[xaybey]

I understand not drinking and not playing video games, but saying that you have no hobbies would be pretty weird in an interview. They're just trying to get to know you. Hopefully you follow it up with some personal detail that distinguishes you from a robot.

[rayiner]

I hate the hobbies question in interviews. I work 60 hours a week and have a toddler. My hobby is sleeping. What the hell else else do you want from me?

[ExpiredLink]

I have a bike which I rarely ride. My interview hobby is cycling (reading books also works). Silly questions deserve silly answers.

[shaftoe]

I use hiking and reading.

This is a lot easier to explain to a stranger who forming a judgement than "in the rare moments I'm not watching my kids, working, cleaning, or sleeping, I like to go shoot guns that I built."

[kaa2102]

I was interviewing Java developers for Booz Allen when I rant into a candidate that was super-smart but had no hobbies except for coding in his spare time.

I thought it was a negative because the hiring managers and recruiters were pressing for a well-rounded person with "hobbies" and interests outside of work. However, the team lead for Java developers considered the super-focus on coding a plus.

In retrospect, all of these different factors were just subjective and not a good way to evaluate candidates potential effectiveness on the job.

[informatimago]

Distinguishes you from a robot, WHEN?

After the 80 hours a week spent at work, 56 hours a week spent sleeping (going to work while sleep deprived is like going to work drunk, so they do expect you to sleep!), 3.5 hours a week spent showering (and they do expect you to come to work clean, wonder why), 10 hours a week spent in commuting to work, 7 hours a week spent on feeding yourself (and they do expect you to eat so you can work (I can spend weeks without eating, but then I won't be productive)), 4 hours a week to buy the groceries, and 7 hours a week spent on the internet or TV, there remains NO time for any hobby.

So if they want hobbies, they will have to reduce drastically work time.

[npinguy]

Let's start from 80 hours a week spent at work. Red flag #1. Don't know why you would assume that's necessary

3.5 hours/week showering. Red flag #2. Even if you shower every single day, if you're spending 30 minutes in the shower each time you might as well call it a hobby. Unless you've got long luxurious hair, you should be able to get everything done in 10 minutes.

10 hours commuting, so 1 hour each way? #3 How much do you value your time? Clearly if you can't think of a hobby, not very much. If you did, you'd pay extra to not waste 2 hours every day wasted. But wait...why are you wasting that time? Can you read? Listen to audio books? Work on a side project? Even day dream and think? If you have to drive, can you switch from driving to motorcycling, and make that a hobby?

It sounds like you WANT to throw yourself into work, and spend all your energy and time into it as an excuse for lacking the ability to become a fully developed multi-faceted human being. And that is on you, not on your employer.

[jazzyk]

He used the word "shower", but I think he meant the time it takes to look respectable - so please add drying after shower, shaving, toilet trip(s), dressing, etc.

[philwelch]

I have long, luxurious hair. Hair only stays long and luxurious if you don't wash it daily. My showers go from 5 minutes to 10-15 minutes on hair wash days.

[firstworldman]

If these are honestly the amounts of time you devote to these things, then you need to make a big change. If you're working 80 hours per week and can't afford to live closer to work, you're working the wrong job. Unless you're a founder (and really, even then it should be temporary), 80 hours is an unreasonable expectation from management. Showering shouldn't take more than 10 minutes. Groceries shouldn't take 4 hours per week to buy. Conversely, you should probably spend more than 7 hours per week eating, and hopefully with other people who you care about. You could easily free up ~40 hours to spend time with your friends and family or developing a hobby. It would be good for your long term health and happiness too.

[tajen]

I would never hire someone who overworks. There's too much risk of bad quality work in the short term, upset/grumbling workers in the mid term and depressive people in the long term. Brains need refreshment and creativity needs a full life outside work. When you build your company, your own ecosystem is a healthy as the lifestyle of the people who make it.

But again, this is valid in Australia and France. I know that people work too much in SF/US.

[cylinder]

I don't know anyone who actually works 80 hours a week and I'm in NYC. They're all exaggerating. Most I know of is 60 and he loves it (finance). I'm in one of the most prominent coworking spaces in the city full of startups and the place is a ghost town after 7pm and before 9:30am.

[mahyarm]

I would subtract 20 hours from being at work. And you can shorten your commute if you choose to move. Many places are fine with you working on the train while commuting, or just working from home some days.

[waterlesscloud]

"Hopefully you follow it up with some personal detail that distinguishes you from a robot."

He mentioned having a family. That pretty much means he's not a robot.

[jrs235]

Which an employer may not want to ask for or know about since family status is a protected class in some jurisdictions.

"On May 11, 2014, Governor Mark Dayton signed the Women’s Economic Security Act (WESA), which amended the prohibitions against employment discrimination in the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA). Now, discrimination based on “familial status” in hiring, promotion, retention and other employment decisions is illegal in Minnesota." [1]

[1] http://mn.gov/mdhr/employers/familial_status.html

[spacemanmatt]

I have a life that I put down hobbies for. It would be unfair to call my kids, my love life, social events with friends, and keeping up with my necessary life (bills, laundry, groceries, etc.) hobbies. But that's all I have time for, after I hold down a regular job. It's just plain ignorant for younger teams to expect a rockstar in AND out of the office.

[xaybey]

Actually, I think those would be acceptable answers. As a young person who works with older coworkers, I'm perfectly willing to talk to you about your kids or buying groceries. I just want to relate to you in a conversation that isn't about work.

[spacemanmatt]

It's fine to relate, and I'm pretty sure we all need that. That's why I list hobbies/interests, as a point of departure from strictly relevant professional topics in a résumé. But it's also against most HR policies to ask about family-anything because few can do it without crossing some liability boundaries. This is a good conversation to have.