Remember when you used to have hobbies? Before your life became a carefully managed schedule of work, errands, and obligations, you used to make things, learn things, and do things just for the sheer, unadulterated fun of it.
Somewhere along the way, we fall into the “adult passion deficit.” Our creativity gets pushed to the bottom of the to-do list, and we forget how to play.
But what if you could reclaim that spark? A creative side project isn’t another stressful “hustle” you need to monetize. It’s a playground for your soul. It’s a low-stakes, joyful space to be curious, to learn, and to reconnect with the interesting, vibrant person you are outside of your job title.
Your resume lists the skills for your career. It’s time to build a portfolio for your joy. If you’re ready to get inspired, here are 10 creative side projects to get you started.
1. The “Hyper-Local” Blog or Instagram Account
Become the world’s leading expert on a tiny, wonderful niche in your own neighborhood. Review every coffee shop on a single street, document the coolest street art in your town, or create a photo series of the best park benches for reading.
The Passion Payoff: This project forces you to see your everyday surroundings with fresh, curious eyes. It turns a mundane walk into a creative mission and connects you more deeply with your own community.
Actionable First Step: Choose your niche. Create a free Instagram account for it. Your first post can be a single photo introducing your project.
2. The “One-Second-a-Day” Video Project
This is a beautiful, low-effort way to document your life. Using an app like 1SE, you film just one second of your life every day for a month, a season, or a whole year.
The Passion Payoff: It trains you to look for one small, beautiful, or interesting moment in every single day. The final video is a powerful, fast-paced montage that proves your life is more vibrant and full of memories than you realize.
Actionable First Step: Download the 1SE (One Second Everyday) app. Film your first one-second clip before you go to bed tonight.
3. The “Family Cookbook” Project
You are the historian of your family’s best recipes. Interview your parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. Collect their signature dishes and, more importantly, the stories and memories associated with them.
The Passion Payoff: This is a profound act of connection. You get to preserve a delicious piece of your family history, learn new skills, and create a beautiful, meaningful heirloom that you can pass down.
Actionable Step: Send a text to one family member today and ask for their most famous recipe.
4. Learn a “Useless, Awesome” Skill
Intentionally learn a skill that has absolutely no practical application in your life. This is a beautiful rebellion against the cult of productivity.
The Passion Payoff: The goal isn’t mastery; it’s play. Learning to juggle, solve a Rubik’s Cube, do a simple magic trick, or master a few basic calligraphy strokes is a low-stakes way to engage your brain, build new neural pathways, and have some good, old-fashioned fun.
Actionable Step: Search YouTube for a “beginner’s tutorial” for one useless, awesome skill. Watch it and try for 15 minutes.
5. The “30-Day” Photo Challenge
Give your creativity a gentle push with a structured challenge. Find a 30-day photo challenge online (they have prompts for each day, like “something blue” or “a reflection”) and commit to taking one photo a day with just your phone.
The Passion Payoff: Constraints are a powerful creative tool. The daily prompts force you to look at the world differently and improve your compositional eye, turning you into a more mindful and observant photographer.
Actionable Step: Google “30-day photo challenge.” Screenshot the first list of prompts that looks fun.
6. Start a “Niche” Podcast (With Just Your Phone)
You have a voice, and you have something you’re obsessed with. It could be a specific TV show, a historical period, a type of gardening—anything.
The Passion Payoff: This project helps you organize your thoughts, become a better storyteller, and connect with a global community of people who share your weird and wonderful interest. The barrier to entry has never been lower.
Actionable Step: Open the voice memo app on your phone. Spend five minutes talking, unscripted, about the topic you love. Just to see how it feels.
7. The “Hand-Lettering” Quote Project
Choose one of your favorite quotes each week. Your mission is to learn how to write it out beautifully using hand-lettering or modern calligraphy.
The Passion Payoff: This is a meditative, screen-free activity that combines the beauty of language with the creativity of art. You end up with a collection of beautiful, inspiring artwork that you created yourself.
Actionable Step: Find a beginner’s hand-lettering tutorial on YouTube or Skillshare. Grab a pen and paper and practice just one letter.
8. Design Your Own Board Game
Tap into your strategic and creative side by inventing the rules, theme, and components for your very own board game or card game.
The Passion Payoff: This is an incredible exercise in systems thinking, storytelling, and design. And at the end of it, you have a unique game that you can actually play with your friends.
Actionable Step: Start with the theme. What is a world you’d like to play in? A fantasy quest? A modern-day business tycoon game? Just brainstorm the concept.
9. The “Flash Fiction” Challenge
Use a random writing prompt generator online and challenge yourself to write one very short story (under 500 words) each week.
The Passion Payoff: This is a low-pressure way to exercise your creative writing muscles without the intimidating goal of “writing a novel.” It hones your ability to tell a complete story quickly and effectively.
Actionable Step: Find a random prompt generator online. Write just one compelling opening sentence based on the prompt.
10. The “Remix” Project
Take something that’s in the public domain—old black-and-white photos, silent films, classical music—and create something new with it.
The Passion Payoff: This removes the pressure of creating from a completely blank slate. You get to play and experiment by building on a pre-existing foundation, which can lead to surprisingly original and often hilarious results.
Actionable Step: Find an old, public domain photo online. Write a funny, modern caption for it.
Your creativity is a muscle. If you don’t use it, it gets weak. A side project is your personal gym. It’s the space where you get to be curious, make a mess, and remember how good it feels to create something that is entirely, wonderfully your own.Pick one project that gave you a tiny spark of excitement. And take the first, tiny step tonight.