Hobby jumping?

[unchained]

I tend to get interested in hobbies such as writing, reading, collecting and eventually I just grow tired of them and move on to something else that I find interesting for a hobby. When I start I pretty much get obsessed with it. I enjoy it and I am not bored with it but I will always find something else eventually the peaked my interest and I will eventually drop the previous hobby for the new one.

I will sometime go back to it months down the line(like with my website) but I never stay with the same hobby for too long. Is this something specific to me or is this shared with similar personality types?
I have never mastered anything in my life because I get uninterested in it once I reach a certain level of understanding of it. This even comes to bad habits like smoking and drinking. I started smoking black n milds on a whim and did it for 6 months and just stopped for no reason. Sometimes I feel empty because of the fact that I have no actual skill that I truly mastered or that I am known for. I've played almost every sport in high school including Golf, tennis and I did tae kwon do for 3 years.

[Polymath20]

You sound like an Enneagram 7.

The Epicure/Adventurer/Enthusiast (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)

[unchained]

I do think so... at least I know I am not optimistic and all that craziness.
I am very cynical and I dislike attention. I like being alone unless it is a small group.
I stopped all sports activities all I do now is workout in the gym. (at my office or in my basement)

I am a jack of all trades and I do seek stimulation but that's as far as that type goes. At least that is what I think. Maybe I should take that test..

I took the test and it said I am a type 6

[Polymath20]

I do think so... at least I know I am not optimistic and all that craziness.
I am very cynical and I dislike attention. I like being alone unless it is a small group.
I stopped all sports activities all I do now is workout in the gym. (at my office or in my basement)

I am a jack of all trades and I do seek stimulation but that's as far as that type goes. At least that is what I think. Maybe I should take that test..

The Enneagram system doesn't take into account introversion or extroversion.

Scroll all the way down (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.) and you'll see brief description for different levels of Enneagram 7.

[qinai]

I have the same issue. I've gone from sewing to writing to computer programming to painting to reading obsessively. I've always despised cigarettes but I've recently picked up smoking because it gives me something to do, and because I know it won't last. It's given me a negative attitude about a lot things, since I know that even if I'm extremely passionate about something right now, I most likely won't feel the same in the near future.

[Polymath20]

I have the same issue. I've gone from sewing to writing to computer programming to painting to reading obsessively. I've always despised cigarettes but I've recently picked up smoking because it gives me something to do, and because I know it won't last. It's given me a negative attitude about a lot things, since I know that even if I'm extremely passionate about something right now, I most likely won't feel the same in the near future.

I've had to change the way I approach hobbies. I take little bites out of something and then literally box it up and put it away for a while. Now I have a bunch of different hobbies, all ready to go whenever I feel like it. My camera stuff has sat in it's bag for about 2 years, but I've got it should I ever want to do photography again. All packed up, nice and neat.

[qinai]

I've had to change the way I approach hobbies. I take little bites out of something and then literally box it up and put it away for a while.

Ah, I should try to do that more often. But once I put it down I'm just afraid I'll never pick it up again. I feel like I need more self-discipline to just, I don't know... force myself to stick with something for more than a few months.

[Distance]

Don't feel alone. My interests vary often, hopping from one thing to another and back again sometimes, sometimes not.

My enneatype is 8w7. If you're a 6, you might be a 6w7.

[rhee]

I have a few interest that have stuck with me since I was young but I do try multiple hobbies all the time. I basically get the concept down and move on to the next hobby. I'm especially bad at hobby jumping if my projects take a large amount of time to complete. I end up putting it down and forgetting about it.

[Polymath20]

Ah, I should try to do that more often. But once I put it down I'm just afraid I'll never pick it up again. I feel like I need more self-discipline to just, I don't know... force myself to stick with something for more than a few months.

I think it's more important to accept your nature and just enjoy the intensity of enthusiasm early on and then when you get bored boldly fly on to the next conquest!

My way is obviously best. </SARCASM>

[leftwicketthree]

I do the same thing, I invest a ton of time into a hobby or collection, then eventually when I've learned enough about it I get bored with it and move on. I think for me the challenge of understanding something new is more interesting that whatever the actual hobby is.

[DelphianEtude]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who goes through this. I usually won't start a project unless I know I'll finish it, but hobbies don't really work out that way. Sometimes I test 5w4 and sometimes I test 7w8 on Enneagram tests. I get stressed out when I realize I'll never be as good as someone who focuses on one hobby so I just try to enjoy them since I know they won't last. I almost always come back to a hobby I've temporarily lost interest in after various lengthy periods of time though. Writing, reading, videogames, webcasting, skydiving, and kendo. Martial arts in particular you're never really supposed to take breaks from. I move a lot so whenever I start it up again, I sort of start from the beginning again since I'd be ashamed to tell someone my rank and then under perform due to the long period of time between sessions.

I think the keys for me to maintain this in a healthy way are never to invest too much financially into a hobby immediately. If it's a hobby that does require investment, only invest a little bit each time I come back to it. The only hobby I have that I believe benefits from the break is my novel. Every time I go back to it and read it with a fresh mind, I know I'm able to make it better. I should be ready to publish the darn thing in about, oh, ten years.

[elTee13]

I have a bazillion hobbies that wallow about and occasionally one or two will rise up for a while and then get replaced. I can't say I've ever "dropped" a hobby even if it sometimes takes years, or decades, for them to resurface.

[Asocialkat]

Yep. I switch among hobbies every 4-8 weeks. It's hard for me to juggle more than one or two at a time (mostly because I become OBSESSED with it), and I've had to accept that I'll never be really good at any hobby because I can't stick with anything for very long. However, I do tend to go back to hobbies I've done in the past to learn more. So...it's not all for nothing.

It's my understanding that this is very typical of INTPs, so you might want to check out the INTP description.