No-phone-reachable hobbies for the overworked Sysadmin

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Lonely_Rip_131@reddit

Lol I feel you needing a hobby to ignore your work phone calls/emails is a personal problem. Man up and compartmentalize that crap. It’s all mental.

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I agree 100%. But still, many Sysadmins, especially new ones, have a hard time setting boundries and saying no. They want to please, as well as being afraid to push back. Many will just accept the managers demands (requests) to do more.

Eventually, life catches up to some Sysadmins, and family begins to take priority, with responsibilities of dropping off\picking up kids at daycare, or sports activities on the weekends. But for many others, they have self esteem\self worth issues, and are just to afraid to push back on extra work. Its the mental part you refer to.

Those that can't learn to manage their careers and their workload will all have one outcome that we see post after post: burnout.

So, the way to prevent that for some is to do things with your free time, hobbies you enjoy, so that you have "the excuse" to not be working 24x7 just because you can and have nothing better to do.

That said, I worked a lot of extra hours early on in my career. Its how I got the extra skills to eventually move up and move out to bigger and better firms. But that was always my choice. For many on this sub, they seem to feel that its not their choice. That they will get blamed or fired for not working 50-60-70 hour weeks. Which is just not true.

So this list is for them. To see how their peers spend their time when not working. Hopefully giving them an idea of what to do when they need justification to not work 24x7.

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mediweevil@reddit

all of my hobbies are non phone reachable. I either turn the thing off or ignore it. if I'm not on call then answering is very much at my discretion. I am a senior and thus permanently an escalation point, but I'm not the only one and it's very much a best-effort thing unless it's my turn on the roster.

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taterthotsalad@reddit

I took up pistol and rifle shooting. Can’t hear my phone on the range. 😏

Problem is…coworkers are now going. Meaning there are even less of us answer the phone. Lol

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hakube@reddit

farming.

cultivating life with actual living things and not bits and bytes is hella rewarding

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wurkturk@reddit

motorcycle camping

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fieroloki@reddit

Turn dnd on and out the work phone in a drawer. Then do whatever.

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HITACHIMAGICWANDS@reddit

Do not disturb. You good balls. Lol

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formerscooter@reddit

Talking about hobbies it took me a second to figure out how you turn Dungeons and Dragons on.... But I figured it out.

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Snuzzlebuns@reddit

Not an unusual hobby for a sysadmin, as well 🤣

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plumbumplumbumbum@reddit

If my boss wont let me carry a Battle Axe around...

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davidbrit2@reddit

"Sorry, couldn't hear the phone over all the sick natural 20s I was rolling."

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MathmoKiwi@reddit

Not everyone has the powers to cast spells over phones to control them.

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BoltActionRifleman@reddit

I read it the same and was just going to move on, thinking that’s odd, until I read your comment.

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asynchronous_thought@reddit

oh, there are dozens of us.

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edgrlon@reddit

You have to roll 20 /s

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fieroloki@reddit

Lol

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random_troublemaker@reddit

D&D is a good excuse to put the phone in a drawer. Just you, some friends, and some dice.

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digitizedeagle@reddit

City walking leaving the smartphone and using physical maps and devices, such as a GPS.

Photography with a non-smartphone device (a normal camera?)

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keough99@reddit

You can add fishing to the list. I knew a few people that would go fishing on the weekend. I do cross country skiing which I'm not gonna answer my phone while I'm on the trail unless it's a close family member. I don't use my personal phone for anything work related. Only a select few know my personal number. If I work in a place where they don't issue a work phone I'll buy a cheap phone and a cheap plan to use for work purposes. I refuse to install MDM on my personal phone and use it for work purposes.

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dracotrapnet@reddit

Attend EDM/rock festivals and conventions. You can't hear much less take a phone call in those crowds.

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ThreadParticipant@reddit

I windsurf, perfect for a few hours of being unreachable

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BadAsianDriver@reddit

Cross county Amtrak trip.

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1a2b3c4d_1a2b3c4d@reddit (OP)

I like trains.

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Geaux_Cajuns@reddit

Race MX. No phone on the track

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TheJesusGuy@reddit

IT folks make good money

??

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1a2b3c4d_1a2b3c4d@reddit (OP)

Do you really want to have the "how much do you make in IT post next"?

IT is a great field where the sky is the limit on how much you can make, based upon your ability to learn new in demand skills.

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Fallingdamage@reddit

u/1a2b3c4d_1a2b3c4d

Even when I'm not working, I'm always anxious about making sure someone can reach me if there is an outage. We have people to pickup the slack when im gone but without any contact, the though of someone just going into the server room with a chainsaw because of a small issue that otherwise could be corrected in 30 seconds scares me.

Just found out yesterday that AT&T has been investing heavily in a new LEO system and has made SMS/iMessage possible from satellite now to any of their customers who use an iphone 14 or newer.

Now no matter where I am or where my hobbies take me, if I can see the sky, I can be reached.

That might open some opportunities for you.

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1a2b3c4d_1a2b3c4d@reddit (OP)

I agree. My boss is in my contacts list on my phone, and it will only ring if the person calling is in my contacts list. But like I said, if I am sailing on the open ocean, or racing my Mini Cooper on the race track, I will be unable to answer any calls. And that is life.

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Sinsilenc@reddit

I ride a motorcycle.

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SirLoremIpsum@reddit

The hobbies I have that make me phone-unavailable on my free time include:

My hobbies to do this include

setting boundaries
not answering the phone
politely answering the phone and saying "not till Mon"
turning off phone.

Don't do work arounds around. Learn to say no. Don't uproot your whole time off so you can have an "excuse".

You're only setting the expectation that you WOULD be available (and normally are) on holidays except you're going camping this one time.

Don't play games. Be an adult.

You're only inviting additional work when you forget the excuse. Or a request you carry a sat phone.

You shouldn't have to invent fake hobbies to get out of working on your day off. Address the root cause instead of doing the IT equivalent of a pencil taped to a CD drive to reboot a temperamental server.

"Id rather spend $2 grand on fishing gear and go away all weekend than to have an adult conversation with my boss and team"

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Grizzalbee@reddit

I opt to work at places with large enough teams that proper coverage just exists. I only ever get called after hours if one of the systems I own with a critical SLA goes down, or there's a real emergency, and my boss is the one calling me. Every single emergency call has been storm-related or the networking team accidentally killing an entire site with a convergence event.

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Broccoli_Ultra@reddit

This is the proper advice. This thread makes me wonder what some people's working conditions or bosses are like, jeez.

I'm not even reachable by phone in work most of the time. I just turn it over most of the day. Its been on silent since I bought it. We have Teams and email, that's enough. I like my job but I still like it less than practically anything else I do with my life.

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--Chemical-Dingo--@reddit

I don't need to make up some elaborate excuse. If its the weekend or after 5pm and there isn't a major major outage, then don't fucking talk to me. If you are not paying me, I refuse to care.

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xpkranger@reddit

Overlanding (ie, glorified car camping) to areas of limited to no cell reception.

But I do turn on DND after 8pm. If it's important enough, someone will call me.

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xxdcmast@reddit

If you’re off you’re off. I don’t worry about answering my phone.

However I also like fishing, offshore fishing. 20-50 miles out no service.

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Zazzog@reddit

This. While I do leave my phone on 24/7 most of the time, if I'm on vacation, I turn it off. If I find myself tempted to check it, I put it in a locked drawer. Only a few people have my personal number and I trust them to call me only if the situation is actually dire.

But to add to the list, how about skydiving? Even if you have your phone on you, it's kind've hard to take a call while falling at terminal velocity.

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MathmoKiwi@reddit

Don't even have to be skydiving

Just simply a mundane pastime like cycling means it can be too "dangerous" to answer the phone while riding (especially if going downhill at the time).

Plus a lot of cycling routes take you to places with spotty cellphone reception...

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randypaine@reddit

Even if you CAN answer the phone on the bike, you can be an hour or more away from a computer to do anything to help so the rest of the team can handle it without you.

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MathmoKiwi@reddit

An hour away? Why are your bike rides so short....

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randypaine@reddit

Settle down r/bicyclingcirclejerk not all of us are dentists with tons of free time.

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chewb@reddit

there is no situation whatsoever urgent enough for them to justify calling my cell. Ever

I’m not oncall, I’m not working, period

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Tymanthius@reddit

I just don't put work stuff on my personal phone, unless it benefits me.

And if work calls my personal cell, I create a contacts entry so I know not to answer next time.

