A carousel from @readtoshift has been making the rounds. The idea: everyone needs five hobbies, each one doing a different job. One makes you money. One keeps you moving. One lets you be creative. One connects you to people. One’s just yours.

Good framework. Wasn’t necessarily built for someone with a packed family schedule, though.

So we came up with a dad version.

Nobody decides to quit their hobbies. They just lose every scheduling fight, one at a time. A birthday party here, a work email there, a sink full of stuff that can’t wait. Until someone asks what you do for fun and the honest answer is “the kids’ soccer schedule and whatever’s on after they go to bed.”

You used to have stuff. You still can.

Quit Parking It Under “Someday”

Most dads shelve hobbies for later. Once the kids get older. Once work calms down. Work’s not going to calm down. And your kids are watching what you do with your free time right now. If all they see is a laptop and a couch, that’s what they’ll figure being a grown-up looks like.

You don’t need whole afternoons. You need a short list of things you actually do, and a slot on the calendar for each.

Five sounds like a lot until you realize two of them overlap with stuff you’re already doing.

One You Do With Your Kids

Start here. It’s the easiest one to protect because you’re already spending the time. This just gives it a shape.

The trick is picking something you’d enjoy even if they bailed. Go fishing. Try something neither of you is good at yet — skateboarding at 41 will humble you in the best way, and Lego sets two grades above their level are weirdly satisfying for both parties. Birdwatching with the free Merlin app is another one that kind of sneaks up on you.

Quick gut check: would you still do it if they said no? If not, that’s childcare with extra steps. Kids can tell the difference between a dad who’s into something and a dad who’s supervising.

Drop “What do you want to do today?” and try this instead: “I’m going to work on the bike in the garage. Want to help?”

They’ll say yes more than you’d expect, especially if there’s a wrench involved.

One That Keeps You Moving

The move is to make it social, make it scheduled, or both. Solo plans die the first morning the baby’s up at 4:45. A group that expects you to show up gets you out the door.

Look for a local run club. Most of them meet early on weekends and they’re full of guys pushing jogging strollers. Nothing nearby? A standing Saturday ride with two buddies works. So does that pickup basketball game that’s been running since before any of you had kids.

Want accountability from dads in the same boat? We’ve got a Dad Day club on Strava. Guys log everything from 5Ks to a three-mile stroller walk that lasted exactly as long as it took the little one to fall asleep.

Two fixed slots a week will outlast the ambitious plan you’d quit by February.

One With Your Hands

Screens eat most of our workday. Making something real scratches a completely different itch.

Woodworking is the obvious one and you don’t need a full shop. A cutting board is a weekend project. So is a raised garden bed. Basic car maintenance works too. So does restoring an old bike, smoking meat, or finally handling the stuff around the house you’ve been paying someone else to fix.

You want something that’s obviously done when it’s done. Most of your actual job never feels finished. A bookshelf that stands up on its own does. This is also the one kids are most likely to wander into without being asked. Keep a spare (and small) hammer around.

One That Makes You a Little Money

Doesn’t have to be anything crazy. A hobby that pays for itself with zero hustle-culture energy required.

The best version grows out of something you already know. If you’re the guy people call when their laptop dies, you’ve got a business. Good with a camera, fix small engines, know a sport well enough to run a youth clinic on weekends…same deal. Plenty of dads flip furniture or vintage gear at yard sales and call it a Saturday.

One rule: the money goes somewhere specific. Maybe the vacation fund, maybe the new grill. Give it a destination and it stays fun. Let it float and it starts feeling like a second job. If it starts eating your weekends, scale it back.

One That’s Just Yours

Dads drop this one first. It’s also the one that matters most. Can’t stress that enough.

No kids, nothing to show for it. Could be reading fiction, playing guitar badly, a standing poker night. Golf, beer league hockey, online chess at 11pm.

Whatever it is, the point is it’s yours…not a family activity, not productive, just the thing that makes you feel like the guy you were before anyone called you Dad.

Some dads feel guilty about this one. Don’t. Talk to your partner and trade off. Pick your night, give them one too. Put it on the shared calendar so it actually happens.

“I’m going to be out Saturday morning. Can you take Sunday afternoon?” Most partners will take that trade fast because they want the same thing.

How to Fit All Five Into a Real Week

You won’t hit all of these every week. That’s fine. Think of it as a rotation. The kid hobby and the movement one can happen most weeks, sometimes at the same time if your kid rides next to you while you run. The hands-on project might be monthly. The money one might only get busy in spring. The one that’s just yours needs a standing slot, even if it’s only an hour.

Grab some paper and write all five down. Next to each one, put when it actually happens…not “someday,” a real day. Anything without a time on it is still just a wish.

Your kids won’t remember how clean the house was or how fast you answered email. They’ll remember the afternoon you let them sand the birdhouse even though they made a complete mess of it. And somewhere along the way they’ll figure out what it looks like when their dad actually has things he cares about.

Most dads underestimate how much that matters. Pick one and put it on the calendar this week. Your kids might even ask to come along.