Finding Balance in the Era of the Side-Hustle

Tell me if this sounds familiar.

You’ve got a hobby you enjoy. As a result, you follow creators on social media who post about said hobby. You start to think, “I could make money off this, too.”

Depending on the nature of your hobby, maybe you can sell your work, or become an influencer, or create live content.

Soon, your hobby transforms into a side-hustle. With your passion and hard work, you’ve monetized your hobby, but over time your passion dwindles.

Instead of being “me time,” your hobby now has deliverables. It feels like a job.

Loving what you do is still work

I respectfully disagree with Mark Twain. Even if you find a job you enjoy doing, it can and will still feel like work.

Whether it’s a side-hustle, a full-time job, or an athletic pursuit, you can be both passionate about what you do, and still feel stressed, overburdened, or overwhelmed from time to time.

Athletes are especially prone to seeing their passion turn into a grind due to the competitive nature of what they do. The more passionate they are, and the more they give back to the sport, the more demands they put upon themselves.

Find a hobby

One of the best pieces of feedback I’ve ever received as a coach was a thank you from an athlete after I had encouraged her to find a hobby.

This woman was experiencing all the things I’ve described, and all the things you’ve probably felt. Her low point was an emotional outburst in front of her son that had her feeling ashamed. She knew something had to change.

After our chat, she decided to devote an hour a week to something she loved: arts and crafts. Not only did this turn into some valuable family time, it also gave her mind a chance to reset and recharge during her busy, driven life.

Re-defining rest

In his book “Rest,” Alex Soojung-Kim Pang talks about rest beyond how most people think of it. Rest isn’t just sleep – though sleep is a very important part of physical and mental recovery.

Rest can be active. I’d argue that in the knowledge-work era and the age of the side-hustle, mental rest is probably at a higher premium than physical rest.

If you’ve ever struggled to “turn your brain off,” then you probably need a hobby.

What rest isn’t

Time spent scrolling your phone is not rest. Your brain his highly active on social media: scanning, filtering, thinking, reacting… The dopamine chase is real, addictive and leaves you drained.

Mental rest comes from activities that allow you to disconnect from sources of your stress – not simply change the trigger. In this way, even physical pursuits are “restful.”

A workout can be physically demanding, but provides mental rest.

A creative hobby can take up all your focus, making time disappear, while simultaneously calming your conscious, analytical mind.

Flex different muscles

In the age of the side-hustle, knowledge work and social media, it’s easy for your mental energy to become depleted.

To counter this, it’s important to have a hobby that gives you a chance to flex your creative muscles instead of your analytical ones. Or flex your physical muscles instead of overburdening your tactical / strategic wiring.

In the age where work is as much about thinking as about executing, having hobbies that complement the skills you use on a day-to-day basis can provide the rest you need, and the balance to keep pursuing those dreams.