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Zazzog@reddit

I should've made clear, I carry separate phones. I know of no case for me, personally, where having work stuff on my personal phone, or vice versa, that would be benefit me.

If someone from work calls me who I haven't given my number to, like everyone else for whom I don't have a contact entry, they get the screener. I probably wouldn't answer, and would create a contact entry with no ringtone. Then I'd find out who gave them my number and do the same to that person as well.

Lucky for me, the few people who have my personal number have never abused their Batphone privileges. I can count the number of times I've gotten a call on my personal phone on one hand, and it was always a real emergency.

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Tymanthius@reddit

I wish they'd issue me a phone. Or a stipend.

I put Teams on my phone so I don't have to lug my laptop all over a site when I just need to communicate some stuff via teams. But it gets uninstalled on vacation.

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ChlupataKulicka@reddit

This is the way. I’m using shortcuts on iOS to turn the second sim on and off while at work. Only my boss and nearest coworkers have my personal phone number in case of REAL emergency.

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No-Beat7231@reddit

Turn off the phone if your not on call. If your in management well that's the burden of that big pay bump lol.

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postmodest@reddit

Anyone who expects you to have a REASON to be unavailable needs to learn that "no." is a complete sentence.

I used to work with a team and an on-call schedule, but the boss knew I lived near the office so would call me instead of the on call person. I got tired of being guilted into not "doing something important" on my off time so I just started telling him I was drunk and I would only come in if he put it in writing that I should break the law and company policy.

I was never drinking. Fuck you, Tom.

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beelgers@reddit

In theory I agree. In practice, I have to check occasionally or it stresses me out to not know if something big is wrong. I realize that's a "me problem" and not what I should be doing.

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IlPassera@reddit

Museum going - gotta turn off the ringtone and cant take calls.

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Crafty_Dog_4226@reddit

Put me in the group with the mountain bikers. And add a specific location - Snowshoe, WV. I love that bike park, but the best thing is that it is located in the National Radio Quiet Zone because of the nearby Greenbank radio observatory. They have weak cell phone access at the top, but otherwise off-grid.

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HadetTheUndying@reddit

Skateboarding

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Pale-Muscle-7118@reddit

It's called Airplane Mode. Use it

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sharpfork@reddit

My hobby is testing faraday cages for extended periods of time.

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AsparagusInitial3688@reddit

Volunteer firefighter and EMT

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_Volly@reddit

Sky diving - hard to talk when you are falling

Spelunking - you are deep underground so no cell phone service

Diving - you are underwater.

Deep sea fishing - you are in the ocean

Running a jack hammer - you can't hear the phone ring.

Driving a tank - cell phone signal can't get through the armor of the tank.

Exploring off grid areas - no cell signal

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Roanoketrees@reddit

Scuba my dude.

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Rikij0@reddit

For me it's fishing. I have no cell service or internet at the lake. I intend to keep it that way.

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Past-File3933@reddit

I go scuba diving when I need a break from everything. Even if I had a waterproof phone, good luck reaching me.

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Dry-Classic1763@reddit

I can recommend downhill Mountainbiking to you. Nothing makes you living only in this very moment, forgetting that last shitty meeting, like sending down a hill with good speed, with your full mental capacity left hyper focusing on the only question that matters in this second: should you take the next jump, or better go the chicken line this time...just a fraction of a second to decide to take the risk.... Based in your current skill level...your mood today... Your bike setup today etc., the next jump/ obstacle/ whatever is just a blink of an eye away. You can also throw all your money into the hobby, easily.

All jokes aside. This is why I love riding bikes. There is some style for everyone. Go full f'kn crazy down the Bikepark way, do some mediocre speeds with nice downs as well as ups (Enduro/all mountain). You can also go rather slowly, but maybe more technically challenging about small roots and rocks, constantly adjusting your balance. No matter how you do this sport, make sure to find YOUR sweet spot between mentally forcing you to be fully aware of this moment, but not making it an additional source of stress in your life. I only find this in all mountain/ Enduro/ Downhill. I also like endurance long distance biking, but for the exact opposite. Here I DO find time to not focus on biking, but arrange my thoughts while monotonously just going straight on this endless road.

Up to you. You either you want to have time for your thoughts, or you do not want to have time for your thoughts. But no matter what, Out can not reach your phone :)

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BigBobFro@reddit

I play mens league sports and leave my phone in the car. Contact sports are not healthy for technology,.. even smart watches.

Also helps burn off some aggression.

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Afropirg@reddit

Disc Golf is a good one, and can be played solo or with friends. Cheap to get started*, and most courses are free to play.

Gets you out and active, can be played in a park setting or in the woods.

*You don't need a full bag filled with 20+ discs. Starter sets are generally around $25-$35, depending on the brand and plastic type. Once you start getting deep into the sport, it can start to get really expensive. You don't need to chase the latest cool disc. Learn the few discs you start with, learn how each fly before you move on to other discs.

I've been playing for over 10 years now, and it's a great stress reliever. Both my current job and my previous job had/have small courses within walking distance to my office. I could play a full 18-hole course in about 45 minutes, and did so for about 9 years during my lunch break.

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Fit_Indication_2529@reddit

Primitive Camping, Caving aka spelunking, Rock Climbing, Fly Fishing in dead zones, Ask: “Does this place have bathrooms?” If the answer is “no”—you’re probably out of signal range.

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Fit_Indication_2529@reddit

Another good one Scuba diving. You can do it in Rock Queries or lakes not just an ocean or gulf.

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rgraves22@reddit

Camping!

We are going camping just north of Aspen this weekend and I will be 100% no service off grid for 72 solid hours. Yes. Please.

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NDaveT@reddit

Rock climbing.

Wilderness camping.

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Adept-Midnight9185@reddit

Amateur Radio - goes great with the hiking, too. And these days there are digital modes in addition to analog modes, it's amazing... and completely business free over the air by regulation.

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Hotshot55@reddit

My favorite hobby is having a separate work phone, so if I don't want to be reached I just don't bring it with me.

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chillzatl@reddit

staring into the void...

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Smilin_Chris@reddit

Roll a perception check.

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chillzatl@reddit

perception check failed: You continue to stare into the void

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uselessInformation89@reddit

Be careful. If you do that long enough it starts to stare back.

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mnvoronin@reddit

...it blushes.

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mortemanTech@reddit

Eyes are not the windows to the soul. They are the doors. -The Doctor

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Meowgi_sama@reddit

Most of my hobbies are physical activities:

Martial arts Volleyball Walking Gym

And then video games as a filler when I have nothing else to do.

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NNTPgrip@reddit

USPSA

Just don't answer your cell phone, if you do, you're the asshole that doesn't help score/paste/RO.

I don't even bring my work phone to matches.

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Oli_Picard@reddit

Photography. For the love of god, photography. I am just at the end of my two week trip across Japan taking photographs and it’s a paradise for us tech nerds from the camera side of things but the countryside is nuts too. I climbed up to 160 meters to see Monkeys in 37c heat. I’m a fat bloke and I’m balding and I was able to do this with my asthma fat ass. I would recommend others give it a go too!

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Fitz_2112b@reddit

Disc Golf! Bonus points for being relatively inexpensive and you dont have to be in shape to start playing.

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MagnaObscura@reddit

Put phone in other room. Power up synthesizers and drum machines. Lose self in 16-step loops. Repeat as necessary.

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epicNag@reddit

They seriously expect people to answer the phone off duty hours?

I don’t know about your country’s work laws but in mine it is illegal to work while under influence of alcohol. So no matter what hobbies you actually have, you can always take the call and tell them with a shit eating grin that you just finished a bottle of Jose Cuervo. Yes you are happy to come to work but you have absolutely no liability for any and all mistakes that could be made because you are under the influence of alcohol. Cheers boss!

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ggerke@reddit

Depending on circumstances (only SA most commonly)... If you're not on call you're not on call. Nobody (i.e. company) besides your family remembers dedicating your time to the company. Even now my wife and daughter remember all the hours I used to put in. And yeah, I've been paroled from work ;)

If possible have the company buy you a second phone that's for work only and then change all references possible at work to that being your personal phone. If the company won't get a work phone for you get a cheap phone with a cheap plan and give them that number for a contact. It's slightly annoying carrying two phone but you get used to it.

Anyway, depending on what part of the world you're in there's hopefully some national parks available that would have no/spotty coverage.

Or hey - airplane mode works on the ground too.

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LilacBigfoot@reddit

Local hot yoga studio! They make you leave your phone at the door.

