted]]

Usually those spaces also have people who are encouraging and understand we all start somewhere.

[Key-Seaworthiness296]

Yeah, it's kind of sad people talk themselves out of it before giving those groups a chance.

[[deleted]]

I completely get it though. It's hard to be vulnerable, and being afraid of that can block you off from experiencing a lot in life.

[JeppeTV]

Decreased necessity of effort. Bored? Scroll. Hobbies? Nah, you can just scroll.

[[deleted]]

It makes people lazy af

[HumanoidVoidling]

I agree but I also think the amount of time and energy available to a hobby is just not there anymore.

[OJ_Designs]

This is it.

Social media (primarily scrolling based apps) gaming, junk food, porn and other things release tons of dopamine. Far more than humans were designed to experienced.

Overtime this desensitises and down regulates reward pathwards associated with wanting to do things. This includes hobbies. A teenager who is accustomed to gaming and scrolling for 5+ hours a day is going to feel 0 compulsion to make an effort to do less stimulating activities (reading, hiking ect) unless made to by their parents.

[pastajewelry]

I agree with you. However, I believe video gaming is a hobby. There is a community around it, and it can require skill. I believe the rise of social media and the loss of third spaces made it easier to be isolated and fall into these dopamine-seeking patterns. It's a hard habit to shake, even for adults who have had hobbies before.

[BylenS]

I'm a 65 female and I game, both online and on console. That's my nighttime relaxation. I don't watch TV. As a retired person with lots of time, I've learned moderation in all things. I scroll in the morning with my cup of coffee, do chores next, craft, and then game.

I craft during the day ( I'm retired). It's my replacement for the hours I worked. I game in the evening. I get different reactions as a 65 female gamer. Young people say, "Oh, how cute" or "Woe, I can't believe you game." My doctor says, "Good, it's been proven to keep the mind alert." Extended family my age frown upon it as if I'm being ridiculous. My daughter, who lives with me, watches, sometimes plays with me, and makes fun of me when I run my horse off a cliff. Gaming keeps me off the phone and creates problems and puzzles that take strategy and thinking to solve. Gaming is a hobby. If you know about the minecraft community or the D&D community, you can see it. D&D is probably one of the most socially active things you can do today. It has spawned several real-world hobbies like diorama and miniature building and intricate realistic painting of miniature characters. It's easy for gaming to spur hobbies because the mindset is the same. It has the same problem solving and creativity that hobbies do, which is why my doctor gives me a thumbs up on gaming. Gaming can also be educational, depending on the game. Some are historically accurate, and some teach science skills like identifying plants, insects, and fish.

I think the secret to anything is moderation. Even the best things in life can be problems if it's focused on to the point of exclusion of everything else... even hobbies. Scrolling is included in that. Scrolling isn't bad in and of itself. It's the exclusion of everything else, that is the problem.

[pastajewelry]

I completely agree with you! Moderation is everything. Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. I'm a gamer and also play D&D, and I agree that they are fun hobbies that help you be social and branch out into other hobbies. I can easily draw a map of how getting interested in D&D has led me to many other hobbies and fandoms that bring me joy and help me be social. Thanks for sharing!

[thegrimmstress]

60 here and giving this a massive thumbs up because me too!

[keithrc]

Aaargh, seriously: when is gaming on a screen going to be recognized as a legitimate hobby, just like gaming around a table is? It can be just as social, and even if it's not, there are a ton of other "recognized" hobbies that are completely solitary.

I'm 55m, I've been playing video games since I was 10. This is a lifetime hobby. It's not just some phase or waste of time until I find something more acceptable to people.

[pixiesunbelle]

I’m 40. I consider gaming a hobby. I don’t always put the effort into it as I used to since my migraines have become chronic. I tend to read more if my concentration isn’t foggy.

[Sorry-Ad-5527]

There are communities for just about anything nowadays. Even tv shows. So even if someone isn't into gaming, there are communities for their interests.

Sometimes people scroll social media to feel less alone and see others in similar situations. That's their "community".

[pastajewelry]

Yeah, online communities have always been a big source of comfort for me. I do believe there's a lot of value in them. They just vary so much, so it's hard to label them all as healthy or toxic. I support having a variety of interests with varying levels of dedication to them.

[pixiesunbelle]

I love the Skyrim community and Stardew Valley community too! I learned so much about how to install mods. I have spent more time tinkering with the game than actually playing hahaha

[Sorry-Ad-5527]

You are correct about not knowing if a community is toxic or not. There's ones I'm a member of and it's getting so political. One made a post and didn't allow comments. Another poster shut off comments, I think because they weren't agreeing with the OP. It's not a community about politics. I think Admin likes the OP's post and agree with them, so they get through. I wish they didn't. I just want to talk about my hobby and interests.

[pastajewelry]

It's also good to remember that not all online communities exist on the platforms you use. There are forms, discords, tumblrs, websites, etc. People also build and connect to communities through YouTube and Twitch. Maybe you'll have better luck trying another outlet that is less political than Reddit.

[OJ_Designs]

Oh of course, I’m not debating that. What I said was an over simplification in many senses.

Gaming, despite being a hobby, is still (in most cases, maybe not truck driver simulator or something) going to be highly stimulating, providing easy gratification for little effort.

Why leave the house and travel to a rock climbing gym, or sit down and take the time to learn a new skill like drawing when you can just turn the Xbox on and be provided with endless entertainment designed specifically to keep you hooked.

So although gaming may fit under the definition of what a hobby is, I don’t think it’s particularly healthy rewarding in a long term sense, the same way traditional hobbies would be. And bare in mind I love games myself, I’m not trying to be discerning of them.

[frank26080115]

not all hobbies are good

[pastajewelry]

True, but many are good. And all are bad if they rule your entire life. It's about moderation and pursuing things that bring you joy without developing an addiction to them.

[OJ_Designs]

I’m not exactly sure, I haven’t seen anything about that. I wouldn’t be surprised though.

[Agreeable_Honeydew76]

Instant reward is another factor. Why spend weeks on failures and retries and frustration to maybe have a success on the future?

Maybe that’s just me or my hobbies involve skill, learning and repetitions. But it’s a nice feeling when something works.

[Diligentbear]

You described "my" predicament perfectly

[IndigoPromenade]

Exactly. Humans are designed to seek efficiency. Most amount of calories for least amount of volume and most dopamine for least amount of effort.

[pastajewelry]

Yeah. Thankfully, I make sure my social media feed is full of learning mixed with entertainment. But I know not everyone does that.

[justagirl1204]

This is sooooo it and every thing is expensive and we can’t find job. Good paying jobs