75: How Money Changes the Meaning of Play

The future feels uncertain, but what if you could remember how to play? Leisure isn’t supposed to be productive, but in a world where everything feels like work, even our hobbies come with pressure. In this episode of Money Feels, we’re exploring how money changes the meaning of play, why hobbies don’t have to be profitable, and how burnout makes it impossible to enjoy free time.

We're your hosts, Alyssa and Bridget. Welcome to the podcast, where we talk through our money trauma and create a better understanding of building a healthy relationship with finance.

In today’s episode, we discuss the following:

• Why millennials struggle to enjoy hobbies without making them “useful”
• The pressure to monetize play and why it steals the joy
• Leisure guilt: why we feel bad about relaxing
• The social media trap — turning hobbies into personal brands
• How to reclaim play for yourself without productivity expectations

Resources:

Can't Even: How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation by Anne Helen Petersen

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