As part of my research for this blog, and to feed my own voracious appetite for Personal Development material, I seem to have cultivated a knack for finding great new articles, which I seem to come across almost daily (Law of Attraction at work - I love finding and sharing new ideas, so they seem to come at my from all directions!).

I am going to start a weekly email, on a Monday morning, of all those links I’ve uncovered in the last 7 days that I think are worth sharing. Starting today

How to Nap at Work - or Anyplace You Need a Rest - This is a wonderful post on getting mini “meditation naps” in whenever you need them, at work, while out and about. A great idea, which I’ve started trying! Via @chrisgarrett on Twitter.

Raw Food Diet - Steve Pavlina finished his 30-day Raw Food Trial last week, and his conclusion and final findings make very interesting reading, even for us confirmed carnivores. Via RSS.

Declutter your Desk - This is a fantastic project, which seems to have had a great level of feedback from other adopters. For those of us who are DIY-inclined, this is a great way of tidying up all those nasty cables. Via Lifehacker.

Origami Productivity - Skellie is a brilliant, inspirational blog writer, and this is one of my favourite posts of hers - a critical analysis of why not to go all-digital. Via RSS.

Sean Rasmussen - Sean has a great blog, which I am still working my way through. I have throughly enjoyed his ebook Mindset Mastery, which Sean is very generously giving away free on his blog. Via StumbleUpon.

I hope this lot give you something interesting to read through on a Monday morning, to hopefully get your week started well. You can find more of my favorite links by checking out my StumbleUpon profile, my Del.icio.us profile, or by following my daily updates on Twitter.

Photo by iboy_daniel

I love to read. I love to watch sci-fi TV shows. I love to make Impossible Bottles.

We all have hobbies that we spend our time pursuing, and which are intended to bring some relief, respite or recreation into our lives. There are as many weird and wonderful hobbies out there to try, as there are people to try them. I think it’s an important part of our individuality to have hobbies that we enjoy and that help define us in some small measure.

I believe that having hobbies that we enjoy is a great thing - I also believe that not all hobbies are created equal.

Hobbies that Harm

While the vast majority of hobbies are relaxing, fun and occasionally frivolous - there are some hobbies that have negative effects on us, or on the people around us (I am not judging any particular hobbies, nor those people who indulge in them - this article is here as food for thought).

Although harm is quite a strong term, I am not implying a physical kind of harm or injury - I am merely using the term to illustrate hobbies that have an adverse effect on our lives.

Hobbies that harm might be those that take up an unnecessarily large amount of time or resources, or which cost a great deal of money for little apparent enjoyment.

Characteristics of Hobbies that harm:

• They take up a great deal of time, when your time is limited
• They cost a lot of money, in relation to the enjoyment gained
• After spending time on your hobby, you feel exhausted or negative, not happy
• Your partner feels that your hobby is negative or a waste of time
• Your hobby brings you no appreciable benefits
• It has negative impact on people around you, or the environment
• They encourage an unhealthy level of competition with yourself or others

Hobbies that Heal

These are the positive hobbies, the ones you really love - they may still cost a great deal of time or money, but they are more than worth it. They leave you feeling relaxed, rejuvenated, exhilarated - whatever state you were hoping for, they help you achieve it.

A hobbies positive value is not intrinsic to the value of the hobby activity itself - It’s positive impact is related to how it makes you feel.

Hiking might leave you feeling exhilarated. Reading might leave you feeling relaxed. Team games might improve your sense of camaraderie and belonging. The very best hobbies leave you feeling in a state of joy.

Characteristics of Hobbies that heal:

• It engages you, stimulates or motivates you
• It leaves you feeling happy and relaxed
• Any costs incurred are deemed to be worthwhile
• It’s creative, imaginative or mentally stimulating
• It makes you feel happy
• It encourages healthy competition
• It brings you to a state of joy

Evaluating your Hobbies

Not many people give conscious thought to their hobbies, and to the time you spend on them - I think it is a crucial step towards getting more out of your time, and more out of your hobbies.

My recommendation is to write a simple list of all the activities you have in your life that you like to spend time on - no matter how bizarre or socially acceptable they are - and for each activity, try to guess-timate how much time you spend on that hobby every day, or every week.

Once you have a clear perception of how many hobbies you have, and what time costs they have, you are in a position to begin evaluating them consciously. As you next go to spend a little time on one of your hobbies, take a few moments to ask yourself these few questions:

1. Why do I want to do this activity?
2. What benefits does it bring to me?
3. How does this hobby make me feel?
4. What does this hobby cost me?
5. How does this affect other people?
6. Is there anything I could do which might have the same effect?

Once you have consciously considered these questions, you will have a clearer idea about why you are drawn to that hobby, how it will make you feel and what impact it is has on you. This information can help you decide whether you want to give up or continue; whether you can do something better or more interesting; whether this hobby is a positive or negative influence upon you.

Whatever you decide to do with the particular hobby you’re considering, you’re deciding from a more conscious, more aware perspective - which will help you make the right choice over how you spend your hobby time.

If you have any particular hobbies that you enjoy, or are not enjoying and still doing - Please share them in the comments. I love discovering new things to try, and your story might help encourage others to start new hobbies, or to bin old ones.