“I’m too busy. My job makes me too tired. I’m too nervous.
” These phrases are likely familiar to adults who have ever considered taking up a new hobby. With work and family a top priority, dedicating time to other things can feel like an uphill battle. But as most people who have tried something new will tell you, it’s more than worth it.
Here are three adults who have started up a new pastime, and their advice to others who are considering doing the same thing. Stepping up to the barre A self-described “ballet mum”, Ivy Kwan Lim had always watched from the wings as her youngest daughter took to the stage. But in 2023, the 63-year-old finally took the leap (or rather, the jeté ) into her own dancing journey.
Ivy Kwan Lim and daughter Zara Lim in the studio. Credit: Penny Stephens Of course, it helps when there’s already an expert in the family – her daughter Zara has run her own dance school since 2021. What initially began as online classes from home soon became group tuition at Kwan Studio in Melbourne.
Loading “No one’s watching you and laughing at you ...
nobody cares what you wear [or] how you look, because we’re not there to parade ourselves,” says Kwan Lim, who now takes classes in both tap and ballet. Her weekend schedule has become a well-oiled machine. She makes the 50-minute train journey from her home to the Richmond studio every Saturday morning.
From 12 until 1 it’s ballet. From 2 until 3, tap class. The ritual has become an importa.