How to Find a New Hobby

Juli Schafer

Jan 2, 202413 min read

Updated: Aug 21, 2024

If you don't have a hobby, it's time to get one. It's so important to have something that fuels our soul at this point in our lives. The kids are never home which is really just pre-prep for when they leave the nest. You are going to want something to help fill that empty space, and a hobby is just the ticket.

It doesn't have to be expensive or all consuming, and you don't need to convert your college student's room into the craft den with built-ins and additional lighting (unless, of course, you want to.)

What it does need to be is enjoyable, relaxing and uplifting. Hobbies are a great way to get out of a rut, boost self esteem and beat boredom. They renew our brain and soul by enabling us to do something that brings us achievement and joy.

If you are feeling a little lost and out of sorts, finding a new hobby or restarting an old one can be good to find a way to reconnect with past passions or find new opportunities.

We need to take time for ourselves. Self care isn't indulgent - it's imperative.

Perfect reasons to start a new hobby at 50 and up:

1. You're likely to have more free time than you had in your 20s, 30s, or 40s.

2. Your interests have probably changed.

3. You might need a new creative outlet to help counter feelings of boredom and stress related to life changes like maybe an empty nest.

4.You can afford to give it a few things a try and not break the bank.

Hobbies serve us so many ways. They aren't silly past times or money wasters. Believe this. Hobbies help us beat boredom, boost our self-esteem and develop relationships.

But the very important thing about hobbies is that although they start out as fun, fulfilling forms of self-care, they will often transform into something bigger. Having the time and mental ability to discover things that ignite you will very often lead you to your Bigger Yes, or your Purpose.

Stay with me on this whole self-care thing. When this catch phrase caught wind, we understood it to mean taking timeout for bubble baths and mani-pedis. But REAL self-care is so much more than that. It is self-love, sometimes tough love, doing the things that protect us and keep us healthy and sound. It is anything that renews our spirit, and it is protection and accomplishment. Real self-care is not indulgent – it’s imperative.

woman learning acoustic guitar

What is a Hobby, Really?

A hobby can be absolutely anything that you enjoy doing. It can be creative or athletic, academic or crafty. But it should be something you look forward to. It doesn’t have to be slow and relaxing. Hobbies can be challenging for you, particularly if you want to get better at it.

A good hobby is one that lets you feel great doing it and look forward to the next time you get to do it.

Benefits of Having a Hobby

Now that we are committed to reclaiming our health, we need to support all the areas of our well-being: Physical, Mental, Spiritual and Social and Recreational. Hobbies tick all or most of the boxes.

A positive hobby improves your mental and physical health, and provide with all important connection.

Besides writing this blog, my newest obsession is pickleball. I was gifted a shirt with the saying “I have O.P.D. Obsessive Pickleball Disorder” and it’s right on point. The players in our club all joke that we are addicted to it. But I am loud and proud about this addiction. I am on the courts in the middle of summer by 7am to play, and get 5000 steps in by 9. I have made lifelong friends and I feel exhilarated doing it even when I lose every game.

Hobbies renew our brain and soul

Engaging in a new activity will help rebuild your mental clarity. Let's face it, even with all the healthy food, good sleep and appropriate detoxing as we get older, sometimes our brain gets a little sleepy. Learning something new is proven to help keep our mind sharp.

Hobbies can manifest into purpose

Hobbies can also lead to your purpose. Your Purpose is your Bigger Yes. This concept is powerfully illustrated in a quote from Stephen Covey, “You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage–pleasantly, smilingly, non-apologetically– to say “no” to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger “yes” burning inside.”

How to Find a New Hobby

Take a few minutes right now to think about things you used to love to do, or a goal that you want to set for yourself. I have two for example, to launch this blog and have it be my full time job, and to compete at a 3.5 and above in pickleball tournaments.

Here are a few ways to figure out something you’d like to try.

When you scroll through social media is there something that gives you a little whisper of envy or curiosity? That often signals that it’s something you desire to do.

What is something that fascinates you, that you want to learn more about?

What did you used to love to do and then lost the time or focus?

