Assalamualaikum. Do you have any tips on useful hobby? Or maybe you can share what you like to do on your down time? I try to be more productive by reading beneficial books between work break and during weekend, but sometime my brain just can’t take anything and I turn to social media or youtube. Then it often leads me to regretting the time spent on these activities… Any advice would be very appreciated, thank you very much in advance for your answer

Alaikumassalam wa rahmatullah,

My time is divided into three types: 1. I am able to do my work 2. I am too fatigued to work but I can read. 3. I cannot work or read. 

My work is programming and writing educational books. My “hobby” is to conduct research in Islamic studies, philosophy and evolutionary science by reading books and papers. So if I am unable to do my main work, I work on my research.

But if I am too fatigued to work or read, there is not really anything productive I can do. In the evenings I cannot work or read, so I spend an hour listening to the Quran, I consider this an essential part of my day. After that if I have time left I may listen to one of my favorite Terry Pratchett, Frank Herbert or Tolkien audiobooks on my phone, or play with my children, or both. Listening to these audiobooks is not productive since I have listened to them dozens of times. It is just something I enjoy.

If you are too tired to read or do other beneficial things, I do not see anything wrong with enjoying your time on social media or YouTube. But I recommend dedicating an hour to listening to or reading the Quran, even if you feel tired and cannot give it perfect attention. Afterwards you can do whatever you enjoy with the time that is left. 

Islam does not require us to be productive our entire waking time even though we may wish to be that way. So there is no need to worry about an hour or two a day spent unproductively on things you enjoy.