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PurpleFlerpy@reddit

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the Society for Creative Anachronism yet. Some of the best IT guys I know are also the best SCAdians. Go off into nowhere and pretend you're in the middle ages for the weekend. Or two weeks.

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moufian@reddit

Mountain Biking works for me.

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taikowork@reddit

Mountain biking and rock climbing are my DND hobbies of choice.

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ImpossibleParfait@reddit

I had a coworker who was a mountain biker...was being the key word!

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widowhanzo@reddit

I turned to gravel biking instead. Just as adventurous but I get back in one piece.

I'm often in places without cell service, so suitable for OP as well, although I like cell service for safety.

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laugher19@reddit

Yeah it's straight up therapy for me. Also building up bikes (not the electronic stuff, my bikes are electronic free)

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Hoosier_Farmer_@reddit

alcohol&drugs - not permitted to work while intoxicated, per company policy.

jkjk check out general aviation (small planes), scuba, shooting/archery, and of course goat farming.

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dubiousN@reddit

alcohol&drugs - not permitted to work while intoxicated, per company policy.

This is my actual answer, no jo

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1a2b3c4d_1a2b3c4d@reddit (OP)

I once had a help desk tech that told me that, after work, he smoked pot, got high, got drunk, and fcked hookers... and that if I wanted him to be available and not do those things I would need to pay him to be "on call" and not enjoy his free time.

With a straight face, I had the pleasure of reciting that to my executives when they wanted my team to be on call with no additional pay. They dropped their free on call request after that.

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dustinduse@reddit

My company has no such policy, and beer in the fridge.

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dubiousN@reddit

I WFH so

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dustinduse@reddit

Damn, so beers in the fridge then? 🤣

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SpecialSheepherder@reddit

This was not too uncommon at places I worked in Germany, but never seen in Canada. We get 2 alcoholic drinks at our Christmas party, the rest of the year is dry, including BBQs

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dustinduse@reddit

I’m in the US. I know a place nearby that the company buys beer for Fridays. They start drinking two hours before close, and the boss buys everyone an uber home. It’s funny to see because there will be maybe 3-4 cars in the parking lot on Fridays because everyone enjoys the free beer and car ride home.

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No_Investigator3369@reddit

So my expertise only goes as far as that Denzel Washington movie where he flies inverted. But I thought you could not flight high or drunk per the FAA?

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TheRegaurd04@reddit

I start each weekend with five shots of vodka to make sure they can't drag me in

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standish_@reddit

You can combine all of those if you aren't a wimp.

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Hoosier_Farmer_@reddit

YOLO 🤘

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AlfalfaGlitter@reddit

alcohol&drugs

You don't need to really do it. Just say that it's your free time and are not in condition.

Or just don't pick up the phone.

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YourHighness3550@reddit

Canyoneering. Like hiking but a bit more intense/invested. But the jest of it is to drop into canyons with truly no cell signal.

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spaceman_sloth@reddit

any hobby can be unreachable if you turn your phone off

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mschuster91@reddit

Ham radio. Go on a field day and the only ones able to reach you will need a license as well!

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zerocool286@reddit

For me I go shooting and taking shooting classes. I paint miniature board game figures. Also other hobbies that take concentration away from my phone.

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DheeradjS@reddit

Untill a year ago I would have said a trip through the middle of the desert, but the Namib Desert had okay-ish 3g in the middle of buttfuck nowhere.

Anything ocean based sound slike a good one.

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commissar0617@reddit

I have yet to put back on the work apps after getting a new phone.

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Daviler@reddit

Technical scuba diving

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Unexpected_Cranberry@reddit

Any hobby can be made phone unavailable if you want to? Just set it to silent and do whatever you want and check it when you're done.

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goldsmobile@reddit

True Story: Picked up the Great Highland Bagpipes. Best hobby ever.

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KenTankrus@reddit

Cooking/Grilling/Smoking

DIY projects, specifically construction type

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1a2b3c4d_1a2b3c4d@reddit (OP)

Smoking

I have to add, I (as a former IT Manager) once had a help desk tech (who I loved), who told me that, after work, he smoked pot, got high, got drunk, and fcked hookers all night.

And if I was to try to call him, chances are good he would not pick up. But if he did, he wouldn't be able to work anyway... unless I paid him to be on call.

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preci0ustaters@reddit

Based

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Perfect_Designer4885@reddit

🤣that is fucking brilliant, I just got drunk, very very drunk, if it was imperative I fix an issue ASAP, they would have to pay me to from the time of the call for me to sober up a little plus my actual time working.

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IdiosyncraticBond@reddit

We once had an emergency at work and they knew one guy that could fix it. He was found drunk out of his skull in a bar, got a cab to drive him to work. He stared a bit, something started working again and the cab brought him back to the pub

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sneakattaxk@reddit

I would just try and fix it while drunk, either it will be spectacular and I'll have no idea what i did to make it work or it will be spectacular and the outage will be twice as long, either way i get paid and keep on drinking

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sneakattaxk@reddit

man i wish i did that when i was younger....ended up the wife and kids route....pretty sure they wouldn't approve of that hobby now

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Downinahole94@reddit

That's fantastic.

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bgatesIT@reddit

thats fucking hilarious

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kero_sys@reddit

Think he meant smoking meat.... not puffing away 🤣

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jhme207@reddit

I have a lot of hobbies and the best ones are ones where I'm completely unreachable.

Every year in June I do a 1 week camping trip with my brother. Completely off grid, no cell service and barely can get a radio to work for the forecast. While we are out there, we run a gold dredge that we own. We never find much, but we eat like kings and drink plenty of beer.

In September we do a multi day off grid camping/fishing trip.

I do own an Inreach so I let my wife know that we are still alive each night.

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er1catwork@reddit

Camping. When I go, I am “out of service” (cellular) for the duration.

(Doesn’t matter that there is a cell tower adjacent to the campground, I am out of cell service! Except for my daughter. Her calls always seem to make it through….

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Living_Astronomer834@reddit

I have since taken up fishing. This is truly a great way to disconnect and get in touch with the outdoors ! Highly recommend.

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Familiar-Seat-1690@reddit

anything with headphones. Sorry was watching tv / gaming with headphones on.

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AistoB@reddit

Scuba diving

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TipsyTriggerFinger@reddit

Hunting. In places only a PLB can reach satellites .

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AV-Guy1989@reddit

Gun range, phone in car. Bring your hard drives that need to be "securely destroyed"

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jetcamper@reddit

MotoGP

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pppjurac@reddit

Caving and/or research of old mines . Mind both are quite dangereous to do alone.

And OP , ffs - get a separate number and phone for private use. Only share with nearest family and friends. Leave business phone on desk or only when on call by written rules.

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Gunjob@reddit

Diablo 4 seasonal grind? ahaha

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Vindalfur@reddit

When I'm not clocked in at work, I'm unreachable. So all my hobbies are phone-unavailable hobbies :)
Knitting, pc-games, gardening, photography.

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wotwotblood@reddit

Fishing in a middle of nowhere. Less movement for people who dont like to exercise unless necessary (me), I can stare at one place without being weird.

Best is fishing in the middle of the sea.

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QuestConsequential@reddit

Anything in water for zero reachability, anything moving for a long time to respond and lastly but most importantly any hobby at all if you have boundaries.

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Pastamafarian@reddit

Scuba Diving.. Cannot get you down there.

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JuggernautUpbeat@reddit

Climb to the very top of a disused radio tower and have the ladder fall off.

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Spidey16@reddit

Any hobby you like. Just put the phone out of reach. Don't check it the whole time.

If it's not in your contract to be always reachable, or if you can reasonably be unreachable for a certain amount of time, then pick any hobby or outing and then make yourself unreachable.

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randalzy@reddit

LARPs (Live Action Roleplaying games), the ones I do/attend are usually in houses that do kid's camps (that's what online translate sites tells me is the term in English), in very mountain/rural areas that usually don't have good phone coverage.

But I has this hobby before being deep in sysadmin world ;)

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Jinxyb@reddit

Fishing, getting out and staring at the sea for hours.

