psychologist bec mcwilliam on why small-biz owners need a hobby

Between running a small business and juggling all the other bits and bobs life throws your way, how the heck are you meant to fit hobbies into the mix? The thing is, hobbies are more important than we give them credit for – especially for small-biz whizzes who’ve successfully turned their once-precious domain of creativity into their livelihoods. We caught up for a chinwag with Bec McWilliam – a qualified psychologist who specialises in mental health and wellbeing – about the hidden perks that are part and parcel of hobby-having.

Tell us a little bit about you and the work you do. I’m a registered psychologist, speaker and founder of a private practice in Gold Coast/Yugambeh Country and Australia-wide via Telehealth, where I work with adults navigating anxiety, burnout, ADHD, self-worth and the general messiness of being human. A lot of my clients are high-achieving, thoughtful people who are very good at looking after everyone else, but sometimes find it hard to prioritise their own wellbeing in the same way.

Why is having a hobby so important for small-business owners? When you run your own business, work has a sneaky way of bleeding into everything. There’s always another email, another idea, another thing you “should” be doing. Hobbies create psychological breathing room – they remind your nervous system that not every waking moment needs to be productive. Research shows leisure activities are linked with lower stress, better mood and improved wellbeing, which makes sense – humans were never designed to be in output mode all the time.

How does having a hobby psychologically impact us and our sense of self? Hobbies help us remember that we are more than our job titles. For a lot of business owners, identity and work can become deeply fused. If the business is thriving, they feel good. If it’s not, their whole sense of self can be negatively impacted. Hobbies diversify your identity. They give you another way to experience yourself outside of being useful, productive or successful. Hobbies also build confidence through a process called mastery: the deeply satisfying feeling of learning and improving in an area over time.

If a small business was once a hobby before it turned into a job, how do we separate the fun from finances? This is the creative’s dilemma, isn’t it? The thing you once did for joy can quickly lose its sparkle once invoices, deadlines and client feedback enter the chat. When a hobby becomes a business, it often stops functioning as rest. That’s why I encourage business owners to have at least one thing in their life that is not monetised: something you do “badly”; something no one sees; something that doesn’t need to become content, profit or personal branding. Not everything needs to be leveraged.

How do you find time for a hobby when it feels like there is none? Many people treat hobbies as something they’ll get to “once things calm down.” The problem is that for many business owners, things never fully calm down. Sometimes we need to stop asking, “Do I have time for this?” and start asking, “Can I afford not to make time for this?”

You do not need three spare hours and a pottery wheel. Start small with something like 10 minutes of reading before bed, a weekly Pilates or dance class, sketching while your dinner cooks or a phone-free walk after work. Tiny glimmers of joy still count.

What are the biggest misconceptions about putting time aside for hobbies and how should we combat them? That hobbies are indulgent. Lazy. Nice in theory but not for busy people. Many of us have internalised the belief that rest has to be earnt, and that if we’re not being productive, we’re somehow falling behind. But rest and play aren’t rewards for finishing life’s to-do list – they’re part of what keeps us mentally well enough to function.

Another misconception? That your hobby needs to be impressive. It doesn’t need to be aesthetic. It doesn’t need to make money. It doesn’t need to become your “thing”. You are allowed to simply enjoy things.

For the hobby-curious, what are some easy, cheap and accessible hobbies that will help tickle the brain? If you’re hobby-less and mildly burnt out, start here:
Phone-free walks – underrated, regulating and surprisingly hard for many of us.
Reading fiction – escapism with benefits.
Journalling – for the introspective overthinkers.
Gardening and plant care – tiny doses of nurturing and nature, and a great excuse to go to Bunnings.
Drawing, colouring or painting – no talent required, stick figures still count.
Cooking new recipes – creative, grounding, sensory, practical.
Yoga, Pilates or dance – movement plus mood boost.
Learning something random – language apps, guitar, chess, pottery, whatever sparks curiosity.
Community hobbies – run clubs, book clubs, craft nights, social sport.

The best hobby is simply one that makes you lose track of time in a way that feels good.

Bec McWilliam is a qualified psychologist specialising in mental health and wellbeing, corporate wellness and burnout, neurodivergence and invisible illness, and personal development. Her practice is centred on interconnectedness, exploring how relationships, work, health and past experiences collectively shape wellbeing. You can find out more on Bec’s website.

For more small-business stories like this, visit frankie.com.au/strictly-business, or sign up to our monthly e-newsletter. Have a small-business story you’d like to share? Pitch it to us.