5 Reasons Why You Should Take Up a Creative Hobby as a Resolution

The second week of the year has come to an end and while many of us may be struggling with fitness resolutions, others are probably finding it hard to resist the smoke breaks at work. But what the many people, who have made a host of promises to themselves, have in common is the desire to improve their physical health, ignoring the mental and even emotional wellness.

Before we get on to how you can ensure a sound mind with the body you want, here are some numbers for you:

1. Over 50 million people in India live with some sort of mental illness
2. 3 out of 100 people in urban areas are depressed. Of these, 1 out of 3 are severely neurotic
3. 1 out of 5 people are in need of counselling, either psychological or psychiatric

Blame a hectic lifestyle for these startling facts, but simple things can change that.  A small step towards ensuring your psycho-emotional well being is to take up a creative hobby.

Also Read: Let Your Resolutions For 2016 Go The Urban Way

Here’s why. Learning a creative art form works at multiple levels. It helps you to positively channel your emotions, release stress and boost your confidence, while helping you meet new people and maybe even add another skill that can earn you monetary returns.

Let us be more specific:

Channel your emotions productively

Take your broken heart & make it into art

No one could have said it better than Meryl Streep when she quoted the departed Princess Leia at a recent award show. Art, whether written, painted or performed, is a great way to channel emotions of unexplained sadness or pent up rage. Ask Adele and Taylor Swift, who have made Grammy – winning careers after their failed relationships. And even though every artistic rant may not win you a golden trophy, it makes for a productive way to express yourself.

The zen in art: It helps you de-stress

A creative hobby is a great way to calm down after a stressful day. The feeling is unparalleled, of tensions slowly ebbing away as you paint or pirouette. And the most rewarding part is to see all that physical labor transform into something beautiful. If you’ve had a hard day at work, lock yourself up in a room, turn up the volume and dance to a Shahid Kapoor routine or practice MF Hussain’s strokes on a blank canvas. De-stress and create.

Birds of a feather: Shared passions can help your social network grow

If your social skills need polishing, a shared hobby can make for a great conversation starter. Moreover you can join clubs where like-minded people meet. How else did comedy groups like AIB and East India Comedy come about? So join a writers’ club, sign up for theater workshops, go for open-mic sessions, and expand your social network.

A penny for your prose: Creative skills earn financial returns

There’s a reason why you keep hearing of people quitting their jobs to pursue their passion. That a career can be crafted from a hobby, is a fact many wedding photographers, freelance writers and amateur filmmakers will vouch for. Although we don’t suggest that quitting your day job, we do encourage taking baby steps after some months of practice. Start small like photographing your neighbor’s son’s birthday or writing a weekly blog for a friend’s cake business.

Stand taller: It boosts your confidence

Making art is hard work and presenting your creation is harder, especially when it doesn’t fit the popular idea of a pretty picture, an interesting read or a good song. To speak, perform or present whether in front of an audience takes a lot of grit. The stage pumps in confidence like no other, the kind that seeps into all other aspects of your work and family life.

Now that we have told what picking up a hobby can do to your life, we will help you with learning a skill as well! Find the best at UrbanClap for hobbies and classes.