Which hobbies make you the happiest?
Published on January 15, 2020 By Admin 3 min read
Having a hobby means different things for different people, for many they offer an effective way to de-stress, and take some time away from the bustle of everyday life. It’s usually the case that people partake in a hobby because it brings them a sense of enjoyment, which they don’t get from other parts of their lives. So, we decided to delve deeper into the hobbies that make people the happiest and most mindful!
We asked 6,000 members of the public from across North America to rank a number of popular lifestyle hobbies by how happy and mindful each one makes them, 10 being very, 1 being not at all. On average, gardening came out on top, followed by painting and knitting (our personal favorite!).
Many will take part in these types of hobbies because they’re therapeutic and help you to de-stress. However, each can come with their own stresses, although I think we’d all agree that gardening isn’t one of them. It’s unsurprising to see the ‘happiest hobby’ is one of the most relaxing.
The top ten happiest hobbies are:
- Gardening
- Painting
- Knitting
- Playing an instrument
- Baking
- Clothes-making
- Photography
- Reading
- Upcycling
- Cross-stitch
Our research also uncovered some interesting motivations behind taking part in a hobby…
When asked ‘Why do you enjoy your chosen hobby’, more than two thirds of respondents (61%) said it relaxes them, whilst nearly a quarter (23%) said it gives them a sense of achievement and a further 12% answered it boosts their self-esteem.
Hobbies have been scientifically proven to improve both physical and mental health, such as reduce blood pressure*, cortisol levels and body mass index**, and improve an individual’s performance at work***.
When we broke the research results down by location we discovered that Washington had the most makers who enjoyed knitting and reading. Gardening made people the happiest in North Carolina, whilst photography made people the happiest in New York.
Our research also found that indoor hobbies have grown in popularity in comparison to more physical activities, such as playing a sport/shooting, with nearly half (47%) of respondents stating they preferred partaking in a hobby in their own home.
As well as wanting their own space, there’s also an emerging trend of hobbyists wanting to take part in their activities by themselves to indulge in some ‘me time’, with more than a fifth (22%) of participants opting for a solo hobby in the last three years - we expect this to become a big trend over the next few years!
“I hope our research inspires some members of the public to try out something a bit creative, that maybe they wouldn’t have considered before. You never know, they might discover a hidden talent!”
Edward Griffith, Founder of LoveCrafts.com, said,
“Life is already a balancing act, some people might wonder why you would want to pursue hobbies on top of that. However, there are so many benefits to taking up a hobby, with science substantiating the positive impact they have both physically and mentally. Some are obvious, but there are also hidden benefits, like the opportunity to practice mindfulness and make new friends.
“I hope our research inspires some members of the public to try out something a bit creative, that maybe they wouldn’t have considered before. You never know, they might discover a hidden talent!”
*During this survey LoveCrafts asked 6,000 members of the American public to answer questions relating to their favourite lifestyle hobbies. For the purpose of the survey, sports/hunting were not included as part of the ‘lifestyle hobbies’ category.
