Team TimeBee

Hobbies seem a thing of the past. This may be because, as kids, we find ways to entertain and express ourselves. However, as adults, responsibilities and jobs seem to take center stage. Only a handful of us are able to carry on our hobbies into adulthood.  Everyone must have a hobby. Hobbies are not simply avenues for killing idle time; they can help us discover our hidden tastes and talents.  But there’s a catch. Most of these hobbies kill time without offering any real benefits. So, while you may enjoy playing Call of Duty for hours at a stretch, it promotes a sedentary lifestyle.  Before going any further, let’s understand what productive hobbies are. What are Productive Hobbies? Productive hobbies are activities that not only provide enjoyment but also contribute to personal growth, skill development, or the accomplishment of other tangible outcomes. As opposed to unproductive hobbies that merely count as ‘doing something’, productive hobbies can offer immense learning and advancement opportunities. They can last for decades and age with you. What you’re truly passionate about may hardly feel monotonous.  Here are a few suggestions for productive hobbies: Reading Some of the most successful people around us are avid readers.  According to The Reading Habits of Highly Successful People, Warren Buffet spends 80% of his day reading, while Elon Musk spends up to 10 hours reading books while growing up.   Here’s how reading pans out as an outstandingly productive hobby: Writing One of the most beneficial hobbies is writing. Writing is a profoundly impactful form of self-expression. It enables you to channel your energies into something you’re passionate about, where you write about your thoughts, dreams, and aspirations. Whether you’re composing articles, scripts, or personal journal entries, writing unleashes your creative potential and contributes to your overall productivity and well-being. It allows your imagination and creativity to run riot, which can be liberating.  Nowadays, people are leveraging their writing abilities to take on freelance content writing. By polishing your grammar, expression, and content knowledge, you can earn a decent side income by writing content for marketers and agencies.  Volunteering Volunteering might not be a regular choice for a hobby, but it’s an activity pursued during leisure time and can be genuinely enjoyable. It is one of the most constructive ways to spend our free time. It is also our chance to give something back to society and make a real difference. Through volunteering, you can: You can combine volunteering with your existing hobbies. For example, if you’re passionate about crocheting, you can organize crocheting classes at foster homes, teaching kids to create beautiful pieces for themselves or for selling.   Sports & Physical Activity Engaging in sports activities ranks among the most widely embraced and thrilling hobbies. Whether participating in or spectating, sports benefit the body and mind. Examples include football, cricket, swimming, and dancing. Adopting a sport can be highly beneficial if you aim to enhance your physical well-being. It not only fosters health improvements but also facilitates skill acquisition, broadens your life experiences, and serves as a source of motivation. Additionally, playing in teams can improve your strengths as a team player.  Pursuing physical activities can create a sense of improvement. You may be challenged by yourself to improve your stamina, body composition, or form. Such intrinsic benchmarking can be applied at work, too, where you can set out to surpass your current productivity standards.  Learn a New Language While it may sound unconventional, acquiring a foreign language is a hobby with a huge possible payoff. Whether pursued at home or in a language class, learning a new language represents a productive and enriching hobby. Learning a new language can enhance your resume and give you an edge over those who do not know that language. Not only is it beneficial when traveling, but it also aids memory retention, enhances decision-making abilities, and boosts concentration. Multilingualism is a commendable attribute, offering a competitive advantage in the job market and facilitating communication with a broader global audience. With a remote job market on the rise, you can leverage your multilingualism to land a high-paying remote job sitting inside your home.  Cooking Good-ol’ cooking is a criminally underrated hobby. Considering that everyone requires food to survive, cooking stands out as a practical skill to cultivate.  Beyond mere sustenance, cooking fosters: Gardening  Gardening is a peaceful and therapeutic hobby that gives you a sense of achievement from growing new life forms. It’s a great stress buster that offers multiple physical and mental benefits.  Here are some notable benefits experienced by those who like to grow stuff: Benefits of having Productive Hobbies Yes, hobbies are great, but let us share some less obvious benefits of having productive hobbies. Reduced Stress  We need leisure time to destress and rearrange our thoughts. Hobbies can distract us from pressing issues and deadlines, helping us channel our pent-up negativity into healthy forms. Over recent years, people have resorted to adopting hobbies to express emotions and deal with increased isolation in a hyper-digitized world.  For example, a OnePoll survey found that to overcome boredom during the pandemic, people started spending more money and time on hobbies than ever before.   Improved Health  Hobbies that demand you to take time out from your daily schedules and expend your physical energy are top-tier. Sweating and working up your heart rate are some of the healthiest ways to improve your health.  Engaging in regular physical activities can counteract all the damage that sitting for 40-plus hours a week does to us. This is especially useful for aging professionals and remote workers, who may not have much physical or social activity.  Possibility of Extra Income “If you’re good at something, never do it for free”  If you’re exceptionally gifted at something that can be sold, you can turn it into a source of income. We have countless success stories where great people who were passionate about something turned it into a prosperous business.  For example, the beloved Colonel Sanders, founder of KFC, was a

