Does leisure make us happy?
During weekends, I spend a huge amount of time watching TV. At the time I am writing this, I am hooked on catching up on One Piece, an anime. I am at episode 950 and currently, the show is running at 1050 episodes. Still a lot go.
And during those moments while watching, after spending so many hours, I feel a little bit weak and bored. Well, what could I expect? Sitting and watching idly may be nice for a few hours, but more than that, I feel I wasted a good amount of time not doing anything. On top of that, I eat a lot, and binge, which affects my goal to be in a calorie deficit.
I thought of the time I wasted which I could have used writing a novel. That time that I could have spent working on some projects at work. The moments I could have used to play with my kids before they go to bed. The lost opportunity to cuddle with my wife and further strengthen our bond.
Are we wasting time in leisure activities?
Watching shows I like is my favorite leisure activity. It takes me away for a moment from the present. It takes me to a world that I could have never imagined. The imagination of those who created the show is one of the things that I admire. The story is not so similar to the mainstream. The dialog and script and the exchanges of smart conversation using words and sentence construction that is new to me are some of the best leisure experiences for me.
For sure you have your own leisure activity. I could only guess based on what I saw. It could be going to the spa. Going on a joyride on your motorbike feeling the wind on your face. Could be reading a book. Or, I do not know, maybe playing games on your phone.
Mikhail explained in his book entitled Flow that we experience happiness when the activity we are doing is challenging enough. If it is too easy we get bored and that results in the other end of the spectrum, sadness.
For example, watching TV is very easy. I just have to keep watching and follow the story. It becomes challenging when a lot of moving pieces are happening and in my head, I have to remember them and connect them so I have a clear view of what is going on, leading me to better appreciate the show and enjoy what I am watching. In effect, it keeps me going and interested.
Taking another example of leisure activity is playing mobile games. Starting is difficult as we need to understand the concept of the game, the controls, the goals, and what should we do. As we get acclimated, it becomes too easy for us and we breeze through the game. We lose interest and it becomes an activity we do when we do not have anything else. This, in turn, is the reason why games continue to become difficult as you progress, new challenges, new goals, and new competitors, to keep you engaged and continue playing. Because, again, if the activity is challenging enough for you, we feel happy and we keep doing it.
What is leisure?
What is leisure anyway? What does it mean? What defines it? How do we know if the activity in our lives is considered leisure or not?
Leisure is simply activities that we do that are not related to work or responsibilities. It is an activity that we do in our free time. Free time means time we have not allocated for work or to perform our responsibilities at home or to someone else. It is what we do with our time for ourselves.
By this definition, which is easily searchable on Google, and what Mikhail said about activities that must be challenging enough, we are accountable for our own happiness. It is up to us to choose the activity that we do during our free time and make sure that it is difficult enough for us to enjoy it and bring happiness in our lives.
It is also worth mentioning that we do not need to listen to what other people say about how we spend our time. Okay, maybe listen a bit because the world is full of pieces of advice, however, ultimately, we hold the key to our happiness.
If we choose to watch TV during our free time, so be it. That is a choice we make. If we choose to play mobile games, let us go for it. How we use our time is up to us, not anybody else. Of course, there will be repercussions but that is another topic.
How leisure makes us happy
So how could leisure make us happy? First, we ensure that we choose an activity we like to do. Again, it is our time. What we do with it is up to us. Choosing is a choice only we are accountable for. Do not let anyone make it for you. It is your life.
Second, the activity we choose should be gradually becoming difficult for us to continue enjoying it. It must keep challenging us in a way that we use up our current skills and develop them a little bit in order to progress and continue doing what we want to do. If not, then we become stagnant and boredom kicks in. For boredom, we should prevent getting into this state, for me is a little close to sadness.
I think by doing these two and being conscious about it, we could definitely feel that what we do during our free time could really help us enjoy our lives and become happy.
And some of you might say that you would rather relax than do something strenuous. Get in a bath while listening to music, lay on the bed while reading, or just have a quiet drink with friends. All of these are good. It is very relaxing and a good reset for a hard day at work. But, ask yourselves, how long are you planning to do it? Does it really give you happiness? For a moment, maybe. But for how long?
In a nutshell, what we do for leisure is up to us. And to enjoy it more, let us make it a little more challenging. Just a little bit. Not too much. And by the end of it, we could become better than who we were yesterday.