Logbook: Are Hobbies Dying?

Are long-work days and digital connectivity keeping us from experiencing hobbies in the physical world?

Like many of you, I spent a fair amount of time over the holidays connecting with family, friends and former colleagues. After dozens of conversations with friends in their 30s, I walked away with an alarming, but not-too-surprising, realization: most don’t have any hobbies to speak of. Nearly every conversation went something like this:

“It’s been a while, man, what have you been up to?”
“Oh, you know, same old, just working a lot.”
“Alright, fair enough, how is the job going?”
“Eh, it’s going.” Or “You know, same old, same old.”
“Have you been doing anything fun?”
“No, not really, you?”

It was clear that so many people in my age bracket are soaking up all their time, energy and effort with work and Netflix. Now, I put a lot of value in working hard and providing for your family, and often times that means putting your head down and logging long hours. I have also learned, in large part through this job at Power & Motor-yacht, the dangers of putting off living until retirement.

Last year this point hit close to home when I learned that our New Zealand-based contributor, Barry Thompson, suddenly passed away. At the time of his passing, Barry, a fun-loving, highly respected marine journalist had just sold his portion of his business and was looking forward to a slower pace where his days were filled with some writing and a lot more time with his grandchildren, whom he missed out on some years with because of the pandemic. His sudden passing, in many ways, reminded me of the passing of this magazine’s longtime Editor-in-Chief Richard Thiel in 2016. Both Richard and Barry’s passings were sudden and shocking; the kind that makes you stop and take stock of what’s really important.

I worry about today’s culture, where our lives seem to revolve solely around working, scrolling and streaming, a culture where hobbies amongst younger people, seem to be dying. Without a hobby, something you’re passionate about that you can pour energy into, you’re so much more likely to experience burnout because you never really escape your work. I don’t entirely care what hobby someone chooses, I just think everyone needs one, whether it’s woodworking, riding dirt bikes, coaching, hiking, boating or even, though I’ll never understand it, golfing.

Over the last couple years there have been countless studies that support the fact that men today are lonelier than ever. According to the 2022 Cigna Group report on the “loneliness epidemic:” “57 percent of men and 59 percent of women reported being lonely.” I believe that statistic is likely accurate and directly correlates to my anecdotal evidence of hobbies being on the decline.

I know I’m biased, and by reading this magazine, no doubt you are too, but more and more I think our chosen pastime is the best in the world. What other hobby besides boating challenges you mentally and physically? What hobby better allows you to disconnect with the digital world and embrace being alive in the outdoors? What hobby pushes you out of your comfort zone and gives you an instant community and the kind of life-long friends boating so often creates? Sure, it’s not for everyone, God knows it has its challenges and a high cost of entry, but what about the costs of not having a hobby?

When chatting with friends that ask about my past year, I have to show restraint to not go off and talk at length about the boat projects we have going on, or of fishing with Connor or of our first family trip to Block Island. I can barely remember what I watched on the television last night or what I saw that was interesting in my Instagram feed, but the memories made on the water this past year live with me forever. I can think of no better way to show my gratefulness for this pastime than to share it with some of those friends.

See you on the water, Dan
[email protected]
@danhardingboating

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This article originally appeared in the May 2024 issue of Power & Motoryacht magazine.

Source: https://www.powerandmotoryacht.com/column/logbook-are-hobbies-dying