Varied Hobbies Equals Diverse Marketers

Hiring a marketing team isn’t easy, to be fair hiring anyone isn’t easy. It’s a long process and you’re probably getting bombarded with hundreds of CVs for every role you have. But what’s important on a CV, what should you look for, and what might your normally overlook?

Hobbies.

Usually, you might skim past that bit. After all, who cares if they’re into breadmaking, wargaming, or competitive yo-yoing when you’re looking for someone to run PPC campaigns or lead brand strategy? It may seem irrelevant what they do outside of work, but actually it can be a key to understanding a person; something that’s critical if you’re going to be spending 40hrs a week working with them.

So here’s the thing: those hobbies might be the best insight you’ll get into how they think, problem-solve, and collaborate. They can reveal creativity, strategic instinct, resilience, and the ability to see challenges from unexpected angles. All of these are exactly the traits that can turn a “good” marketer into a game-changing one.

From wargaming to wall climbing,, the skills people practise in their downtime often mirror the core traits every great marketing team needs: creativity, strategic thinking, focus, adaptability, and collaboration.

In this insight we’re going to explore a few examples,  and discuss why, if you’re hiring a marketing team, it’s worth looking beyond the pure numbers on the CV and delve into the hobbies section.

Video Gaming: More Than a Button-Mashing Pastime

A marketer who thrives in video gaming is doing more than just chasing high scores. Gaming fosters systems thinking; understanding how different parts of a system interact, much like campaigns, funnels, and customer journeys. 

It demands data-driven decision-making, interpreting in-game stats and KPIs in real time. And that split-second problem-solving in a boss fight? It’s the same skill you need when a campaign suddenly underperforms and you’ve got hours, not days, to pivot.

Work Application: They’re comfortable with complexity and can make fast, informed decisions without panicking. (Well, maybe a little bit of panicking when the health bar is in the red)

Gardening: The Long Game in a Fast-Paced World

From the outside, gardening is slow. But every seasoned gardener knows it’s about patience and long-term thinking. Nurturing seeds now for blooms next season and looking at those long term rewards.

It teaches seasonal planning, understanding when to plant, prune, or harvest, much like timing campaigns for seasonal peaks. There’s observation and iteration too: not every plant thrives, and you adjust accordingly. It’s not just a one-and-done hobby, it takes a lot of consideration, care and measurement.

Work Application: They understand growth is a process. In marketing, that translates into realistic expectations, resilience in the “quiet” phases, and a meticulous approach to nurturing leads until they’re ready to convert.

Wargaming: Strategy at its Sharpest

It’s not just toy soldiers on a table. Wargaming is about strategic planning, mapping out scenarios and anticipating opponent moves; much like predicting competitor behaviour in a saturated market. It develops decision-making under pressure, where each move carries consequences, and encourages detail-oriented creativity to make the strategy both sound and unexpected.

Work Application: They think three moves ahead, a vital asset in competitive industries where market shifts happen overnight.

Sports: Lessons in Discipline and Teamwork

Whether it’s football, rugby, rowing, or martial arts, sport teaches discipline and consistency. It demands understanding team dynamics, adapting to the strengths and weaknesses around you. 

Athletes know resilience and recovery – how to bounce back after a loss – and how to apply strategic adaptation mid-game. 

Work application: They can handle the grind, adapt strategies quickly, and are invested in collective wins, not just personal goals. Ideal when you’re collaborating on big projects.

Dungeons & Dragons or LARPing: Storytelling in Action

Yes, roleplay counts. Crafting campaigns in D&D or LARP scenarios sharpens storytelling – essential for brand narratives. It hones improvisation when plans go sideways, and builds skills in world-building that mirror designing customer journeys. Plus, it’s a masterclass in group facilitation and emotional intelligence, balancing different personalities to achieve a shared goal.

Work application: They can spin a compelling narrative, adapt in real time, and keep a diverse group motivated. Marketing is all about storytelling, so encourage these creatives to tell your stories.

The Neuroscience Behind “Hobby Power”

This advice isn’t just our Operations Director being self indulgent (…promise!), there’s science to back this up. Hobbies often trigger divergent thinking – generating multiple solutions to a problem – which is a goldmine for marketing ideation. They can also create flow states, those deep-focus periods where you’re fully immersed in the task. It’s the same mental mode you slip into during high-focus sprints, like launching a new product, preparing an extensive creative brief or optimising a time-sensitive campaign.

And then there’s the fail–learn–adjust cycle. Whether you’re perfecting a sourdough starter or learning a tricky guitar riff, you try, you fail, you tweak, and you try again. That’s basically the A/B testing process in disguise.

Finally, hobbies can be a good indicator of a healthy work-life balance; something that you should always try to encourage in the workplace.

Why This Matters When You’re Hiring a Marketing Team

Marketing isn’t just about technical know-how. It’s about the people applying it.

When you hire marketers with rich, maybe-unconventional hobbies, you’re not just getting someone who can run ads or tweak SEO. You’re getting resilience, adaptability, and creative depth, all of which are qualities that don’t always show up in qualifications but are essential in today’s fast-changing digital markets.

Leaders with creative outlets often lead more empowered and collaborative teams. They bring curiosity, a willingness to experiment, and a human touch to problem-solving. And, frankly, they’re more interesting, which often means they can create work that feels fresh, engaging, and relevant.

The Qoob Take: Skills Beyond the Job Description

At Qoob, we’ve seen first-hand how varied life experiences make for stronger teams and better results. Our work with emerging DTC and ecommerce brands demands agility, strategic foresight, and the confidence to try new approaches. These aren’t skills you learn solely in a marketing textbook.

We believe in fostering growth, both for our clients and our people. That means valuing the less obvious routes to skill-building. Whether it’s a marketer whose leadership style was shaped on the rugby pitch, or a strategist who credits their adaptability to years of competitive gaming, these experiences enrich the work we do together.

Because when your marketing team brings all of themselves – professional and personal – into the job, you get strategies grounded in expertise but fuelled by creativity and human insight.

Your Turn

So here’s the challenge: What’s the weirdest, most unexpected hobby you have, and how might it be making you a better marketer, leader, or collaborator?

Drop it in the comments or share it with your network. You might just inspire someone to see their downtime in a whole new light.

Because your next breakthrough idea? It might just come from your allotment, your D&D campaign, or the virtual battlefield at 2am.

Looking For Marketing Support?

Building – or growing – a marketing team can be a daunting task. We’re here to support you as you do; whether it’s working with your existing team as you grow, or fully managing your marketing efforts we’ve got a mix of skills to cover all aspects of your marketing needs.

Reach out to us today for more information.