Playing / recording music

[-]

InternationalOwl8131@reddit

If you want to be a lot of hours off-phone, start training for triathlon, you won´t have time to reach for the phone :)

[-]

GalvanizedDiktations@reddit

Woodworking

[-]

kaiwulf@reddit

Overlanding

The idea is to be remote to the point you're wholly reliant on everything you brought with you, including the vehicle that got you there

Also helps to have an amateur radio license and the requisite equipment on board for communications, and a sat phone or Garmin In-Reach for emergencies

Plenty of amazing trails out there to explore and completely disconnect from the craziness that work life can carry

[-]

voiping@reddit

Sounds like you're looking for an excuse to be unreachable, so you can hide behind it. (I know the feeling.) But you're fundamentally still emotionally tethered.

Decide on your boundary, tell your boss, and then enforce it. Turn your phone off/DND, whatever. If they want you reachable outside your typical hours, they need to arrange in writing to schedule and pay for it, and only if it's super beneficial for you. (e.g. callouts mean minimum 4 hours of pay, even if it's 5 minutes, or other very favorable terms I've seen.) That also means they limit it to emergencies and not just more stuff that can wait.

[-]

alucardcanidae@reddit

I like to play Golf. Phones on silence and in the Golf-Bag. Just 4 hours with non-work-related buddies and that's practically it.

Also gets you outside. Can recommend.

[-]

Sad_Copy_9196@reddit

Caving

Bird watching

Hunting

Quitting your job

Wild life photography

[-]

wayofthelao@reddit

Could you just say you’re doing all these things and put your phone away and play video games?

[-]

lemon_tea@reddit

O came off a 7 month bender pf 14hr days, 6 and 7 days a week. Took a 23 day blue-water sailing trip aboard a teaching vessel from california to easter island. No cell phones out there. It was glorious.

[-]

Auno94@reddit

Sleeping

[-]

Icy_Conference9095@reddit

I still homelab... And just turn my phone off. :P

[-]

come_ere_duck@reddit

Sucks to be you bro. Australia has the "Right to disconnect" laws now so we are explicitly backed by the law to ignore an employer outside of hours. Now IT is a little different because you can be on-call etc. but that's usually in your contract anyway. In my workplace on-call work is rotated fairly amongst the team so there's no drama there.

As far as your situation goes, a holiday cruise is always a good one. They do offer WiFi but it costs extra, so if work ever wants to get a hold of you, you tell them before you leave "They do offer internet on the ship but it costs extra, but I'm happy to stay online if (employer) is happy to cover the cost". The fees are expensive too so I doubt you'll have them harassing you to stay online.

[-]

BamBam-BamBam@reddit

Camping

[-]

mad-ghost1@reddit

The phone isn’t the problem. Back in the days I was in the same boat. So I decided that if an employer wants to reach me they have to provide a phone and have to pay me extra. I guard my personal phone number from everybody in the company. That firewall is massive 😂. Rarely an exception is made. That piece of mind is worth the few bucks a month.

[-]

kero_sys@reddit

Escape rooms

[-]

TheFluffiestRedditor@reddit

aka, Libraries.

[-]

chefkoch_@reddit

aka server rooms

[-]

TheFluffiestRedditor@reddit

Sailing - long distance coastal cruising out of mobile phone reception areas. Best holidays ever!

[-]

IWorkForTheEnemyAMA@reddit

Playing Balatro-oh wait I use my phone for that. I can do it while ignoring everyone though.

[-]

TheIncarnated@reddit

Cooking, grilling, smoking meats.

Smoking pot.

Yard work.

Diy stuff.

Car diy stuff.

Playing video games with my wife.

Educating our child.

So like living life because they don't have my cell phone number and my teams notifications are on mute at 5pm-9am.

[-]

buzzy_buddy@reddit

honestly any hobby you choose can be a phone-free hobby. just turn it off.

personally I enjoy building mechanical keyboards. the barrier to entry is fairly low if you start with parts off aliexpress and you might genuinely liking the keyboard you make. there is an extreme end of the hobby where things get ridiculously priced, and sometimes for good reason.

any hobby that involves physical fitness is also a must-be-phone-free zone. i don't want any distractions while I'm working on my health. leave me alone!

[-]

Material_Strawberry@reddit

Start collecting Faraday pouches and displaying your phone in whichever you find most appealing that day.

[-]

dagamore12@reddit

Hell I paint mini figurines, some from the 40K universe some from the One Page Rules sort of thing, for those hours I am full on in Do Not Disturb and the phone might as well be off, as I wont be answering anything.

[-]

buzzlit@reddit

I turn off teams and Outlook notifications and go for a long motorcycle ride. And pretend I'm off the grid. But I'm not cuz using Waze lol.

[-]

Stewge@reddit

Step 1: Dedicated work phone (make them supply and pay for it)

Step 2: Leave it in a drawer or whatever when you're not working. Problem solved.

[-]

EHPBLuurr@reddit

I like photography. It pairs really well with hiking, especially if you wanna get in shape by lugging an extra 10-20lbs of shit up and down a mountain. Really calming and relaxing going out to waterfalls and just listening to nature do its nature things

[-]

chuckaholic@reddit

If I'm playing my guitar, I can't hear my phone.

[-]

jmay055@reddit

What race car-ing do you do? And rally 👀? Former is one of my "I won't be returning your calls" hobbies, as well as hiking with the missus.

[-]

rcp9ty@reddit

Just do something in a job construction trailer aka connex box... The thing acts like a giant faraday cage. On a serious note look up food places that involve driving one-six hours of driving. For example my favorite Mexican restaurant exists in Grand forks North Dakota. My favorite steak join is in Iowa. My favorite Italian food place is in West Virginia. There's a couple places in America that have a theme that matches my favorite anime. Everyone says the same boring thing for hobbies. Imagine renting your dream car for a weekend taking a relaxing drive your phone set to DnD because you're driving and need to be hands free. Also if you plan it right you can see some cool stuff along the way.

[-]

tinySparkOf_Chaos@reddit

Not exactly a hobby, but cruise ships (and not springing for the over priced Wi-Fi package) make for good no-phone-reachable vacations.

Think you already have these outdoors activities: Camping, hiking, fishing, canoeing, outdoor rock climbing.

For indoors activities: dungeon and dragons? Long gameplay sessions on weekends (6 hours) and make up a no phones rule for the group.

[-]

thatsnotamachinegun@reddit

Putting on big boy pants and turning the phone off is #1 hobby I recommend. Another good one is iron man training, specifically the bike portion.

[-]

Sportsfun4all@reddit

Goat farmer

[-]

Numzane@reddit

Nudist retreat. No pockets to keep your phone in

[-]

rodder678@reddit

You don't need an offline hobby. You just need to stop responding unless it's something you actually want to deal with.

[-]

bork_bork@reddit

Fishing, especially on a fly.

[-]

krakadic@reddit

Mountain biking/ cycling...

Scca/track days have a lot more downtime than you'd expect.

[-]

derscholl@reddit

Put notifications from work apps on silent after 5 PM, easy.

[-]

Intelligent_Run_8460@reddit

Traveling. My favorite is out of country; sorry, my visa literally doesn’t let me work here…. (The UK is good for this, no digital nomad provisions.)

[-]

Baxter281@reddit

Hang gliding

[-]

EricIsBannanman@reddit

Astrophotography. Go to remote places for dark skies to photograph the Milky way to further enforce the idea that work doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

[-]

brianinca@reddit

I'd add car camping / overlanding. Depending on where you live, you can still get far, far away from any cell coverage.

Example: in California, the Mojave Road is a great / easy 3-4 day 4x4 drive through beautiful, historic country. Best done in Spring (flowers!) or Fall, you can die in Summer.

[-]

BuoyantBear@reddit

Paragliding. Coolest thing I've ever done. It's taken me around the planet and I've flown higher than many airplanes just riding the wind.

[-]

tehreal@reddit

Buy a boogie board at Walmart and go to the beach to figure out how to use it

[-]

upcboy@reddit

I like to cruise and usually don’t buy an internet package. This makes me unreachable.

[-]

lakorai@reddit

r/backpacking r/ultralight r/campinggear

Also volunteer for scouting. You can absolutely have a great time, make a difference in Kids lives and you can go camping and backpacking with like minded people.

[-]

drakhen@reddit

Rock climbing

[-]

JoshMS@reddit

I got into dual sport motorcycles in my late 30's. We ride forest service roads up in the mountains far out of cell range.

[-]

Guru_Meditation_No@reddit

I'll be a Scout Camp as a parent volunteer all next week.

[-]

StudioDroid@reddit

I used to go on scuba trips in live aboard boats, no communications. Other times we would go backpacking in the wilderness. it was great being not reachable.

