The Truth About Hobbies We Were Never Told

I don’t believe hobbies are something natural or instinctive. I believe the idea of “having a hobby” is something society has created and slowly planted in our minds from childhood.

From a very young age, we are told that studying is important — but not enough. We are encouraged to have a dream alongside our education. Parents want their children to do something “extra”: sports, music, art, dance, writing — anything creative. Over time, this turns into a belief that everyone must have a hobby, something they do “for fun,” without pressure.

We are taught to say things like, “This is my hobby. I do it without burden. Even if I don’t earn money from it, I’ll still do it.”

But in reality, this idea rarely survives adulthood.

Take writing or singing, for example. If I call myself a writer or a singer but I don’t earn money from it, there will come a time when I stop. Not because I don’t love it — but because I need money to survive. A hobby does not pay bills. Passion alone cannot run a household.

On the other hand, if I were given everything I need without doing anything — money, comfort, security — I might stop doing even the things I once loved. Why would I write? Why would I sing? When survival is no longer a question, even passion can lose its urgency.

This is why I believe the whole “hobby system” exists mainly for one reason: exposure. Society created it so children explore more than just academics. So they discover what they are good at. So they realize they can be skilled in areas beyond textbooks — sports, creativity, expression.

And that purpose is valid.

But somewhere along the way, we romanticized hobbies. We separated them from reality. We pretended passion exists independently of money, pressure, and survival — when most of the time, it doesn’t.

What we call a hobby is often just a starting point. Eventually, reality decides whether it continues or fades away.

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This post was previously published on medium.com.