I have compiled a list of 80 ideas for hobbies at the end of this article. Here are a few highlights:

Painting

Putting paint on stuff is just so calming. And, if you don’t like what you make, you can just cover it up with another coat. You don’t need a ton of supplies either-just a handful of colors and some brushes of different widths. As far as a surface, don’t limit yourself to canvas. You can paint on just about anything-cardboard, pallets, driftwood, old bicycles, terra cotta pots. You can even paint sayings on small rocks to leave in different places for random people to find.

YouTube is a great resource for tutorials to get you started. Search “Painting for beginners” Here are a few: Easy Flower Painting Easy Moonlight Landscape

Write! Short stories, morning pages, blog posts, a memoir

Writing your way through the fears and frustrations, progress and epiphanies is very cathartic. If you love giving life to your struggles and your wins, writing may be a hobby for you. And if you dream of being an author, but you’ve always been too busy getting things done to find the time to start writing, now’s your chance!

The easiest way to start is just to journal-in a notebook or on your computer. Write down memories and special experiences, or just ideas that come into your head that would make a good story or article.

You can also start by keeping a blog. It’s easier than ever for people to get their words out there in the blogosphere today (it might not be as lucrative as publishing a book, but sometimes blogging can lead to that!. Blogger.com has been around forever and is a no-frills, get the words onto the page website. I’m a big fan of Wix for a starter blog. The templates are beautiful and it’s crazy easy to use. Whatever your choice, pick something that captures your interest and gives you an outlet for creativity.

Whatever your choice, pick something that captures your interest and gives you an outlet for creativity.

Take Up Yoga or Tai Chi

For a lot of us, fitness is synonymous with hobbies. One of the top choices for a new hobby at fifty is yoga or tai chi. They help build strength, increase coordination, and improve balance and breathing skills. And you can absolutely sweat doing it.

Check your community center, local yoga studio and gyms for in-person classes. It’s typically not very expensive and can be done on a drop in basis. A savvy yoga instructor will value older students because we tend to have better balance, are more respectful with class etiquette and often inspire younger students to practice more diligently.

There are often low-key classes available like Gentle Yoga and Chair Yoga. Stay away from Flow, Vinyasa and Hot Yoga if you’re a beginner and have no idea what these words mean.

If you are more comfortable in your own home, Yoga with Adrienne on YouTube is one of the best channels/instructors out there.

Pickleball

I stumbled upon pickleball in 2021 and I am totally addicted. It’s like badminton meets ping-pong with an element of tennis and a dash of wiffleball. I love tennis, but I can’t quite cover the court anymore without needing a full day of ice, rest and ibuprofen after a match.

Pickleball is played inside or out on a badminton-sized court with a modified tennis net using a paddle and a plastic ball with holes. You can play singles (harder) or doubles (more fun and social.)

Best of all, it can be enjoyed by all ages and skill levels.

I am one of the youngest players in our community's club, and also one of the least best. This is because Pickleball is clearly the fountain of youth. Competitors are generally nice to each other, too. It’s a lovely phenomenon.

Look it up in your area-it’s all the rage right now. https://www.places2play.org/

Check out my other piece here.

Swimming

One of the many reasons I continued to drink well past my prime was that I had a degenerative hip that needed to be replaced and my pain level frequently hit an 8. I was terrified to get my first major surgery and of course my labs were horrible so I put it off a couple of extra years.

Swimming saved my sanity. Lap swimming, walking, treading water, pool yoga, water aerobics. I bought a kickboard, ear plugs and a snorkel. It’s low impact, great for your joints and very therapeutic.

Volunteer

So many places depend on volunteers to keep their organization afloat. A few ideas of places that need help are: Animal shelters, food banks, civics clubs like Lions or Kiwanis. Your church needs help for services, events, even small groups. Google “Volunteer Opportunities” in your area.

With the pandemic still afoot, this one may be a little more slow going than the others, but this is a perfect time to do some research and send some emails asking if a place you are interested in needs help and what kind. Websites for non-profits often have a Volunteer tab on them with details.

