Every workplace has them. The obsessive long-distance runner traveling to Kathmandu for a 100-mile ultramarathon. The train collector taking a week’s vacation to visit the Colorado Railroad Museum.
But despite the fact that we all have special interests outside of our day jobs, these side passions don’t get a lot of credit in the workplace. Sometimes they’re written off as whimsical pastimes, and sometimes they’re disregarded entirely. After all, what does ultra-running 50-plus miles at a time really have to do with a job as a project management specialist?
It turns out that a deep interest in something unrelated to your career can actually have quite an impact on your skills and experiences in your day-to-day job. In fact, actively participating in new and old hobbies helps you develop important work skills that can benefit you in your career.
