The following is editorial. All views, thoughts and opinions belong solely to the author and do not necessarily represent those of the Drury Mirror. 

The feeling of finals creeping in and that sense of never having enough time are all too common for college students. Fall break and holidays offer relief from academic stress, but what do we do with them besides eat, sleep and watch Netflix? If breaks, weekends or even those hours between classes seem to exist in a constant state of anxiety, you probably need to take up a hobby.

Don’t be a cog!

Many students face the problem of thinking that their interests don’t matter unless they contribute to their career goals or make them money on the side. This is a dangerous way to think – it degrades the value of your time.

If you enjoy doing something, it is worth investing in because it contributes to your identity. It’s impressive that you can spend eight hours grinding away on essays or architecture models, but does it add to the spice of life?

Not everything we do needs to be moving us forward in a quantifiable way. Hobbies help shape who we are and let us be individuals rather than work machines.

Change your pace, don’t stop completely.

Hobbies bring a necessary brain break. When you take that hour to crochet in front of the T.V. or paint a photo of your cat that you have saved on your phone, you’re giving yourself a chance to de-stress.

Humans are programmed to respond to “flow activities” that let us get lost in what we’re doing, looking up at the clock amazed at how long we’ve been invested in the thing we care about.

They make you more productive.

We have a lot more free time than we think we do. Parkinson’s law dictates that work will expand to fill the space that is available – if you have a four-hour period where you have nothing planned you might catch yourself rehashing the same 20-page assignment all night. If you have a group activity or rehearsal to go to, you’re more likely to knock out those readings beforehand.

Don’t cancel your streaming subscriptions

Sometimes, nothing beats the sense of relaxation and happiness that comes with your fifth binge of “Parks and Recreation.” As a society, we need to get better about balancing these moments of “vegging out” with invigorating pastimes that fulfill personal or community interests.

Learn that instrument you’ve always dreamed of playing or sign up for a dance class downtown. Hobbies also provide a quick answer for those syllabus day introductions. The hardest limits are the ones that we put on ourselves – make an effort to break them.

Article by Maclen Johnson.