For many people, the tug of war that can seem to be constantly raging on between their career and their personal life might be a difficult one to reconcile. This can be especially true when it comes to their hobbies—the pastimes that make people happy and where they want to focus their love and free time—which are often put on the back burner due to work taking priority.
If this sounds like you, this can be frustrating, but it might not be the end of the story. Looking into how you can construct a sense of balance that you find more fulfilling can lead you towards the right solution for you. Here is a guide on how you can achieve a balance between your hobbies and your professional life.
Going Freelance
The option that might allow you the highest degree of control in this regard could be to consider going freelance. Going freelance would allow you to construct your own career, taking the work that you want and working when you want to, provided that you can find the work that you’re looking for. This is a concept that can be applied to an enormous range of careers, so regardless of what field you find yourself in, it might be worth taking a look. Sometimes it might be about making a name for yourself and drawing potential customers and clients towards you; but other times there might be services, such as Shiply for shipping work, for example, that can provide you with options for work and jobs.
Work as a Passion
On the other end of the spectrum, you have the option of constructing a career that combines your interests so that work becomes a passion in itself. Investigating a line of work that appeals to your interests might not be a novel idea, but it could be that you didn’t find anything that suited these criteria as well as your transferrable skills.
If that’s the case, it might be worth giving some thought to a new venture. Your hobbies might still be relegated to your free time, but if your line of work allows you to find a great sense of satisfaction in its own right, you will simply have more activities that you enjoy. Thinking about the type of work that you enjoy, the locations that you enjoy working in, and the structure you find most agreeable, can help you whittle down your options.
Examine Your Working Life
It might be, however, that the problem is simply one of time. You might not have anything against the kind of work that you’re currently engaged with, you might just want more free time. If that’s the case, the structure might be what you need to think about. Would adopting a part-time structure be realistic for your financial situation? Or perhaps you could inquire as to the possibility of working from home, which would cut down your commuting time and have you in greater proximity to your hobbies, therefore giving you the ability to engage with activities that you enjoy on-the-fly.
In any case, it’s worth understanding the kinds of options that you have so you can think about which elements of the balance you think are off, and which you should address.
