“The Centre for the Arts confirmed that all tickets have been claimed. We’ll have a full audience for Saturday’s recital!” Cheering and excitement rippled through the choir members. Ever since Lucía, who has a Master’s in Marketing, had taken over the ensemble’s social media, their following had exploded. The choir’s planning meetings had become vibrant, and Lucía found herself looking forward to them more than any other meeting in her week. She continued, “We received a DM on Instagram about a concert opportunity, so I passed along your email, Marion. Did they reach out yet?”
Marion nodded, sharing some big news: they had been invited to a prestigious choir competition. The top three choirs would win a trip to London to perform at the Royal Albert Hall. Lucía sighed. She knew what was coming. The only problem with these meetings was that the excitement often became… a lot. Sure enough, the voices began to overlap.
“I wouldn’t even know where to fit an Albert Hall program in my collection!” Christina chimed in.
“We’d need to step up our game. Maybe an extra rehearsal a week?” suggested Elle.
“London? As a third-place? Doesn’t feel like a win at all!” Laurie exclaimed.
“Oh, imagine those stage lights, the energy of that audience, the roar of applause. I’m not OK right now!” Dana said, her eyes wide with anticipation.
“What if they give us a brand-new composition that’s never been performed before?” Reagan wondered aloud.
Lucía tried to keep track of the whirlwind of conversations. Everyone was buzzing with excitement, but she felt… detached. Sure, performing on one of the world’s most prestigious stages would be a dream. But winning or losing a competition didn’t really matter to her. All she cared about was sharing great music, whether it was at Albert Hall or at a local community event. After all, isn’t that what it’s really about? Isn’t it?
Welcome to the newest installment of the Theory of Transformative Hobbying. Today, we’ll dive into one of the core concepts of the Theory: the 7 Main Hobbyist Styles. These styles define how people approach their hobbies, and they will be revisited both in theory and practice, because they are a central theme in our journey of exploring what hobbies mean for different individuals. But before we jump into describing each style in detail, we need to understand what we mean by “hobbyist style.”
Mandatory disclaimer: this post is an introduction, a big-picture overview of these styles. There will be plenty of room to expand on each in future posts, but for now, let’s set the foundation for what hobbyist styles are and how they shape the way we interact with our passions.
One of the most fascinating things about hobbies is how unique they can look from person to person. Two people can engage with the same subject (the same activity), but their approach can be completely different. In the Transformative Hobbying Theory, we define the subject as the activity itself. Whether it’s baking, board gaming, kayaking, or painting, the subject remains the same, but the way a person interacts with it can vary wildly. It’s the different approaches, the styles, that transform the same activity into something deeply individual. The hobby experience is, in the end, always personal. It’s not about what we do, it’s about who we become while doing it.
Enter the 7 Main Hobbyist Styles. Through our research, we have identified seven distinct styles that capture the broad spectrum of ways people approach hobbies. These styles form a taxonomy that helps us understand the different motivations, behaviors, and (most importantly) the psychological benefits behind a person’s involvement with their chosen activity. One person might bake to compete or perfect their craft, while another bakes purely for the joy of creating or sharing with loved ones. These styles allow us to see hobbies not as one-size-fits-all activities, but as deeply personal experiences shaped by how we engage with them.
As you read through these styles, you might find yourself “matching” with one of them. That is you! More specifically, that is your Main Style. You might be in between styles, and that is also you! Specifically, your secondary influences. More on that in future posts, but for now, try to find the one that describes best how you approach hobbies in your life. Here we go:
The 7 Main Hobbyist Styles:
1- Collecting
Statistically, when people talk about hobbies, the general idea of a collector comes to mind. It probably came to yours as you were reading the introduction. Collecting is about the joy of gathering and curating. And the subjects for this style are limitless: vinyl records, cards, plane tickets, and so on. You’ve seen those tv shows showing incredible collections, and you know a collection when you see one.
People with this style are driven by the desire to build something bigger than themselves: a collection that reflects both their passion and personality. For some, it’s about preserving history or beauty, while for others, it’s the thrill of hunting for that one elusive piece. The satisfaction comes not just from owning these objects, but from the sense of completion, the story each item tells as part of a bigger whole.
2- Creating
The creatives. The ones who bring something new into the world. For pure creators, it’s usually not about having a perfect result, but more about the process itself: feeling inspired, experimenting, and expressing themselves. Yes, there are some subjects that typically resonate with the creating style like writing, painting, or crafting, but the truth is that the scope of creation is probably the most extensive of all styles.
Creators thrive on the act of making something that didn’t exist before. It’s deeply personal, and the joy is often in the journey as much as the destination. Some say that this style is inevitable for the ones who live in it. It is like a need, and this need to create feels almost like a calling, a form of self-expression that words often can’t capture.
3- Understanding
If you define yourself as curious, and can spend hours learning as much as you can about your chosen subject, your main style might be Understanding. Deep diving into the chosen subjects, more often on a theoretical and profound level than a practical approach, the key word here is knowledge. Whether they’re researching the history behind a hobby or endlessly exploring its nuances, understanders find fulfillment in expanding their knowledge.