Sometimes people would accuse me of hoarding knowledge so I would be indispensable, that was far from the truth. I was very happy to teach those with the skills how to do my job, I wanted to be able to go off grid and not worry.

[-]

GreenEggPage@reddit

Unless I'm paid to be on-call, I'm unreachable during off hours.

[-]

whopooted2toot@reddit

Sounds like SCUBA lessons are in order.

[-]

hypnotic_daze@reddit

Going rock climbing. For real, I literally was unable to answer the phone as I was on a back country rock climb literally hanging off a sheer cliff. Plus you can get awesome pictures just in case there are any doubts.

[-]

RoryDaBandit@reddit

OP, you're literally my best friend now, let's set out on a catamaran for a few quick legs, then race our cars on a motorway. Then I'll teach you to windsurf, cause it's awesome.

I'm not even kidding, these are my hobbies man.

[-]

svtstew202@reddit

what car do you have!?

[-]

gamebrigada@reddit

Where are you out of? I want in. I race cats, AND charter them. Lol.

Haven't gotten into car racing but I'm maybe tires away from having fun on the track.

[-]

NoURider@reddit

Going home is all the hobby I need. others pick up the phone.

[-]

NoURider@reddit

Going home is all the hobby I need

[-]

Zenie@reddit

Disc golf and just don't answer even if I have service

[-]

awnawkareninah@reddit

Idk if it's everyone's deal cause it's mentally straining but chess tournaments. Literally can't have your phone on for games. Like 4-5 hours straight at least.

[-]

ExceptionEX@reddit

Scuba Diving, try to get signal 30 feet below the ocean.

[-]

thatweirditguy@reddit

Shooting range. Can't take off your ear protection to answer the phone

[-]

bobsmith1010@reddit

lol. yet there are many earpro that has bluetooth and microphone built in.

[-]

kindofageek@reddit

Fly fishing Kayaking Cycling and mountain biking

[-]

bobsmith1010@reddit

Gun Range. Two reasons one is it hard to hear you on the phone with all the pop in the background. Second alot of people who are anti-gun would steer away from the conversation.

[-]

A508332@reddit

Step 1: buy 4x4 Step 2: go offloading Step 3: ??? Step 4: Boom, unreachable.

[-]

elitegoodguy@reddit

Cave Diving... Can't answer the phone 100ft underwater 1000ft back in a cave.

[-]

OldeFortran77@reddit

I was going to say "spelunking" but you really went all out there.

[-]

elitegoodguy@reddit

Haha cave diving is my happy place. Work knows I'm completely unreachable on my trips.

[-]

Trelfar@reddit

Drinking.

If the boss wants me to remote in while blotto that's on him to explain to the C-suite when half their files get deleted because I was working while impaired.

[-]

boglim_destroyer@reddit

Fishing. Super easy to pick up.

[-]

thinkingobserver@reddit

Was a mountain biker will likely go back, however the motorcycle is the one for now ride it to work everyday makes me 100% focus on whats in front of me especially when splitting , in the summer time I'll be out finding the twisties after work and on the weekends.

[-]

fitz1015@reddit

Off roading. For me it's a jeep..

Motorcycle riding.

[-]

NetSecineer@reddit

Pickleball. Leave your phone in the car or in the bag. Running. Forget your phone.

[-]

BalderVerdandi@reddit

Anything in the mountains - camping, hunting, fishing, or grabbing my UTV (side by side) and going over the ridgeline. You're not even going to get the old analog cell tower signal over that! (Make sure you take a PLB - personal locator beacon - just in case you get hurt.)

Bourbon and cigars - because I can't go to work drunk and smelling like a Padron 1926 80th Anniverssary Maduro.

Radio controlled car racing - phone goes on DND because I can't drive or pit cars while on the phone. Track rules.

Three gun matches (target shooting) - can't come to work armed, and I can't answer the phone with earplugs in.

Grilling or smoking meat - yes, there's a difference, and no, I can't come in when I have $300 in briskets going for 14 hours, or $250 in ribeyes, unless you're paying to replace them.

[-]

Math_comp-sci@reddit

What sort of sailing are you talking about? Cellular service can extend pretty far out to sea so you need to pick the kind of sailing where you can't have your phone on hand. Hiking has the same issue that depending on where you hike you will have cell service. With rock climbing on the other hand you can't really answer the phone so reception doesn't matter. Same for going to the gym, you just put your phone in the locker and you are unreachable.

[-]

chompy_jr@reddit

The smart move is just don’t answer. Every mid range and senior job I’ve ever had required off hours work and an expectation that I’d also be present during customer hours. It can be horrible if you let it.

Let these grumpy assholes tell ya, if you are always available, it’ll be an expectation.

As for hobbies? For me it’s weight lifting, motorcycle riding and live music but I don’t need any of them to ignore people during off hours. We all work hard and we all deserve some balance.

Also? If you keep answering calls after hours and drop dead, absolutely nobody in your workplace will care. They will offer thoughts and prayers and post your job in 2 days. In 2 weeks you won’t be remembered.

Hug your people. Be good at your job. Do cool shit.

[-]

JaschaE@reddit

Analog photography and related darkroom work. Phone as a lightsource ruins the paper.

[-]

DaCrunkPorcupine@reddit

Scuba diving No talking, just the soothing sound of bubbles and wildlife

[-]

TomoAr@reddit

Scale modeling (building gundams & car model)

Brewing new cardboard crack decks (magic the gathering 🤣)

[-]

r0cksh0x@reddit

I mountain bike (with occasional roadie cycling mixed in). Gone for hours, often in no cell phone range. Also, separating the work phone from my personal phone is great. The office does not know my personal cell number, just the one they gave me. leave the device behind. Realistically, one should just learn to put it down and if necessary, silence it. Email notifications have always been off.

[-]

Kyleakoch@reddit

Pinball & Pinball Tournaments. You can find publicly accessible tables in arcades & bars in most cities while traveling.

[-]

DiverDN@reddit

Skydiving.

While I'm at the DZ, my phone is in my bag.. No distractions. Safety issue.

[-]

CannedSteak@reddit

For some reason, every bowling alley I've been to has had terrible reception.

Any water activity

Crowded places like skating rinks or amusement parks

[-]

DarthtacoX@reddit

No. What people need to do is learn what work-life balance is, or just how to say the fuck no. Too many people that work as system administrators are spineless.

[-]

MadStephen@reddit

Shooting competition matches.

Just mentioning it tends to get people to leave you the hell alone, lol.

[-]

chewyblues@reddit

I love non-technical hobbies to get away. I'll go camping, hunting, mountain biking, golfing, even playing in a rock band. I still have cell coverage 99% of the time in these situations, but thankfully, I very rarely get called off-hours when I'm not on-call.

[-]

Yellowbird00@reddit

Climbing in a gym or outdoors it's my favorite

[-]

_Moonlapse_@reddit

Play guitar, make music.

Always have a seperate work phone that you can turn off and put away

[-]

yeti-rex@reddit

Did a cruise to Alaska last year. Best out of service experience. It's the only cruise I've ever been on. Granted, that's an expensive hobby.

[-]

sovereign666@reddit

I plug my phone into a charger by the front door, then I go to the opposite side of my apartment to my hobby room and do something with headphones on.

[-]

FireLucid@reddit

Beekeeping. No, can't use the phone while wearing these gloves.

[-]

stromm@reddit

Every hobby that I ignore unwanted calls/texts.

Seriously, just don’t reply till you feel like it.

If you’re not paid for on standby or on call, they can wait.

[-]

discgman@reddit

Camping in remote areas

[-]

dogcmp6@reddit

I take my vacations out of the country, or on a cruise ship.

My boss looked absolutely offended when I said I was unreachable, and if his expectations are that I be reachable on my PTO, then the company can reimburse me for the entire cost of my vacation.

He refused to put that expectation in writing or reply to that email...

[-]

DigitalWhitewater@reddit

Drone piloting

[-]

KindlyGetMeGiftCards@reddit

Hiking
Camping
Fishing
Tractor work/operating heavy or loud machinery

I have two separate phones, one work and one personal, I carry the work one during work, the personal when out of work, both when on call, on call is only a week long and usually low volume of calls.

I do offer my personal number to the IT team with the explicate instructions, I will help them if they ask me a direct question on their course of action about a specific issue, also it's not to be given out under any circumstances, if someone really needs to speak to me I'll call them, either from my work phone or turn off the caller id thingy and call.

I make it a point to set the boundary and most people accept and understand this.

[-]

Phreakiture@reddit

My hobby is developing and testing policies for enhancing personal privacy.

[-]

doctorevil30564@reddit

I'm not on call after hours, but my boss is on my priority list to be able to reach me if needed. My phone stays on silent, but will ring for any contact I designate as a priority contact. Last job gave me PTSD after having to be on call for clueless (or conniving) people working in our call center. First ones drove me crazy, tickets put in, first response for issues, did you reboot your PC, if so does the issue persist. 90% of the time, got an email back that worked thank you. But next time it happened, you would think after about the second time it would sink in to try that before opening a ticket.

The second type, yeah I am not going into that again, look at my previous comments in another post regarding dealing with a problem user named Princess. I'm twitching just thinking about her again...

Thanks to people like her I wound up compiling a special version of linphone as an appimage that was hard coded to keep users from being able to be able to ignore incoming calls to the queue for the call center so people couldn't pull the it didn't ring or I would have answered it routine to stay out of trouble.

[-]

tuscangal@reddit

Hiking in the deep deep woods.

[-]

Isithax@reddit

I put my phone on DND, problem solved.

[-]

Danoga_Poe@reddit

Dungeons and dragons?

[-]

Isithax@reddit

No, but if it had a DnD setting that would be great.

Do Not Disturb in case you actually don't know what it means for a phone.

[-]

sexuallyactivepope@reddit

Cave exploring

[-]

Danoga_Poe@reddit

Turning my work phone off at end of shift

[-]

evolutionxtinct@reddit

I’m a AFOL…. 🫢🫡😁

[-]

EyeConscious857@reddit

Airplane mode - sit on couch.

“I was in the woods”.

[-]

Disturbed_Bard@reddit

4wding

Surfing

Scuba diving

Or just turn your phone off and read or cook or garden

[-]

notHooptieJ@reddit

huh , apparently my hobby is every moment im not on the clock.

i generally ignore the phone unless im actively expecting a call.

it takes a while to beat into your friends and family: The CellPhone is for MY convenience, NOT yours.

the only people i answer for are my wife, or my boss.

Text messages are TEXT specifically so i can check and reply later, not so you can pester me any waking moment, do NOT expect an immediate reply, Ever.

call twice in a row if i dont answer and its an emergency

[-]

TalkingToes@reddit

MIL lives in the middle of a 60 acre woods. No cell signal back there! She had dial up internet for years. Remember doing RDP over dial up?

[-]

stumpymcgrumpy@reddit

After 30 years in I.T.... whenever I mentor someone getting into the industry I try to make sure that wherever their I.T. journey takes them, that they should try to follow these rules:

I.T. Rule No. 1:

If there are any expectation of contact outside business hours, the details of compensation and that expectation should be outlined within some sort of "On-Call" agreement. If it's listed as expectations under the "other duties as required" clause so many companies like to pin to the job titles, at least you can go into the job with your eyes open and an understanding of the expectations.

I.T. Rule No. 2:

If there are any expectations of taking business/work related calls, emails, SMS texts, etc. either within, or outside of business hours... the company/org should be providing you with a device to do just this. IF using your personal device is an expectation, setup do not disturb and notification rules. Make it YOUR choice when to check your work email, and not the choice of a notification alert from the sender!

I.T. Rule No. 3

Time == Money. It's in the best interest of the company/org to get the most amount of work/effort/time for the least amount of cost/money. This does not translate to what is in the best interest of YOU. Personal/Family time given to the company/org is worth something as it's time you're never going to get back and you should be compensated in some way. Resist the urge to please and do unpaid/uncompensated work. Being dependable, reliable and trustworthy have more to do with career advancement than being agreeable, quiet and disposable.

I.T. Rule No. 4

Set notification boundaries and escalation instructions. Put it in your email signature, in your out of office, anywhere you can. Find a way to make it known that you are available between Xam and Ypm, Aday to Bday and will return your call, email, carrier pigeon, smoke signal at your next earliest connivence. If it's an emergency contact <$anyone_but_you>.

Bonus Rule:

Never feel bad about taking your earned Vacation time when YOU want to take it, and not only when it's convenient for the company/org and NEVER feel bad about being unavailable during this time!

[-]

ewikstrom@reddit

💯👏🏻

[-]

ewikstrom@reddit

In a few years, cell phones will have sat coverage, so turning it off or DND is the way to go!

[-]

rwilkinson77@reddit

Scuba diving is amazing!

[-]

gmccauley@reddit

+1 and it's pretty hard to take a phone call 20-100' under water. :-)

[-]

rwilkinson77@reddit

This is exactly why it is amazing!

[-]

AlfalfaGlitter@reddit

Fishing, play in a band, motorbiking

It doesn't really matter, if you are out, you are out. You can be focused on any other thing, and the company has to respect that.

Said that, bonsai is also valid.

[-]

PhantomNomad@reddit

I started martial arts when I was 50. Best 3 hours a week an over weight guy could do.

[-]

lostdysonsphere@reddit

Simple 2 step solution: 1. have separate work and private phone. 2. Leave work phone in a drawer once you get home and do whatever.

[-]

Jethro_Tell@reddit

I make it so the only way I’m reachable after hours is a page. You either commit to waking me up and probably my spouse or baby or whatever or it’s not important enough for today.

When I am on vacation, I turn off my paging app too.

[-]

Suliux@reddit

Motorcycles

[-]

Z3t4@reddit

Any hobby plus an RF shielded pouch bag.

[-]

fukawi2@reddit

Aviation (Private Pilot) Firefighting (Volunteer)

[-]

vgullotta@reddit

Motorcycle riding Ice hockey

[-]

vaping-chastity@reddit

-i have a private phone and a work phone -I simply turn off my work phone on weekends/holidays.

[-]

Recent_Carpenter8644@reddit

I wonder how many people are like me, and only have a work phone. Been at the same place 25 years, and it's the only number I've ever had. I should do something about that.

[-]

karlsmission@reddit

I have lots of hobbies, none of them make me "unreachable" I do that myself by having notifications for work apps turn off after 5pm. If you are not in my contact list, you get sent straight to voicemail. So the only people who can call me from work are my boss, his boss, and my technical lead.

Hobbies I have:
my own youtube channel
working on my own cars/motorcycles
Off roading
camping
shooting
Hunting
working on and collecting vintage computers
Riding my motorcycles.
spending time with my kids in said above activities and other activities they want to do.

[-]

Plantatious@reddit

Riding my motorcycle. If I want to stay alive, I need to focus on the road.

[-]

genericgeriatric47@reddit

And if you die you died riding.

I mow my very large lawn. I remember Treat Williams posting a picture of himself after mowing his lawn and he was saying, essentially, "this is the life." An hour later he was hit on his bike and died. I think about that a lot. It was a good way to live and a good way to die, if there is such a thing. I refuse to answer the work phone when I'm mowing the lawn.

[-]

nerobro@reddit

This is why I haven't ridden this year. I think I'll be able to next week

[-]

I_ride_ostriches@reddit

I have a work phone and a personal phone. When I’m out, my work phone gets turned off and stays home.

I go backcountry hunting in October. Even if I had my phone, there’s no service.

[-]

Agreeable_Honeydew76@reddit

Rock climbing

[-]

Normal-Difference230@reddit

my current hobby is saying "What a Save!" in Rocket League over and over and over again whenever I score

gif

[-]

killakadoogan@reddit

Mountain Biking. Can’t answer my phone while riding trails.

[-]

Normal-Difference230@reddit

buy an Ipod Nano, load it up with your favorite songs. Go take some nice walks on nature trails in your area. Don't bring your phone.

[-]

CaucasionRasta@reddit

Disc golf. Turn phone off. Hiking with a purpose. Very technical but not overly. Physics and aerodynamics but with feeling and instinct. This allows you to focus enough to be distracted, but not overwhelm you. It's a Frisbee. Beautiful scenery and good vibes. Addictive. Watch some YouTube videos from Paul McBeth playing in tournaments. You'll get drift.

[-]

lungbong@reddit

Cycling

Rock climbing

Surfing

Being a gimp

[-]

Odd-Sun7447@reddit

I do ATV trips every year with my brother and a bunch of our friends, I don't answer my phone during them.

My ATV is too loud, sorry =)

[-]

dl_mj12@reddit

Onewheel
Hiking
Camping
Overlanding/4wd
Gardening
Travel
Hunting/shooting

[-]

SkillsInPillsTrack2@reddit

Check the coverage map of the cell provider, and rent a cottage where there's no service.