I’m certain we can all name at least 3 famous and highly successful persons, but we cannot possibly tell how they got famous. Everybody wants to reach the heights of success, yet very few of us actually want to give what it takes.  Marveling at someone’s success is like looking at the tip of an iceberg. You may be impressed at its magnificence, but you have no idea how far deep it goes in the ocean. Building a legacy is not an overnight phenomenon. It takes years of practice, failures, lessons, and milestones.  We live in a world where organizational leaders are expected to exude a strong presence. They must wear multiple hats to lead their endeavors. Successful organizational leaders often act as beacons to shine a light on others. Let’s check out some of the most common habits among successful individuals.  1. They are Avid Readers Influential people are often avid readers. This helps them learn new things and unlearn those that don’t serve them. ‘Change your habits, change your life’ famed author Tom Corley shares that 88% of successful people spend about 30 minutes daily on self-improvement reading. Staying up-to-date with current trends and in-depth knowledge is essential to thrive in your field and passion. For instance, if you manage an online store, it’s essential to grasp your product features, keep pace with industry changes, and understand the e-commerce competitive landscape.  Regardless of your avenue, acquiring knowledge is a trait of triumphant people. You can listen to podcasts, attend focus groups, read or listen to books, anything’s fine. You’re on the right track as long as you invest time into learning and retaining new skills. Warren Buffet, Steve Jobs, and Barack Obama are some of the names who credit their success to their daily reading habits.  2. They are Early Risers Countless days and opportunities may have been missed by poor sleep routines. It’s simple. If you can wake up earlier, you can get those ‘must-do’ tasks out of your way sooner, and you can crush the rest of your day. A good sleeping routine can come off as a cliche, but only because it works. Healthy sleeping habits are also linked to improved productivity and elevated mood throughout the day. An overwhelming  89% of self-made millionaires get between seven to eight hours of sleep every night.  For example, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos insists on getting eight hours of sleep every night, regardless of his schedule. 3. They are Goal-Oriented The birthplace of habit is intention. Accomplished people don’t start out a journey without a destination in mind. Such people are often habitual goal-setters because they derive an immense sense of self-actualization from it.   Successful people often set specific goals that are meaningful to their future. Then, they meticulously craft outlines for achieving them. With regular reviews and adjustments, they ensure every day is dedicated to meeting those goals.  Unsurprisingly, they don’t stop until they reach the end point of their goals.  4. They are Organized Many entrepreneurs juggle multiple tasks and responsibilities at one time. Keeping their time and efforts organized can be the only way to avoid mayhem.  A number of successful individuals have shared the organizational hacks that they swear by. For example, when Jack Dorsey managed Twitter as co-founder while being the CEO of Square, he scheduled each week based on themes. That helped him stay focused and avoid distractions.  Daily planners, checklists, and timesheets are weapons of highly successful people. Planning your days beforehand can help you allocate your time and efforts effectively.  When it comes to achieving success, consider time management a superpower.  Want a tracker to organize your time? Try TimeBee For instance, goal-oriented people track their time spent in various activities throughout the day. By studying their routine, they are able to spot unproductive habits and time-robbing distractions that may be chipping away their productivity. Additionally, by establishing work patterns, they can make accurate estimations regarding their performance and tweak their schedules for improvement.  Planning and monitoring tools can simplify resource allocation and provide real-time insights for problem-solving. Be it payroll management, project billing, or employee web monitoring, management tools can fast-track your success.  5. They are Proactive Highly acclaimed individuals are usually proactive. They seize the initiative, choosing to act rather than passively respond to external influences. This may explain why proactive people often make great leaders. Being proactive involves taking charge of your challenges and staying accountable. It means making efforts to optimize circumstances that are in your control rather than complaining about external factors. 6. They are Resilient A common trait of high achievers is resilience. No matter how hard they fall, they bounce back stronger. People with growth mindsets are tenacious and keep moving forward. Having a growth mindset allows you to not judge yourself based on failures. Rather, it encourages you to perceive life as a stream of endless opportunities.  Experiencing failure can be a distressing ordeal for anyone. But your resilience plays a crucial role in how you cope with setbacks. Successful people often know the art of extracting meaningful lessons from their failures.  7. They are Self-Disciplined One of the most common traits of successful people is discipline. Lacking this fundamental attribute is why many fail to succeed.  History quotes countless examples of people who achieved meaningful accomplishments. They all have one thing in common: they dedicated themselves to extensive years of disciplined labor toward a goal.  Your ability to master self-control may be the single biggest predictor of success. Self-discipline is a hidden gem that resonates with success in every area of life. Achieving self-discipline can develop all the habits and routines that we’ve discussed.  Fortunately, self-discipline is a quality that can be acquired through consistent practice. We advise tracking your daily routine to get a better sense of your productivity. Identify poor, unproductive habits that may be holding you back and eliminate them. Simultaneously, reinforce your productive habits that contribute to your overall success.  Need a Time-Tracker to Help You