Hobbies can have a positive effect on the application
Hobbies show another facet of personality and can even help to make a lasting positive impression in a job interview. However, some leisure activities can also result in a rather negative response because they have negative connotations.
Hobbies related to the job are welcome with HR professionals, and unusual hobbies can also go down well with HR professionals. They indicate personal character traits, marathon runners are associated with endurance and tenacity, for example. Hobbies can be divided into three groups: average hobbies, passive leisure activities and extreme sports.
These hobbies should be mentioned
Outstanding hobbies and successes can also be mentioned. If an applicant takes second place in a marathon, he can state this in his application, which shows ambition and perseverance. Playing musical instruments is also well received by many recruiters, and artistic hobbies can also attract attention when applying for a creative job. Team sports such as volleyball, football or basketball suggest social skills and team spirit. While average hobbies like jogging, fitness, cooking, and reading are nice, they tend to be meaningless in an application as many people engage in these activities. So there’s no harm in showing them off, but they don’t stand out. If an applicant is enthusiastic about cars and tinkers with them in his free time, this can carry all the more weight when applying to become a car mechanic. Volunteer positions are also valued.
Better to omit these
Very time-consuming hobbies or activities that can have a negative impact on the application should be left out. Accordingly, if a person applies for a management position and talks about motorcycle racing or skydiving, this can suggest a willingness to take risks, which can be undesirable in a responsible position. In addition, extreme sports offer scope for sometimes serious injuries, which could result in a loss of work. However, if a willingness to take risks and a zest for action is exactly what is required in an application, extreme sports can of course also be listed.
Hobbies that recruiters don’t like to see on a CV are passive leisure activities such as listening to music, playing computer games or watching television or Netflix. These hobbies have a rather negative connotation as they are associated with loners and disinterest.
Hobbies in the CV are not a must – and none should be invented
Ultimately, hobbies are a small part of the application, they’re not even a must. If an applicant is just at the beginning of his career and does not yet have a lot of professional experience, it can make sense to add leisure activities to his application. Honorary posts, successes and unusual hobbies are welcome. However, before you pull something out of your head and invent hobbies in order to appear more interesting, it is better to leave hobbies out of your CV, as questions could arise at any time during the interview. In the worst case, passive hobbies in particular could have a negative effect, as could extreme sports and very time-consuming activities, since they could collide with working hours.
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