Pot or Indoor Gardening

Growing an indoor herb garden can be an important sober tool

If you’ve always wanted to garden but never had the time, now is a good time to get moving. Sure it takes some planning and maintenance, but gardening can be great exercise as well as rewarding. Of course you have to like working with your hands and being outdoors too! You might even want to participate in community supported agriculture (CSA) which connects local consumers directly with farmers-this is a great way for people of all ages to enjoy fresh food from their neighborhood while connecting with nature at the same time.

You can start a pot garden of herbs to get your green thumb wet. The best ones are mint, basil, rosemary and chives.

Take an Online Class

Udemy.com is a great place for online classes. They are all virtual and affordable. The course selection is vast and the categories include Personal Development, Lifestyle Business, Health & Fitness, Food & Beverage. These are broken down into sub categories also. A few examples of some interesting classes are Aromatherapy, Survival Skills, AirBnB hosting, Reiki, Feng Shui, Decluttering, Food Fermenting. Mindfulness and Anxiety Management. They have ratings from people who took the classes, too. It’s absolutely brilliant and can be done in your space on your timeline.

https://www.masterclass.com/ MasterClass classes are taught by respected and renowned experts and celebrity instructors in a series of high-quality video lessons, typically with a supplemental workbook that can easily be downloaded and printed for more information. Membership starts at $15/month billed annually. The $180 per year price point may sound high, but it’s easy to make it worthwhile, by simply watching more courses.

They offer a 30-day money-back guarantee so you can always take a course or two and decide if MasterClass is worth it for you.

https://www.craftsy.com/ You can join Craftsy for $8.99 per month/$89.99 per year or purchase Classes individually for around $40.

In-Person Class

Some places to look for in-person classes in your area: Local craft stores like Joanne’s or Michaels, Local community colleges, and Kitchen Supply Stores for cooking classes.

You Tube Classes

You can learn just about anything on YouTube for free if you search for it. Here’s a few examples.

Bon Appetit Cooking Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/bonappetit/videos

Jewelry Making https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFfDgO2kWcs

Yoga https://www.youtube.com/c/yogawithadriene

Cooking and Baking

If you’ve wanted to learn how to cook, now is the time to do it! As hobbies go, cooking is very versatile and serves so many purposes. I honestly didn’t give cooking a real go (outside of tacos and meatloaf) until I was 51 and needed to get a grip on healing my body.

Cooking can be intimidating and overwhelming to those of us who don’t have a knack for it. But I had come to a crossroads-I was ready to really take control of my health and that meant I needed to prepare food with healthy ingredients that I wanted to eat. When you omit certain oils, sugars, gluten and chemicals, and you want fresh food, you have to roll up your sleeves and get busy in the kitchen.

Cooking is also an important tool to help you heal years of damage. Taking the control to put the right, healthy foods into your body will empower you to keep going, and help you deal with cravings.

I needed my meals to be healthy, easy, quick, delicious and low carb. This is what works for me as I am highly insulin resistant. To date, I am down to 35 pounds from eating this way and practicing intermittent fasting.

Here’s what helped: Following people on Instagram and YouTube that were in line with the way I wanted to eat. My hands down favorites: https://www.youtube.com/c/AllDayIDreamAboutFood Low Carb Yum and Maria Emmerich at https://mariamindbodyhealth.com/

I promise that these foodies are easy to follow because cooking is HARD.

Pick up a few cooking magazines or a new cookbook (flip through it first in the store or virtually on Amazon.) I love the Southern Keto cookbook and most of Maria Emmerich’s. Her ingredients are clean and most of the recipes are easy.

If you can find a local cooking class, do it.

Udemy has many, a few include Absolute Beginner, Crock Pot Meals, Indian Appetizers and Snacks, Cooking for Busy People.

If this will never be your jam, or you’re busy now with all of your other hobbies and adventures, try a meal delivery program or visit my other piece here on healthy Costco heat and eat meals (Coming soon. Bookmark to check back.)

Crafting

Crafts are a large source of hobbies, and so vast you may need to try several different ones to find what you like.

