Pockets of time. Hobbies and children.

So here it is, the messy hobby desk for all to see.

In my last post I talked a little about those unused 10 minutes of a day, those pockets of time we all have but don’t use.

When I studied for the occupation I work with today I followed 2 primary concepts.

Be a good friend and help classmates if asked and work a little harder than everyone else.

The last part was simply achieved by staying 30 minutes longer in school than everyone els.

I very early realized that I was nothing special. What I mean by that is that I was not smarter than anyone else or was borne with some extraordinary talent.

All my classmates, my good friends and colleagues could also be considered to be my competition. When we all graduated we where all going to apply for the same jobs, looking for the same opportunities. So how could I make sure that I was one of them that got a job in the end? Specifically if I wasn’t anything special in terms of talent or smarts?

I simply had to have more experience, more experience equals more knowledge. So I stayed in school 30 minutes longer than everyone else.

30 minutes longer every day translates to 10 extra hours every month or 15 extra days in a year. I basically got 1 month extra education.

Now I often stayed longer each day but that’s beside the point.

So, fast forward to my current life. I have a full time job, a house a wonderful family a bunch of dogs, tons of obligations, need to do’s and have to do’s. And on top of this I have my hobbies.

The time when I could do whatever I want whenever I want is over for a time.

But I still find time to do hobbies, between job, family, renovations and stuff. And I mainly try to use the unused pockets of time we all have.

All adds up in the end, 10 minutes a day, equal 70 minutes a week. More then an hour of hobby each week will take you a long way (if it is effective time). With all that said, I mostly have time for more than 10 minutes a day.

So, back to my messy hobby desk. In order get most of my hobbie time I managed to find during the weeks everything needs to be ready for me when an opportunity for hobbies arises.

This means that I don’t have time to set things up each painting session and it also mean that putting things away when am done is sometimes (or most times) not an option.

I do a little art, a little warhammer and a little gaming each day and I have made my setup so that I can just go and create as soon as I get free time, no start up time, just sit down and go.

I am lucky enough to have a big home with a lot of space where I can dedicate an entire room for creativity and fun.

This room is opened for all in my family (that explains the chaotic mess the room is in at the moment). Me and my oldest daugther mostly sit together painting and creating and this is some of the best experiences I have ever had . It is also pretty great to be able to shut the door and keep all the sharp knives, paints and scissors from the youngest toddler.

But it haven’t always been like this. I did not always have this big house or this big room.

My very first job as a graduate was as a traveling consultant. That meant I was pretty much living in a suitcase during the weeks.

But despite that I still managed to do my hobbies.

This case is my “little friend” (#scarface) and it have traveled with me many times over the years. And I still use this case from time to time, even in my big home, despite my dedicated hobby space.

Having it with me upstairs keeping my kids’ company while they fall a sleep is a great time to get some hobby time in. And being able to put everything away easily from curious fingers is a must when the children are small.  

The great part about this case is that everything is ready to go. I open it, put the jarl of water on the table, place the hobby matt and start painting. Once hobbies time is over it is equally easy to put back and pack up. It is a great solution if you can’t have a dedicated hobbies space or is always on the move.

My point is that most of us can do hobbies if we want to. Regardless of most life situations, there is always a way to optimize and plan your time so that those small pockets of time can be used as effective as possible. And all those small pockets of time adds up in the end.

Now just to be clear, I waste a lot of time also, I spend too many life hours of my phone each year (before bed, after bed so on and so forth). I don’t want to come across as one of those “success coaches” that screams that you have to grind harder to be a more effective machine. I am quite opposite to that. I believe that you must find a flow to things in order to stay health. Forcing your way through life will most likely burn you out.

All I am saying is that we all have unused time and 10 minutes is better than 0. And in fact, 10 minutes is a lot of time if it is used well.

I many times come across posts about people that is waiting for their first child or that they needed to move to a smaller apartment. Trying to sell whatever armies because they think they won’t have time to spend on the hobbies. I hope this post reaches some of you and that it inspires you to keep the things in your life that makes you happy.

Having kids is a wonderful thing, yes you will have limited time to spend on your toy soldiers, but it is not the end. Especially if you have pockets of time that you still haven’t unlocked. All you must do is to adapt and find the best way forward. Forcing yourself to stop with interests and passions is only going to give you grief and regrets.

Hope this gives some inspiration to someone in need of it, and if not, you must admit, it is a pretty cool hobby case 😉 .