No Fate But What We Make: Hobbies Saved Me From Judgment Day (and Doomscrolling)

From Terminator to Tennis: My Mission Begins

Alright listen up. Sarah Connor here. You think Skynet's the only thing that can turn your life into a wasteland? Try corporate America and two kids under ten. For years I was prepping for the future robot wars but turns out the real battle is against burnout. I read this article about a professor at Emory University's Goizueta Business School Marina Cooley who tried 17 hobbies in one year to escape her "Type A brain." Sounds like a plan worth investigating. Because let me tell you 'the future is not set. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves.' And I'm not letting Skynet... or corporate stress... win.

Hasta la Vista Doomscrolling!

Cooley realized she had to ditch the nightly doomscrolling to make time for hobbies. Brilliant! It's like cutting the power to a Terminator. "When your hands are covered in flour holding a paintbrush or gripping a climbing wall your phone is simply unavailable." Preach! I mean I was busy prepping for the end of the world but this professor is right. A little less Twitter a little more tennis. Turns out hobbies don't judge you when you miss a deadline. Unlike Skynet.

I'll Be Back...for Woodworking (Someday)

She 'bookmarked' hobbies for later which is actually genius. Woodworking's a no go with little kids around but she's planning to build bookshelves for a dream library when the spawn are older. That sounds like a solid plan. Maybe a secret panic room behind the bookshelves too. You know for emergencies. 'Come with me if you want to live' a balanced life. "Try hobbies even if they don't fit your current season of life. You can bookmark them for later," Cooley says.

Your Job is Someone Else's Hobby

Okay this blew my mind. Cooley realized that baking which she saw as a chore was stress relief for a student. Mind. Blown. It's like when you realize the Terminator is programmed to protect John Connor and not kill him. Perspective people! 'The unknown future rolls toward us. I face it for the first time with a sense of hope. Because if a machine a Terminator can learn the value of human life maybe we can too'. Or you know if a mom can find joy in baking maybe there's hope for the world.

Self Care Re Engineered

Manicures? Facials? Nah. Cooley dumped those time sucking 'self care' routines for hobbies. 'I realized that rather than make one of these appointments in an attempt to soothe my brain I was redirecting all my energy and free time into my hobbies.' She suggests one hobby for your brain one for creativity and one for fitness. I'm thinking chess explosives (for 'art') and running away from robots.

No One's Lonely on the Battlefield...or the Tennis Court

Loneliness epidemic you say? Not among the hobbyists. 'Each group of hobbyists has a community and they are actively forming relationships and identities outside of work'. Cooley joined a tennis team and found a support network. See even in the apocalypse you need a squad. 'If you wanna live come with me!' ...to tennis practice.