It used to be easier to spot people with the Understanding style by looking at their magazine subscriptions, but nowadays, the vast compendium of knowledge that can be found online is where most rabbit holes are. It’s not just about doing the hobby: it’s about truly understanding it on a deeper level. For these hobbyists, the joy is in discovery, the constant pursuit of knowledge, and the richness of learning.
4- Enhancing
The Enhancing style is all about recognizing the potential in existence. It’s about making things better, whether it’s improving a skill, refining a craft, or maintaining something at its highest performance level. We could even say that this style relies on the psychologically healthy aspects of ambition, mixed with care and precision. The focus isn’t just on growth but also on preserving what already exists, helping it remain strong.
When running into subjects that were approached with the Enhancing style, we usually find ourselves amazed, surprised and in awe at the results of the dedication and passion that rule this style. DIY-ers, gardeners, martial artists, musicians, the hobbyist that has an Enhancing Main Style will find joy in perfecting their craft, learning new techniques, or simply knowing they’re consistently improving. Enhancing is about the journey to excellence.
5- Competing
While Enhancing finds its focus in the doing, the Competing style is all about measuring the results. More specifically, measuring the success of the results, often against others, but one can always compete with oneself. Whether the subjects are typical like sports, board games, or artistic contests, or more atypical ones, competing hobbyists thrive in environments where they can push themselves to their limits.
The competitors find their joy in the idea of the activity, and in the rush that comes with a hard-earned victory. The challenge. Commonly, this style is where the barriers between a proper hobby and a transcended hobby (more on that in our next installment) tend to blur, and competitors find themselves looking for the next challenge, sometimes at the cost of changing their lives completely. But even when they don’t win, the pursuit itself, testing their abilities and striving to be better, gives them energy and purpose.
6- Sharing
There is something beyond magical about sharing your passion with others. When you find hobbies that have a well-formed and structured community, it is thanks to hobbyists with the Sharing style. They find joy in engaging with a community, showing others what they’ve done or discovered, and feeling the warmth of connection. It’s not just about showing off: it’s about building relationships through the hobbies they love.
Again, any subject can be approached with this style, and whether it’s teaching, collaborating, or simply celebrating someone else’s work, sharing hobbyists find fulfillment in creating moments of connection. For them, the hobby comes alive when it’s shared with the people around them. It often takes a fair amount of introspection for a hobbyist to realize that the Sharing style is their main style, because sharing gets along wonderfully with most other styles. In the end, that’s what sharing is.
7- Experiencing
For hobbyists whose Main style is Experiencing, the secret is being in the moment. This is the most mislabeled of the styles, and about the most confusing one, since every single thing we do, every single thing we are a part of, creates an experience in us. After all, the feelings that result from the other styles do qualify as experiences. Where, then, is the line that defines this style as a separate one from the others? The key is in the timing of the experiences.
All the other styles find their fulfillment retrospectively, that is, after the activity has been completed. Think of marathon running with a competing style, for example: the hobbyist might find the preparation exhausting, even annoying, and has to endure it mentally in order to achieve their goal. Same with finding the missing piece of a collection, and so on. A person with the Experiencing style will only find joy in the feelings and sensations of the subjects while they’re happening, and often in the memories of them happening as well.
This is why hobbyists with the Experiencing style usually find themselves seeking out new adventures, whether it’s hiking a new trail, traveling to a new country, or trying a new cuisine. These hobbyists are driven by the thrill of immersion, of stepping into something fresh and different. For them, life’s richness is found in diversity, in saying yes to the new, and in the excitement of the unknown.
And there you have it: the 7 Main Hobbyist Styles. These styles reveal a fundamental truth: hobbies aren’t just about the subject of choice, they’re about the deeply personal way we approach them. Once we shift our focus from what someone is doing to how they engage with it, we begin to understand hobbies as the unique reflections of identity that they are.
This perspective opens the door to deeper connections. Want to truly understand a person through their hobbies? Start by identifying their Main Hobbyist Style. Need gift ideas or want to avoid mismatched expectations when participating in a group activity? Knowing these styles can help with that too!
Ultimately, this framework isn’t just about hobbies… It’s about people. It helps us see the richness of how we engage with the world and, in turn, brings us closer to those around us. So take a moment to reflect: what’s your style? And what does it say about who you are?
Thank you for making it all the way through this very important piece of our Theory. Of course, you can expect the following posts to deepen into a specific style, and even move beyond the keyword “Main”, when discussing them. We have taken the first step into a richer understanding of hobbies and their transformative potential, and we can’t wait to take you further into this journey of discovery and practical application of the Theory.
If you’re curious to go further, start by naming your main style and one secondary style (we haven’t discussed them yet, but they’re quite intuitive to our Theory). Write them down somewhere. We’re going to build on that in future installments, including The Four Stages of Engagement, where we’ll talk about what it really takes for a pastime to become a true hobby.