Here are just a few craft hobbies:

1. Macramé. Yes, the rope braiding we used to do at summer camp. It’s totally back/never left and there are so many cool things you can make with it.

2. Jewelry making. Start with earrings and bracelets. Use your local craft store for ideas and supplies.

Stamping

3. Learn to Crochet, Embroidery, Needlepoint, Knit.

4. Scrapbooking. Craft stores have starter books where you just put the pictures in them and buy some stickers to add. Wait until things are on sale.

5. Stamping & Card making

Encouragement: you can learn how to do almost anything on YouTube. There are private Facebook groups for everything so once you find something you like, search the subject to find a group you can join to find tips and ask questions from others.

After you get rolling and confident, you might want to share what you are learning with others so they can learn too, maybe even start your own blog about it!

80 Hobby Ideas to Get you Started

Your life will fill up with fun activities that make you look forward to the day, not dread the sludgery of it. Go make a list of hobbies and find your thing! Below is my list of 80 Hobby Ideas to get you rolling:

Creative Hobbies

Painting – Will Kemp Art School

Drawing – Learn To Draw #01 – Sketching Basics + Materials

Blogging – www.wix.com

Creative Writing

Poetry / Songwrting

Photography – https://www.udemy.com/course/photography-masterclass-complete-guide-to-photography (on sale for $30 at time of this writing.

Graphic design – Canva is a complete game changer. You can use their templates or create your own. There is a free version and a $12.99/month version.

Local theater – Google community and local theater in your area.

Crafty Hobbies

woman weaving

Scrapbooking – S crapbooking ideas for beginners

Quilting Learn to Quilt Tutorial

Crochet – Learn to Crochet I know someone who uses this as a ministry and makes prayer shawls

Scarf making – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UU_sxq6aH44

Braided t-shirt rugs – http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-braided-t-shirt-rug/

Card making – Handmade cards in minutes

Wreath making – How to Make DIY Dollar Tree Wreaths

Pottery – A beginner’s guide to the stages of clay

Mosaics – Beginner Mosaics Tutorial

Soap making – How to make natural melt and pour soaps

Woodworking – Woodworking for Beginners

Macrame for Beginners

Flower arranging – Arranging flowers like a pro

Calligraphy – How To: Calligraphy & Hand Lettering for Beginners! Tutorial + Tips!

Leather working – Start Leather Crafting

Making handmade Christmas gifts – bath salts, soap, jelly, apple butter, or chocolate candy

DIY Hobbies

Baking: Sugar free, macarons, cheesecakes, bread, gluten free All Day I Dream About Food

Cooking: Paleo, crock pot, one pan, smoking and grilling, Low Carb Yum

Gardening – How to start a garden

Landscaping – Landscaping ideas

Indoor herb garden – https://platthillnursery.com/how-to-grow-indoor-herb-garden/

Learn Tik Tok Hacks – Follow DIY Queen @southernescape and @DIYwithEmma for so many ideas and hacks.

Clearing out and consigning or selling on ebay, Facebook Marketplace, Poshmark, thredUp – Sell your unwanted stuff

Upcycling: Thrifting and reselling

Natural cleaning products – Follow Bren over at What Bren Did to get started

Beekeeping – https://www.beekeepingfornewbies.com/how-to-start-beekeeping/

DIY beauty: By watching clips on YouTube, you can learn to do everything from cutting your own hair to sewing your own clothes.

Brain Sharpening Hobbies

Play card games: canasta, rummy, bridge

Mahjong

Crossword puzzles

Active Hobbies

Yoga https://www.youtube.com/c/yogawithadriene

Qi gong

Tai Chi

Walking .Enter you first 5K and walk it

Walking Tours Take a walking tours of nearby areas-a river or water area, an historical area, a special park. Get exercise while you learn about the place where you live.Take photos along the way of plants, birds, and sites.

Swimming

Pickleball. Compete or become a coach

Shooting

Weight lifting. Get your certification degree and teach seated fitness to seniors.

Spin cycling

Pure Barre