Top 8 Programmer Hobbies

Practical First Steps

Set an exercise goal that you can achieve three times a week, doing whatever exercise or activity you like. The important thing is to be active, not to do a specific exercise or burn “X” calories.

1) Music

66.7% of survey respondents had this as a hobby. No wonder it looks like so many developers have their iPod earbuds permanently installed! :]

Why Do it?

Unlike other hobbies that need some affinity or skill, everyone likes music even if it’s just listening to music. There are probably special songs that trigger fond memories within you, and all of us have played an air guitar solo or sung in the shower when no one was listening.

Ellen Shapiro (photo by Fuad Kamal)

Ellen Shapiro (photo by Fuad Kamal)

Music is one of the most rewarding hobbies you can have, whether it’s playing an instrument or simply listening to music. It’s also a hobby that you can mix with pretty much any other on this list. You can be programming, cooking a nice new meal, or exercising while listening to your favorite tunes.

Playing instruments or creating music has also become much easier with technology. Did you know that you can connect your guitar or a MIDI keyboard to your computer and learn how to play either using Garageband? There’s also a game called Rocksmith in which you can plug in an electric guitar or bass and learn to play either from scratch.

If playing an instrument is what you yearn to do, there has never been a better time — and it’s never too late to learn, thanks to technology. If it’s listening to music, then experiment with new artists or genres, or try something different and discover new aspects of world music that you may be missing out on.

How to Get Started

You can either take music lessons from someone local, or use some of these great resources:

• Garageband lessons: Learn to make music on your Mac, iPad, or iPhone
• Rocksmith: Build your guitar chops on your computer or game console
• Sing Star: Take karaoke to the next level, complete with music videos

Practical First Steps

If you’ve ever wanted to play an instrument, try it out with the plethora of tools available. There are guitar tab apps and websites, YouTube tutorials, apps like Garageband or Yousician, or games like Sing Star and Rocksmith. The investment is small, but the reward is huge.

Where to Go From Here?

Finding a new hobby beyond the realm of programming doesn’t have to be difficult or intimidating. All you need to do it find what makes you happy, take small steps toward that, and share your new knowledge with the world.

Find What Makes You Happy and Have Fun Doing It

We are all different, and each one of us is unique. There is no single recipe or blueprint on how to be happy, or what to do outside of your job or programming.

For instance, I like video games, watching sports, cooking, music and reading. You might like photography, art and music. Do what makes you feel happy and fulfilled. There is no right or wrong way to approach it, and there’s really no way to fail can’t fail. The worst that can happen as you learn something new is that it will take time to get good at it, but I’m sure it took you a while to get good at programming as well!

Start With Small Steps

Start small. Check out the sections in this article for individual topics that interest you, and look at some of the quotes or stories of what respondents had to say. Look at the resources for that section, and take the practical first step.

Set short-range goals that you can reach fairly easily. Add bigger, more difficult goals as you learn more and get comfortable with it.

Give Back to the World

I have sometimes come across people who haven’t wanted to share their knowledge about programming because they feel it will make them less valuable and can create competition. However this is silly and not true at all. Information wants to be free, and in the age of the Internet it can be acquired almost immediately by going to a website or purchasing a book.

Share your gifts with others; it’s no coincidence you are good at what you do. Remember that you too were once a “newbie” like those who may now seek your help, and in many aspects all programmers are amateurs in some language, framework or tool.

Giving your gift of knowledge to the world is rewarding, a great way to learn more about yourself and others, and will make you happy in a way you haven’t felt before.

One last quote to leave you with before you forge on with pursuing your new passion: