Talk about your hobbies at work

This is the second time* my hobbies will get me unrelated work.

I was chatting with a client who was slogging through some necessary but boring work capacity development. Aka, walking on an inclined treadmill. We were discussing having stuff, and having stuff that's hard to move around.

So naturally I mentioned my minis collection. Hard to move around, important to me, and irreplaceable if sold off.

I could have said, I collect figures, or I have some toys, or whatever. But I said, I paint miniature gaming figures.

"Oh, that's exactly what my son did. He used to play Warhammer."

Heh. I said, "That's exactly the kind of figures I paint - plastic and metal 28mm miniatures. I don't play Warhammer, but I know it."

That led right to my client saying that she'd mention that to her son, as she'd like him to train with me for a while, and he'd be really interested to know I was a minis collector and painter and gamer.

It's interesting to find out who overlaps your hobbies.

So, my advice? Let people know what you play. It could lead places unrelated to gaming.


* The previous time? I mentioned to one of my occasional clients (not mine, someone I'd cover when her trainer couldn't make her session) that I grew up playing role-playing games. She told her son, and that was the clincher for him coming in to try out training. Not often you associate "role-playing gamer" and "personal trainer" but they pair up in me just like "I've written game books you can find on Amazon.com" and "I've fought full contact."