Hobby Philosphy

This month's Miniature Wargames has an article by Henry about blogging.
The tone is quite supportive of the idea of blogging and explains some of the basics but eventually it veers off into dire warnings about planning your blog and ensuring you have the materials and commitment necessary to see it through.
This is an all too common theme to writing about our hobby. The importance of planning, deadlines, targets, "realistic expectations" and the like.
I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that a hobby grounded in the martial should frequently favour taking a disciplined militaristic approach to tasks - but even so it saddens me a bit.
I understand that for some people this is a productive and rewarding approach and  I have several wargaming chums who have enviable focus and work ethic and consistently deliver excellent projects to fruition. But I am getting a little tired of it being presented as "orthodoxy" and the only viable approach to our hobby.
Note that this isn't an attack on this specific article or magazine. Its a reaction to an attitude I perceive as prevalent across the hobby (and beyond the confines of wargaming) - the view of it as a slog, or struggle to achieve some sort of result, rather than an enjoyable exercise in and of itself.

Personally I get enough of that bollocks at work. And a fair bit in other aspects of my life too.
This is supposed to be a hobby, something I do for fun, and I'm getting a bit ticked off with being hectored by other people for not treating my downtime like some sort of military exercise, with goals and targets and all the other fuckwittery that drives much of modern life.
As humans we spend far too much time in thrall to the idea of plans, of results, of  achieving.
And not enough time, in my view, for pleasing ourselves and celebrating what we enjoy.
Rather than measuring yourself against targets and goals, you should be celebrating everything you achieve, no matter how insignificant it may seem. Every time you pick up a paintbrush, roll a dice, stick on a tuft of static grass or just sit in a comfy chair and gaze out of the window and think about toy soldiers is a victory. Its a win for you. You've found time for yourself and you've enjoyed yourself and what could be better than that?

A while ago I realised that I was locked in a cycle that was actually destructive for my enjoyment of the hobby. I'd plan a project, set myself goals, fail to meet them and then spend time mentally beating myself up about that "failure". Many of us have a tendency to be unnecessarily harsh on ourselves about our performance, constantly criticising or belittling instead of celebrating what we do manage and this across all aspects of our lives, not just hobby time. I was doing this with my hobby and the cycle of negativity made me even less likely to pick up a brush. So I made a conscious decision to stop taking that approach. I decided to embrace my butterfly like attention span and to just paint and play whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. And if lack of finished models prevented me doing what I wanted to just accept that rather than see it as a failure. I have to say I find I'm getting more painted and modelled as a result and I'm enjoying it all a whole lot more.

As far as blogging is concerned just do it. Or don't. No one gets hurt if you post three times and then stop. It doesn't cost anything and if you enjoy those three posts then that's all that matters. Working out how much time you have to commit to it and planning in the regular updates? Unless you actually find resource planning and timetabling enjoyable in and of itself I really wouldn't bother.
And whatever happens -whether you go on to a glittering blogging career with the accolades of other socially awkward men children with a fascination for toy soldiers ringing in your ears, or if your blog turn into a tumbleweed strewn ghost town after a couple of weeks - try to remember that it doesn't matter - most especially that it doesn't matter to you. You've not succeeded, or failed - you've just enjoyed doing something for yourself.

There's a quote misatributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson that says that life is a journey, not a destination. Similarly the Buddhist approach that it is better to travel well than to arrive.
In our modern, goal and status orientated world where "first is everything second is nowhere" we're in danger in of forgetting that the process is at least as enjoyable as the outcome. No more so than where our hobbies are concerned.
If planning and goal setting and achieving results works for you, all power to you. But if that isn't making you happy, give it up, paint what you like, play what you like. Whatever you do, enjoy and celebrate it.