The importance of engaging in mastery activities at work and in your leisure time

In my work as a Calgary psychologist and a Cochrane psychologist, I often have clients with issues involving low self-esteem or low self-confidence. One of my go-to strategies to help these clients is to have them incorporate mastery activities into their lives. Mastery activities are those in which a person accomplishes something and uses their talents and skills. Mastery activities can include occupational activities, exercise, sports and a wide array of hobbies and interests.

In the following sections, I will discuss the importance of having mastery activities as part of your vocational life (work/school) and as a key element of your leisure time.

Mastery activities as part of your vocational life

Because we spend so much of our daily lives in vocational activities at work or school, being able to engage in mastery activities during this time is a big asset in being able to have your mood and self-esteem in a good state. So if possible, choose a vocational path which matches your interests, abilities and talents to increase the likelihood of being able to engage in mastery activities in your time at work or school. It is much easier to feel good and to feel good about yourself if you regularly look forward to your days at work or school because you can spend them engaged in activities you find interesting, challenging and stimulating.

In that regard, when planning your occupational path it is well worth it to meet with a professional to help you identify careers which will be conducive to your engaging in mastery activities. While considerations of job availability, industry growth and pay levels will necessarily play a role in your choice of a career, paying attention to these factors without also ensuring that your chosen path allows for you to engage in mastery activities will set you up for a vocational path which will not be helpful to your mood and self-esteem.

What if you find yourself in an occupation or line of study which is not conducive to your engaging in mastery activities? In some instances, you may be able to focus on certain elements of your job or area of study which do lend themselves to mastery activities. In other cases, if circumstances permit it may make sense to change to a career path which is more in line with your interests and abilities and therefore more facilitative of mastery activities. There is typically a good amount of time, effort and expense necessary to make such a shift. However, if the result is that you move into a vocational path which leads to significant improvements in your mood and self-esteem, this investment can be worth making.

If the need to pay the bills and support a family do not allow you to make such a career shift, it may be necessary for you to stay in an occupation which is not ideal for you in terms of mastery activities. In these instances, it is especially important to have mastery activities as part of your non-work routine. This is the focus of the next section.

Mastery activities in your leisure time

Scheduling mastery activities in your leisure time will help to keep your mood and self-esteem in a good place when you are not working or going to school. Regular exercise is a mastery activity with positive physical effects which I encourage all my clients to engage in (physical abilities permitting, of course). Beyond exercise, there is a wide selection of mastery activities you can have in your routine including sports as well as hobbies and interests such as playing a musical instrument, art, cooking, knitting, working on cars, collecting stamps, and carpentry, to name a few.

If you don’t have enough mastery activities in your leisure time, picking one or more to add to your routine is a good idea. If you’re stuck on which mastery activities to try, it may be helpful to scan a list of various activities and identify those which you may find interesting and for which you may have some ability or talent. In some instances, you may have enjoyed doing certain mastery activities at one time but discontinued them. This may entail your ‘dusting off’ the activity and resuming it.

Sometimes it takes a few tries to find mastery activities you enjoy. It also may take some time and effort to incorporate them into a busy schedule. However, if you can find the time to do one or more such activities regularly, it is well worth it for the benefits to your mood and self-esteem which you will regularly enjoy.

May you master the art of engaging in mastery activities,

Dr. Pat