[sei]

[the genius filter]

How Your Hobbies Make You More Successful

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In 2006, Sara Blakely was selling fax machines by day and bombing at open-mic comedy by night. Each rejection, on a doorstep or a stage, taught her resilience. When she later pitched Spanx, hearing “no” from skeptical manufacturers, she already had the grit to keep going. Comedy clubs had trained her to laugh off failure, and unlike so many first-time founders, Blakely didn’t fold. Those hard lessons turned Spanx into a billion-dollar brand.

Across industries, the story repeats. In Switzerland, a teen named Roger Federer dabbled in soccer, skateboarding, and swimming, only focusing on tennis in his late teens, then went on to become perhaps the greatest to ever play.

And in 2023, Olympic sprinter Noah Lyles made headlines for tucking a Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card into his jersey before races. The world’s fastest man proudly embraced a “nerdy” hobby on the track, crediting it for keeping him relaxed and inspired.

These examples feel counterintuitive: we’re told success demands tunnel vision and 10,000 hours of singular focus, but the evidence, as Arteri found, says otherwise.

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You don’t succeed despite your hobbies; you succeed because of them.

[the spark]

Laugh It Off

Before Spanx became a household name, Sara Blakely was enduring the grind of endless rejection. By day, she knocked on doors trying to sell office equipment in the Florida heat. By night, she did something far scarier: open-mic comedy.

For two years, Blakely took the stage at dingy clubs, subjecting herself to flop sweat and jeering crowds. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was transformative. Every failed joke taught her resilience. Every rough crowd taught her how to read people and win them over better than any MBA course could.

When Blakely later set out to revolutionize women’s hosiery, that resilience became her unfair advantage. She heard “it’ll never sell” from male executives who didn’t get her idea; she got hung up on by mill owners who didn’t want to take a chance on a novice.

But she had already built her grit, and she wouldn't give up. She’d learned through comedy that bombing isn’t the end of the world; it’s feedback, and it's a lesson. Instead of taking rejection personally, she iterated and tried again. She finally found a mill to manufacture her product, and Spanx was born. Looking back, Blakely often credits those stand-up nights for steeling her against the word “no.” Her hobby, telling jokes to drunk audiences, turned out to be the training ground for entrepreneurial grit.

Blakely’s story is not an outlier. Pick almost any peak performer, and you’ll find passions outside their main field fueling their rise. NBA legend Steve Nash sharpened his vision and footwork playing soccer in his youth. Writer Maya Angelou danced calypso and painted, drawing creative energy from each art into her poetry.

The spark of genius often ignites between domains. The side paths we explore build skills, connections, and perspective that a one-track career can’t supply.

[the science]
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Hobbies Expand Your Genius

Psychologists have found that side pursuits can supercharge your primary performance. One landmark study of scientists discovered that Nobel Prize winners are dramatically more likely to have artistic or crafty hobbies than their peers. In fact, laureates were 22 times more likely to perform as dancers, actors, or other performers in their spare time.

That creative play isn’t just a correlation; it speaks to how breakthrough thinkers are made. Broader interests increase your “surface area” for ideas, letting you connect dots others don’t even see.

And it’s not only Nobel-level geniuses who benefit. In a survey of 400 employees, researchers found that those who pursued creative hobbies scored higher on problem-solving at work and were more satisfied with their jobs. Science confirms what Roger Federer, Noah Lyles, and Sara Blakely live: the more well-rounded your life, the sharper and more resilient you become. Hobbies give your brain new patterns to play with, undo stress, and fuel the curiosity that underpins innovation.

Far from frivolous, your passions outside work create a virtuous cycle, making you more creative, connected, and primed for success when it’s game time.

[the takeaways]

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1) Be Far Afield​
​Every new hobby is a new perspective. Picking up varied skills and interests (from coding to cooking to karaoke) gives you more dots to connect when you’re solving problems.

2) Network Naturally​
​Hobbies plug you into fresh circles of people. Join a weekend basketball league or a book club, and you’ll rub shoulders with folks outside your usual work bubble.

3) Build Your Grit​
​Whether you’re stuck on a tough chess puzzle or wiping out on a snowboard, hobbies teach you to try, fail, and try again. That persistence pays off in professional life.

4) Hit “Reset” Often
​In a world that glorifies the grind, those in it for the long haul know when to step back. Hobbies are a release valve for stress. They’re how you recharge your mental battery.

5) Fuse Work and Play​
​Don’t silo your passions from your profession; cross-pollinate them. Let your hobbies inform and inspire your work. Whatever it is that lights you up, embrace it, talk about it, bring that energy with you everywhere you go.