Have you ever felt like your life has become all about work and you never have any time to do the things you want to do? Maybe work is something you love, but even that can leave you feeling like something is missing.
Let me tell you, I’ve felt that intensely during the pandemic. We tend to cage ourselves in a bubble that is our job. It can feel isolating and lonely because day in and day out, all we’re focused on is ticking off another task in our never-ending to-do list at work. That’s why during the pandemic, I forced myself to try and do something other than just work.
Struggling to find the perfect work-life balance
I explored numerous techniques to establish a clear boundary between my professional and personal lives. One thing I did was set a Do Not Disturb timer after 6 PM to get me away from the computer and spend more time on my hobbies.
This didn’t go so well because I realised my hobbies were meeting up and chatting with my friends after work and squeezing in a gym session before calling it a day. The problem is my mates don’t yet share the same mindset as me, so I often found myself with nothing to do aside from watching Netflix, or maybe some PlayStation time.
My plan of refocusing on my hobbies didn’t last long as nothing around me was motivating me. What’s worse was that the negative energy I felt outside of work started manifesting in everything I did. My job performance suffered, and I even ended up working longer hours because I had no motivation. This wasn’t healthy and people around me pointed it out. Hell, even I knew it wasn’t healthy, but I didn’t know how to stop feeling that way.
Rediscovering old hobbies
One night, I was scrolling through Instagram to get inspiration for our next travel destination, since countries finally reopened for tourists after the pandemic. While I was browsing, I remember saying out loud, “Wow these places look amazing” and “I love these photos! I really want to go there.”
My wife asked me back then, “What do you like about these places?” I told her “I love the way this photo was taken, I love how it presents the landscape.” Talking to my wife about this ignited a spark that led me to rediscover my passion for photography.
One of the great things about working at Insentra is the amazing flexibility all the crew members enjoy. We do not have a strict 9 to 5 schedule. You won’t hear managers say, “You need to be in the office at this hour to do your work.” We are empowered with the freedom to manage our own schedules. After all, we’re all adults here. Everyone trusts that everyone is doing their job properly.
Trust me, I take full advantage of this flexibility I have. An offer came up earlier in the year to work out of Europe for three months on a project. You bet I put my hand up for that instantly! This level of flexible working was perfect for what I wanted to focus on at that time in my life–travel and photography.
This setup allowed me and my wife to live in Europe–working from a new location almost every week (or day depending on how adventurous we felt) and taking photos of the beautiful landscapes i only saw on social media–all while fulfilling my duties at my job!
Invest in your passion
Those months I spent in Europe allowed me to completely offset the negative feeling I had and gave me the kind of renewed energy I was missing for a very long time. No longer do I sit at home feeling awful about myself. Instead, I’m always thinking of new locations to go to, now that I’m back in Australia. I don’t let thoughts like “I have work in the morning so I can’t do that” stop me. If I want to drive down to Narooma for the perfect sunrise shot, I’ll do it–then I’ll work from Narooma for the day before driving back.
Travelling to scenic spots and photographing them is now a regular thing for me. It keeps me excited and eager to go about my day-to-day life because I know I have someting to look forward to. The best thing is my renewed spirit has also been showing in my work in great ways as well. I’m more motivated than and productive ever, and it’s because I chose to prioritise my personal happiness.
I’m sorry for making this blog post longer that I hoped, I really wanted to share my thoughts and what gets me by. Perhaps someone will be motivated by this. If you are still feeling like you don’t have time to pursue your hobbies, maybe it’s time to change your perspective. Why do you feel like you do not have time?
My friend who is a surgeon works around 12 to 16 hours a day, but he goes straight after work to pursue his passion of astrophotography (photographing the night sky) before starting his shift the next day. He goes on site and sets up his camera on a timer, then takes a nap while his camera does the work for him.
The point is we all have the capability to pursue our passions, but you do have to take the very difficult first step, which is to force yourself out of the bubble of your job. After that, you have to keep carving out time in your day for your hobbies and passions. Doing so will your mind and spirit healthy and happy, allowing you to take on each day with enthusiasm and excitement.
Interested in Insentra’s flexible work setup? Check out our job vacancies for available positions. If you’d like to check out more of our blogs, our Insentra Insights has some great reads.
