Top 15 best hobbies and personal interests to put on a resume:

Most of the hobbies and interests you put on your resume will say something about you to the hiring manager. You can use them to (1) resonate with the interviewer, (2) give them an ice-breaker question, (3) signal character traits they might be looking for. 

But here's the problem— 

The most commonly mentioned passtime activities were, you guessed it, watching movies, listening to music, reading books, and travel. Hiring managers have seen these hobbies a million times... and truly don't care. (And neither would you if you were looking for a date.) 

Selecting activities for your resume is about choosing what aspects of your personality you want to emphasize and communicate. 

See the list below—

Top 15 best hobbies and personal interests to put on a resume:

Volunteering and community involvement 

There’s a reason we’re mentioning volunteering first—data shows that 82% of managers would rather hire someone with volunteering experience. Volunteering shows a lot of initiative and strong morals. It also teaches organizational and leadership skills.

Writing 

Communication is the heart of every organisation. Writing novels or publishing scientific papers give a clear representation of your written communication skills. 

Blogging 

Blogging, just as any kind of writing, proves you have communication and writing skills. Data shows communication is the most important skill for people entering the workforce. 

Podcasting 

The podcast format has become incredibly popular. Podcasting allows to demonstrate you have industry expertize, know how build an audience (marketing skills) and connect with thought leaders (networking and research skills). It's a good way to improve organizational skills, too.

 Marketing 

The percentage of US adults who use social media increased from 5% in 2005 to 79% in 2019. The rise of social media has created such new job professions as a social media manager, content creator, or SEO specialist. If you’ve ever made a Facebook page that drew engaged audience or owned an Instagram profile with a stable number of followers, it will definitely make a good impression on the recruiter. 

Learning languages 

Speaking English might not be enough if you’re planning on developing your career. The three fastest-emerging languages of global consumers are Russian, Hindi, and Japanese. Studies have found a correlation between learning languages and problem-solving abilities, intelligence, and memory skills. 

Photography 

Photography is so much more than just taking pictures. It develops conceptual skills and technical expertise, but also teaches how to collaborate with others.  

Travel 

Curiosity, courage, and self-organization. Traveling can prove you’re not afraid of stepping outside your comfort zone and learning new things. And flexibility and adaptability are among the most important workplace personal traits. 

Sports 

It doesn’t matter what sport you do. Exercising in general develops self-discipline, patience, and helps bounce back from disappointment. Team sports create opportunities to improve leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills, too. 

Yoga 

You might say yoga is a type of sport, but it’s much more than stretching. It also involves concentrating on breathing and is a great way to relax your mind. And data shows a relaxed employee is less likely to leave their job. 

Dance 

Dancing isn’t just fun. It’s a social activity that teaches collaboration skills. It also boosts cognitive performance and helps to unwind. 

Art 

Hundreds of jobs require creativity skills. Imagination and inventiveness are also parts of critical-thinking skills. And research revealed that 93% of employers value critical thinking over the candidate’s undergraduate degree.  

Reading

 It doesn’t matter if it’s romance books that you read. Reading shows you follow your passions. It also prevents cognitive decline and reduces stress. And helps maintain work-life balance. 

Making music 

Making music is good for your brain. You might find it surprising, but research shows learning how to play instruments fosters math and science ability. It also helps improve your mental performance (making you better able to concentrate) and memory.  

Listening to music 

Listening to music lowers stress and elevates your mood. It strengthens learning and memory abilities, too. In the ever-changing corporate world being able to learn new things on a daily basis is a top employability skill (especially in the rise of AI).

The list above is more-or-less sorted by how appropriate listing them on a resume is. The last four? Skip them unless you can be more specific and know for a fact that they will resonate with the hiring team. 

Here's what we mean— 

Be specific to attract the hiring manager.