If all your basic needs were met and you didn't have to work to get by, what would you do with your life?

do you want a list?! I have adhd and 1.324 different hobbies and projects in different stages of completeness. If I had free time I would get 200 more hobies and start 200 more project without finishing the ones before lol

I have ADHD and my hobby is collecting hobbies. I don’t typically get bored. I would likely need to do some side gig to supplement buying things for new hobbies.

That's my current situation after retiring a few years ago. I stay busy with personal software projects, running a weekly in-person D&D campaign and playing in others, cooking, 3d design and printing, Arduino/ESP and electronics, woodworking, reading, TV & movies, and random crafting and other stuff that comes up.

Read, learn, create, and explore.

Gardening, fishing, skiing, hunting, making furniture, building boats, long road trips with the family.

Basically typical retirement shit.

House in the middle of the woods, with internet connection. It's the weird eremite techno wizard life for me.

I'd work on cars. And my house. It feels like I'm fighting entropy, I fix one thing and find 2 more problems in the process. But I know some of that is just the previous home owner doing a bunch of diy.

Learn to wood work and build furniture. I have a deep, deep loathing for flat pack furniture.

Garden. I'd love to have a proper garden.

Honestly. I'd just like to be rid of my anxiety over finances.

Continue to work for extra shit probably. Sure basic needs are met, but I don't think basic needs count for computer parts, drones, supplies for home improvements. My life would be easier on bills but would still need funds for projects and hobbies.

Chill on the couch. Watch Youtube. Go for bike rides. Learn the ukulele and go busking for fun. Do papercraft. I was able to do this for about 5 years, and then I had to go back to work, just as I was really getting my creative juices going.

Would finally make my dream game.

Work out, do DIY at home, volunteer at my local cat shelter and dedicate more time to making music, gaming and general computer fiddlin'. If it was literally just basic needs with no cash maybe host some services for people on a small scale or teach about self hosting for money to afford luxuries.

Short answer: work less.

Long answer: I actually enjoy my job, and have for a long time. If I had won several million long ago I would have kept my job because it (most of the time) was very fulfilling and important, though it has largely wrecked my body.

Now I can't fly anymore, so while my job is still important and fulfilling, it's not nearly as exciting, and I am constantly crazy busy, so I'd love to cut my hours about in half, probably. I'd still want to work.

Oh, and I'd build a forge in my backyard. So maybe work the same amount, but some of my time crafting things.

Write, read and analyze literature. Hopefully I’ll be able to do it as a job.

I'd love to go back to school, not for better grades, but purely for learning. There are some interesting af fields out there!

Make and restore furniture. Build shit. Garden. Read. Organize and fill out my media library. Learn programming and try to fix some of the problems I'm dealing with on Linux. Probably socialize more because I wouldn't be tired of dealing with people and stressed out from work all the time.

i'd pick a direction and start walking.

Become a blacksmith. I'd make all sorts of things.

And a welder. And a tool and die man.

I'd work with metal. And at some point I'd make a point to learn glass blowing because it's cool.

When the weather is good, be outside as much as possible. Do more long-distance, or even multi-day treks. Dick around in the woods more (survival skills for fun, learn more about identifying local plants and fungi, etc). Bring a book and some basic snacks, and hang out in public park space more often (we've got some beautiful spaces here). Basically just a lot more exploration, primarily on foot, bike, or skateboard depending on distance and energy level.

When the weather is crap, spend more time keeping my place in order and looking nice. Listen to music, read books, maybe try and get more deliberate about a writing habit. Pick a public indoor space of some kind and become a regular. Maybe volunteer.

Spend more time working on good habits to keep the energy level up for the above long term.

Volunteer at a rescue centre to help the dogs and other animals

Go back to the low paying job that I really liked but couldn't afford.

I can answer this because it's true. I work out daily, cook every meal, hangout all day with my dogs, explore YouTube rabbit holes, and read scifi. Without an alarm, I'm suddenly a morning person. Up by five with energy. I'm trying to figure out my next move. Weird thing is, it's probably another career. Just on my terms

Learn shit.

I would take classes for stuff that actually interests me. And spend more time on hobbies. It's pretty obvious to me honestly. I don't understand how people get depressed and bored when they retire. It actually makes no sense to me. It's super common too. People feel like they "have no purpose" and absolutely crumble in retirement. It blows my mind. I feel like those people are super fucking boring and have no interests.

I wish I could be a perpetual student attending college. And open a business that im passionate about.

Exercise, drink wine, read more, and take tons of road trips.

Write sci fi novels and take care of stray cats

Travel, learn culture science theologie languages and so much more, teach

Game (and probably stream myself doing so) a lot, get more exercise, volunteer a bit, probably contribute to open source projects a lot more

I would make radio. I do one show a week and I sometimes struggle to find time to even prepare for that, so if time weren't an issue I'd probably end up just doing a load more.

I'm into bird watching, so I'd want to travel to see new ones and what have you.

I would want to craft more.

I would read more.

I would take language lessons

I would work on that book idea

I would take classes on anything that interested me.

I would want to have a small farm, I just think it's neat.

The same life but without the pressure of a job.

Would study and do arts and use our findings and research to help improve the world in some kind of way, even if its a little.

Without joking, most likely I would watch more Lemmy.

Go into teaching. I love to assist others in their learning voyage, I love science, research, classes. However, financial realities mean that I would be starving if I pursued that path. So I find fulfillment in adjacent activities in my current line of work. I would also have an electronics workshop, repairing computers and other electronics for fun.

Metal, leather and wood working. Bee keeping and running a little shop

Exercise to get healthy and work on my garden, to start. Then I'd handle any necessary projects for my home. Then I'd find causes to support by volunteering.

Haha I like to be silly at work sometimes after I’ve already paid the big monthly expenses. I say, “I’m here to do two things help kids and pay bills, and I’m all outta bills.” I would continue to work in my field on a part time basis. Then I would make time for a few doctor appointments and start going to therapy again. I’d walk my dog at different parks more often. Hopefully id make more time with my friends and family assuming they have the same deal. I would want to be more involved with my community too.

Exactly what I am already doing. imagineering my top rated VR Theme Park and explore SE Asia and other parts of the world. Love both.

Still work but at a reduced rate and else I would actually think about volunteering or improving my living conditions like a garden or tech at gome :)

I would become an author and write plenty of fiction, poems, short stories. I might also get into game development. And if time permits, I would even pick up on astronomy.

Join a 3rd band, I guess.

Make video games or digital interactive art pieces for VR

I'd be one of those old school naturalists and just, like, go live in a swamp for three years with one pair of clothes, a cot, a journal, and a pencil.

I'd spend more time playing guitar and chess and spend more time with my son.

I'd make things like drones or robots or something.

I would build affordable housing.

Kung fu, charitable volunteering, and any intellectual challenge I could take on.

play more games learn to draw maybe pick up a new language.

Get high and scroll Lemmy, apparently

Work to solve problems. Not on a fixed schedule, but my choosing.

Also, long walks and visiting people I like.

I’d start with gardening, fishing, road tripping, camping, hiking, but I think that might eventually not be stimulating enough. I’d probably pickup a hobby that would enable artistic expression. Maybe pottery, or stained glass?