WITH JOBS, GOTTA CATCH ‘ EM ALL
About six months ago, my therapist declared, “Sarah, you need a hobby!” I was baffled, “But why?” I demanded. I already had four jobs and a Netflix account, so my days were full. My therapist, however, informed me that I needed to do an activity with no possibility of financial or professional reward.
Obviously, my therapist is a baby boomer. The millennials I know don’t have hobbies. We take what previous generations would have pursued for pleasure, and turn those pastimes into extra jobs. For example, I have a friend who works at a call centre, but sells artisanal jewelry at flea markets on Saturdays. I have an acquaintance who works in IT for a small company, then moonlights as a makeup artist. Approximately 60 per cent of my grad school classmates have podcasts they’re hoping to get Squarespace to sponsor. And of course, every bearded guy with a bicycle delivers for Uber Eats.
I am from a generation of people who replaced hobbies with what we refer to as side hustles. A side hustle is work done outside of one’s full- time job. It’s an additional professional endeavour that generates what Beyonce refers to as “paper.” The motivation behind side hustles varies from person to person. Some people do them for the extra income. Some love their side hustles so much they would ideally pursue them full- time. Their side hustles are their real passions, the true callings.
To Millennials, jobs are like Pokemon – we’ve got to catch them all! This is because we are a generation that is barely scraping by. Gone is the middle- class Canadian dream of the well- paid nine to five job that leaves weekends free for frivolity. The typical Millennial doesn’t have the coin to pay for a membership at the local tennis club. Since our generation came of age, starting salaries have declined, housing prices have skyrocketed and, if you want to have a baby, you’ll probably have to sell an organ to pay for daycare.
We don’t have time to enjoy activities for their own sake. And so, if we like doing something after our day jobs are done, we find a way to get paid for it. As a result, hobbies have become an obsolete relic of the past – like soft rock or rotary phones. Side hustles are the new hobbies.