Not long ago, I was asked a question about my hobbies. I went through mentally what were things I had done in the past. It was a reach into the past before I was able to come up with what seemed an acceptable answer, however I wasn't satisfied. Was it just that I'm a mom with a young one that I don't invest in hobbies anymore? Do I waste my time vegging out to the boob tube, rather than investing in something I really like? Or perhaps its that my interests for hiking and the great outdoors aren't just something readily accessible... Or MAYBE I'M BORING! Oh goodness, what if I'm boring? Maybe I've just given up?
I'm laughing at myself now ...
I am pressing myself and trying to explore new things in Hobbyland. I recently purchased a pre-owned table and have engaged in the undertaking of refinishing it and recovering all the seats. I've learned through the process, that I can do it, I'm hoping I can get the job done, but this isn't necessarily my next hobby.
I was reading a little yesterday. It's a book written by the creator of the Dilbert cartoon. He talked about how when he was young there were certain activities he would engage in. One such activity was riding an old motorcycle. There were many times he ended up laying the bike down, or flying off of it in a field that he came to the conclusion, the risk just wasn't worth it.
Another activity was drawing cartoons. He'd find himself drawing all the time... in the dirt, in the snow, in class. He'd oftentimes take great risk in doodles on the teacher or bullies that were bigger than him just to have the chance to draw and make some of his fellow classmates laugh. That;s when it hit him that there has to be something to what you invest your time and interest into and the associated risk that you are willing to take.
This has helped me frame my hobbies in a whole new light.
I recently watched a clip online featuring my friend, Mike. There is a full clip of his presentation, but for a taste, here's the 3 minute link.
It was only a matter of time before my mind hit what I like to call "the playground". Mike talks about uncharted territory. He shares about being solutions focused and the ability to spot patterns. I love uncharted territory and live to breathe that crisp clean air. As Mike was able to state it, I saw a lot of similarities in myself, but if anything in collaboration and connectivity for a solution. There have been times when I saw the benefit for the greater community to launch an endeavor for a solution, and it just comes to me so easy. And risk? What risk? Maybe some of that was undertaken in my younger days and perhaps I was a bit naive to put myself out there like that in public, politically, or never asking what failure could look like. However, this is simply just a rush. It's too much fun to be had to think we can invest our time and labor and the result could be... for example- the development of young professionals in feeding a community's leadership pipeline, or perhaps in charting a new territory, collaboratively, to meet the transportation needs of a county in ways that hadn't been tried before.
I will be the first to admit, the things I do or undertake, the full idea is never owned just by me. That's part of my hobby... I love gathering the players, coming up with something greater than I ever could come up with alone, empowering others to meet their potential while making relentless progress towards whatever problem we are tackling. But the reality is...my hobby isn't just problem solving...it isn't to put my name to some solution... My hobby, as it turns out, is the journey.
