It has been a struggle.
If any of you have read my posts before, I have likely mentioned that I am doing everything in my power to stop gambling on sports. Unfortunately that is a lot easier said than done.
I have found myself doing much better on a weekly basis, but it really only takes 5 minutes to reverse all of that progress and find yourself right back at where you started. It can be incredibly disheartening as one of the only tangible ways to track an issue like this is the effect it has on your finances and on your mood.
The reason I am writing this down now is not because I want anyone to feel bad for me. Rather, I am putting these thoughts down here because I want to emphasize what this platform can really be for me and for anyone else who is struggling to get over the hump of an addiction or battle with mental health. I want to discuss the idea of hobbies and distractions that are productive and healthy.
About My Hive Experience
I joined Hive through the Leo Finance platform back in December to find a hobby that was not damaging to myself. A hobby that wasn't drinking or betting or spending money in some irresponsible way.
It may have been a naïve belief of mine that blogging alone would distract me long enough to solve all of my problems in life, but it has honestly been a great first step.
Though I'm not spending all 16 of my waking hours blogging on Hive, I am spending 2-3 hours a day interacting with people that I find to be incredibly intelligent and creative. That's 2-3 hours a day where I am being productive and using my time to benefit myself rather than hurt my wallet or mood.
This type of interaction goes beyond what we have on traditional social media. With Hive-based interactions, we have the ability to essentially rate what we are reading via our upvote. This leads to more well thought out and in depth comments being made rather than useless spam. It is more meaningful in my mind than scrolling through Twitter or Instagram despite the charm they may have as applications.
A Healthy Lifestyle
It is my belief that there should be balance that results in a healthy life. A balance between sleep, work and hobbies (including relationships and time with friends) is important in being the best version of yourself you can possibly be.
Blogging is not going to cure you of an addiction. It is not going to magically make you a happy person. What it does offer though, is a platform for healthy expression and interaction that can help you to start to fill the hobby hours of your life to create a balance.
The progress in any change is incredibly slow. I believe the quote we hear quite often in the cryptocurrency space is "gradually and then suddenly" from Ernest Hemingway; that embodies how I am hoping my journey will be.
Goals
It is corny to consider the fact that two steps forward and then one step back still results in a move in the right direction. But no matter how many times I may find myself taking steps back that hurt quite a lot, I have to remember that the step was preceded by some progress.
I think that I will try to push my engagement on Hive-based platforms up to 3-4 hours a day. Additionally, I am going to try to get back into coding JavaScript and reading some more books (that are not on a screen). I need to fill the hours that in the past I have spent watching and betting on sports. At this point, despite my love for the sports themselves, it is a bit too tempting for me to wager on it if I am watching it.
Questions for you:
I am genuinely curious to know what people on here do to fill their free time in a productive or healthy way. Not everything I do has to result in money being generated for myself, but I want to find things that are genuinely interesting to me and will help me to feel like a more balanced person.
What do you do in your free time?
How can I use my free time productively?
The people that I read articles from on this website seem like genuinely intelligent and successful human beings along with bringing a real sense of professionality.
I want to hear about how you accomplish that. Of course nobody is perfect, but I think the time has come for me to look to make some lifestyle changes. Let me hear about yours!
If you enjoyed this article please feel free to reblog/rehive!
Links and Connections:
Follow me on Twitter: Rob_Minnick23
LeoFinance/HIVE : rob23
Join me on Torum: https://www.torum.com/signup?referral_code=robminnick23
Join Cake DeFi and get $30 in $DFI as a new user: https://pool.cakedefi.com/#?ref=187314
Noise.cash: rob23
Read.cash: R23
Join me on Publish0x: https://www.publish0x.com/?a=M7e587xqd2
Who I am:
My name is Rob and I am a college student doing my best to get involved in the crypto world. I have enjoyed blogging thus far and thank you for reading my article! Give me a follow and let’s build the community together through consistent engagement.