[-]

NotYetReadyToRetire@reddit

I just don't answer my phone - if it's important to them, they'll leave a message. If I decide it's important (when and if I get around to listening to the message) I'll call them back. No message means it's not important at all.

[-]

TekSnafu@reddit

Drinking. I can't answer the phone if I'm too drunk to find it.

[-]

_g2_@reddit

Scuba diving. Guaranteed no cell service 'unda 'da 'sea :-)

[-]

cammontenger@reddit

One of my hobbies is not answering the phone, you could try looking into that

[-]

cbelt3@reddit

Napping. Turn phone off.

[-]

stonewareSlayer@reddit

Pottery. Hands are covered in mud the whole time.

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gamebrigada@reddit

Sailing. I specifically love to charter, didn't take that long to get certified. With enough friends its not a very expensive vacation, and your friends are there! Although I do now own a starlink mini so I can be connected.
Motorcycles. Can't be on the phone when you're bouncing off the limiter down some canyon curvies.
Dirt bikes. Can't be on the phone when you're in the middle of nowhere.
Skiing/Snowboarding. Cell phone reception not guaranteed.
Backpacking/Hiking.
Fishing!

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DisastrousAd2335@reddit

Knife making. Throwing sparks, hammering, sanding and useful items taking shape. Working with your hands when you use your brain all day is very theraputic and the machinery negates talking on the phone.

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fuzzylogic_y2k@reddit

With sat texting now rolling out, it's time to start exploring caves or underwater activities.

My current passion is off-roading. Jeeps are like big boy Legos. Just like building computers, networks, datacenters.

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SHANE523@reddit

Golf

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LandoCalrissian1980@reddit

Especially walking Golf. Get us off our sedentary arse.

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Solarkiller13@reddit

Cruises.....

Go gamble on the casino and play their game and then you'll get free offers roll in.

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baube19@reddit

I tough boating and sailing was safe until Starlink Mini was a thing haha

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anonpf@reddit

Learn an instrument

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dreamersword@reddit

Camping but that only works during the summer lol

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jnex26@reddit

Join the scouts lots of hiking and great friendship group, giving back to the community get some good training in and you wont be alone many sysadmins I know are in scouts

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gnumunny@reddit

Amateur radio!!!

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FancyFingerPistols@reddit

Hiking, kayaking, paddle boarding, and gyming

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SgtKashim@reddit

I have a work phone that's different from my personal phone. When I'm not on-call, work phone is muted. For those true emergency situations, my team tech lead / principal engineer has my contact phone, but he's smart enough to not abuse it.

Also, I sail and scuba dive.

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thatgeekfromthere@reddit

I just give out a phone number that goes to my PBX and has working ours set. They can live a VM, or hang up if it's out of my hours.

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BardKnockLife@reddit

Concerts

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davy_crockett_slayer@reddit

I do woodworking, book reading, and gardening. For a while I got the local paper delivered so I could do something that doesn't invovle a screen.

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Boo_Pace@reddit

Golf, phone on silent and in a pocket on my bag I don't go into.

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KameNoOtoko@reddit

Yea this whole topic is a bit odd to me. Unless I am specifically scheduled as on-call the work phone goes on silent/dnd after hours and I occasionally check to ensure production hasn't gone down. My bosses phone and CEO phone are the only numbers allowed through DND.

If you feel you need to physically be in a space where you can't be reached to avoid work then you either need figure out your own priorities so you can establish a work/life balance or you need to seriously set some boundaries with your work and stop letting them walk all over you. If you can't even respect your own time why would your boss or anyone else.

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ncc74656m@reddit

Does IT make good money? 😅

It depends on your job, but if you don't have an on-call rotation or regular expected availability after hours as part of your salary, I would say just don't answer. My boss can call me if something explodes, but they don't unless it really explodes and can't wait til I'm on duty. Which just doesn't happen in my role.

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VG30ET@reddit

Racing cars, dirtbike riding, hiking, etc

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MySurvive@reddit

I do kendo 2x/wk. I have let my manager and director know that I am completely unavailable for those ~3ish hours on those days. When I travel for tournaments, I let them know "hey I will bring my laptop just in case, but I will be completely unavailable from 7 am to 9 pm on XYZ days." I've never gotten a complaint, but my job is pretty relaxed.

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webjocky@reddit

Define "phone unreachable"...

With Starlink and T- Satellite (T-Mobile), the technical issue of being out of cell tower range is quickly becoming a thing of the past.

Let's just make it normal to turn off the work phones and DND work numbers when outside of actual working hours.

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HerfDog58@reddit

When I take vacation time, I set my Out Of Office reply to indicate I'm away, with no access to phone nor email, contact our helpdesk for assistance. I don't have work email on any of my personal devices, and don't take my work laptop on vacation with me.

Fortunately, I work for a manager that wouldn't contact me when I'm out of town anyway. Even nights and weekends, I only get contacted if it's REALLY urgent or catastrophic.

As far as hobbies that make you unavailable, wine/liquor/beer tastings are good - "Hey I've been drinking I can't drive to the office and I'm in no condition to work remotely."

I'd personally include cigar tastings, LEGO construction, movie appreciation, television contemplation, and reading. Achieving and Maintaining Adequate REM Sleep should also be a valid answer.

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dceckhart@reddit

Silent meditation retreat

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FearlessFloyd91@reddit

Riding my motorcycle down back roads with some music going.

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mixduptransistor@reddit

I just become unreachable when I'm not on duty or on call. Having to come up with an excuse to be unreachable is as unhealthy has actually being reachable all the time. Just set boundaries, sometimes you need downtime and hiking or kayaking to be unreachable is not downtime

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Ashendarei@reddit

Blacksmithing. You can't answer the phone if your hands are full of hot metal (plus forges are generally too loud to hear the phone ringing).

Additional benefit, exercise.

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sneakattaxk@reddit

instructions unclear, phone in forge now

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Ashendarei@reddit

Task failed successfully.

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ComparisonFunny282@reddit

I have Muay Thai and BJJ. Then Tennis and Pickleball as other hobbies. I have my work phone in airplane mode when I’m doing any of the 4. There is a possibility of the company relinquishing mobile phones from everyone excluding VP’s and up. At that point, they will not have the ability to contact me. I am not providing my personal phone number for work.

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Sudocomm@reddit

Photography. Can’t call you when your two tracking the backwoods.

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Dave_A480@reddit

Aviation.

No signal above about 3000ft AGL.

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MindStalker@reddit

Climbing

Is very popular in the IT industry. Most cities have climbing gyms now. Top roping (rope anchored at top of climb) is very safe if your follow the rules. Good excuse to escape to the mountains once you are ready.

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Affectionate_Ad_3722@reddit

Can’t hear the phone on a motorbike!

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Turbulent-Royal-5972@reddit

Motorcycling. Rope bondage. Bouldering. Climbing.

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Japjer@reddit

I don't need no-phone hobbies.

If I'm not working I'm not working.

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thewunderbar@reddit

The things that make me unreachable are called the weekend.

Look, obviously if there is a serious problem, my manager, and only manager, can reach me. But that's just on an evening or weekend when I'm not on holidays.

I have quiet time scheduled so I get no work notifications from 5pm until 8am, and all day Saturday and Sunday.

And if I'm on holidays, I am not reachable.

That's the end of the story.

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digitalnative00@reddit

Camping - with bonus activity Astrophotography.

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justlurkshere@reddit

I picked up astrophoto during covid. Problem is you still need computers and to manage data from astrophoto, so I also picked up a guitar to learn how to play. Bonus, keeps animals away when camping.

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Valdaraak@reddit

Camping or getting a cabin in a place with no cell signal.

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Templar1980@reddit

I use a work ESIM in my phone. Turn it off when I’m not working unless I’m specifically on call.

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OuilleHots@reddit

I'm learning how to pilot planes as an amateur !

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vbman1337@reddit

Sitting in your pool with a beer ;)

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natefrogg1@reddit

Putting the device down and ignoring it for a period of time

I love that we have things like starlink now though, makes checking in when I’m doing fun stuff in the backcountry easy

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satxmf210@reddit

A couple years ago I started leaving my phone at home when I go do my thing after work. Whether that is grocery shopping, running, biking, yoga, running errands (as long as I know how to get where I’m trying to get to) etc. Yeah you could bring it with you and choose not to answer work stuff, but you’re still seeing it which takes away from your zen (from me), plus it’s nice to be away from the phone in general - not just the work stuff, bc everything in there is trying to get your attention, wherher it’s friends, family or social media. Most of the time, nothing is urgent and you can just walk away for a couple hours to decompress. I am however, a single man in my 20s so YMMV.

