"Most self-improvement advice focuses on building consistent habits. But Olivia's story reveals something different: Activities we do inconsistently can still have huge value for our resilience and mental health. It's good for your mental health to dabble-to engage in activities without expecting consistency or improvement. We can only have so many consistent habits. Dabbling: diversifies your sources of positive emotions keeps your identity flexible and varied creates social connections varies the problems you solve"
"Yoga gave Olivia relaxation and friendship. But dabbling does more than this: It reminds you who you are. Karaoke reminds you that you're playful, knitting that you're creative, theater that you're sophisticated, volunteering that you're generous, and trivia that you're competitive. These positive emotions become especially valuable during transitions, waiting periods (like waiting for exam results, college admissions, or trying to conceive), or low-energy times like winter."
Olivia packs a rarely used yoga mat and later uses it after moving to a new city, finding relaxation and a new friend through a studio class and a park event. Activities pursued sporadically—dabbling—offer emotional benefits without requiring rigid consistency. Dabbling diversifies sources of positive emotion, keeps identity flexible, facilitates social connections, and exposes people to varied problem-solving situations. Casual engagement in hobbies reminds people of personal traits like playfulness, creativity, generosity, or competitiveness. These intermittent activities become especially valuable during life transitions, waiting periods, or low-energy seasons, supporting resilience and well-being.
Read at Psychology Today
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