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Banluil@reddit

Renaissance Faire. Phone is in my pouch, and generally there is enough noise around that I don't hear it anyway even if it does ring.

D&D night. Phone gets turned off.

I'm just on vacation. Phone gets ignored if it's not someone I want to talk too. It goes to voicemail. If my boss REALLY needs me, he will text me and call me back, but that has only happened once.

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Tech_Mix_Guru111@reddit

Some of us get paid for after hours stuff

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TypaLika@reddit

Car camping at music festivals. Spotty intermittent coverage at best and I don't bring my laptop.
CIO worries about me being out of reach, but he and my boss know I'm on call 24/7 the rest of the year including holidays and need some down time.

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GregryC1260@reddit

In the days of "work phones" I'd hand my work phone to my boss when I went away and would say, usually truthfully, "I'm going on holiday, to rural Wales, and we are staying in a remote cottage, at the bottom of a valley, and there's no signal, so I won't be needing this."

Once my own phone was my work phone I'd give the same spiel along with "text me, if it's a matter of life or death, and I'll get back to you when I can."

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blissadmin@reddit

Go camping in the US National Radio Quiet Zone. Very little to no signal, by law.

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Brett707@reddit

Camping Fishing Anything outdoors. Or you know just turn your phone off. Or block the numbers.

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sed_ric@reddit

Ttrpg (3 to 8h regular sessions with friends, planning and prep takes a lot of time, books and nice dices are pretty expansives) and music (playing with a band makes you out of network regulary, practicing makes you use headphones, instruments are expansives and you never buy only one).

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jamosef@reddit

Cycling is a great hobby. Good for you, not hard on your joints, you can leave your phone in the bike bag out of sight.

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throwawayhjdgsdsrht@reddit

Hiking used to be my go-to but I moved to a mountain town where there's reception on a lot of the surrounding trails lol.

Tennis is actually great for it - people are very strict about your phone not going off during a match so it always has to be off or at least in airplane mode.

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tardiusmaximus@reddit

Sysadmin here, over 20 yrs. My no phone hobby, Fishing.

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valiantjedi@reddit

Hiking and camping.

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oracleofnonsense@reddit

Golf — phone off and in the bag.

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RoomyRoots@reddit

Everything can be as long as you turn the phone off. But do try to be physically active and have contact with nature. Something that can exercise the brain, like chess, go and other games are also welcome.

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alpha1beta@reddit

Remote camping. Something tells me within a few years I'll be issued a Starlink...

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basura_trash@reddit

I am all for hobbies, I have few of my own, but... why not just turn the phone off. Why you does feel the need to have a "No-phone-reachable hobbie."

my hobbies are listed below and no work calls are answered, and no work email is checked while engaged in them.

gaming
air brushing (art)
range (as in pew pew)
kayaking

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madknives23@reddit

Gardening leave your phone inside

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abitofg@reddit

Swimming?

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zilch839@reddit

I took a different approach. If my boss called me, I answered.

Fast forward 30 years and I have very nice things and I'm the one calling people on the weekends.

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runningntwrkgeek@reddit

Spending time on the tractor (mowing or tilling).

ATVs

Volunteer fire dept

Can you tell I'm in a rural community?

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cats_are_the_devil@reddit

Turn your phone off. Go do something you like.

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wooties05@reddit

I have a quad and there's a place 30 minutes away I can buy a membership to ride whenever I want, I usually do that

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PappaFrost@reddit

I literally go sailing almost every weekend, never far offshore. Don't tell anyone that I have full 5G coverage the whole time! LOL!

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sittingatthetop@reddit

Classical music playing

Archery.

Phone goinf off in both is verboten.

Beekeeping & Scuba. Sorry, No phone when suited up.

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hodgey87@reddit

I’ve just started my own Stained Glass business and got out completely 😂

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ghe5@reddit

If you are lower tier support in a bigger corporation like me, this is all you have to do. If you are a big sysadmin guy, it is likely that you have a separate work phone and you need to do that same thing with the whole phone (turn it off).

If I should be serious tho, anything sporty might be good enough if you want to be unbothered for an hour or two a day. I love roller blade skating and when I'm rolling, I just keep running until I can - that usually takes over an hour at this point.

Sure, you might be able to hear the messages or calls or Fri the vibrations, but if you get too much into it, you just don't care. All you care about when you are in the zone is to finish that goal of yours and it doesn't matter which sport it is, do whatever suits you the best. Starting is the hardest thing, but once you're in it, you're hooked for as long as it's possible for you to do that sport.

If you wanna go off for a longer period, I'm sure there will be better suggestions similar to yours in other comments.

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Hartzler44@reddit

Cycling. I could technically answer my phone, but I don't.

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beelgers@reddit

Chess tournaments. You're literally not allowed to have your phone and each round can last 5-6 hours potentially. 5 rounds over a weekend.

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saysjuan@reddit

Fishing and camping. I make it a point to simply turn off my cellphone so there’s not possible distractions. When ocean fishing out of San Diego or LA near Catalina island cell service is spotty or non-existent so even if I wanted to be reachable I’m not.

But the funny thing is even just sitting at home watching TV you can do the same thing and just put your phone on do not disturb/sleep mode to achieve the same thing. Put the phone in the other room, put it in sleep mode and walk away. Simple as that just spend some time apart and make it a habit of being unreachable unapologetically.

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whizzwr@reddit

Lol why do you need hobby to not answer your phone ?

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cptsir@reddit

Cycling

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four_reeds@reddit

Everything -- just don't answer the phone. If you have a separate work device and you are not officially on call, turn it off and live your life.

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Klop152@reddit

Skiing works for me In the winter Camping in the summer/fall

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Hackwork89@reddit

Why do you need an excuse to be unreachable? My job stops existing the second my work day ends.

The only one who can reach me is my boss, and he hasn't tried yet (and it would be full 2 hour double overtime even if it was a conversation under 30 seconds). This only works because I know he doesn't call unless it's a nuclear meltdown level emergency. Otherwise pay me for being on-call.

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_darkflamemaster69@reddit

If you live in a woodsy area, disc golf takes your service out for sure lol.

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Dariuscardren@reddit

Ren faire?

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mydoorisfour@reddit

Bouldering

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babarsac@reddit

Gardening (leave the phone inside)

Cycling (hitting the trails in the Rockies takes care of that pesky cell signal)

Trap Shooting (What!? Can't hear you)

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GullibleDetective@reddit

Camping, cruising/driving

Golf, tennis, concerts, live comedy,

Or just don't answer

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RoughManguy@reddit

Dual-SIM phone. Turn off work-SIM outside of work hours.

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RatherBdiving@reddit

Scuba diving. Is my go too!

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ccosby@reddit

Friends and I like to go shooting. Outdoor ranges tend to be in the middle of nowhere and don’t have great cell coverage. Even if reachable it’s going to be loud.

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mkosmo@reddit

Flying.

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kitsinni@reddit

Phones don’t work on lakes.

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matthaus79@reddit

Anything is a no phone reachable hobby if you turn your phone off.

Read a book Play some computer games Do the gardening Go for a walk Scale a mountain Go for a swim Watch a movie Spend time with family

The list is endless.. the issue is you're trying to get away from something that has an off button.

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manicalmonocle@reddit

Woodworking in a metal shop building without wifi

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Self_toasted@reddit

Hiking, running, gym, camping and concerts. All of those I even ignore my personal phone during(unless I'm switching music or something). Seriously though, just ignore the phone if you're not on-call.

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SenikaiSlay@reddit

Poker Chess Hiking Gym Sex

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i-heart-linux@reddit

Backcountry backpacking is my absolute favorite, just need special permit. But high alpine mountain biking is a fav too

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mmiller1188@reddit

I do ...

4 wheeling with jeeps and ATVs - we have crappy service outside of the towns here, so when I'm doing that I'm completely offline.

Camping ... usually in the places that I do the 4 wheeling. But it leads to me being offline.

Also, simply turning off the wifi on my cell while at home causes me to be unavailable because we don't have service at my house ...

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Charokie@reddit

Had a VP that would call every day for bullshit reasons. I started doing wilderness trips with no cell service. Still doing the trips to this day! Primarily BWCA these days.

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TheRabidDeer@reddit

Sailing and race car driving... sometimes I wonder if I have stayed working in education for too long and it is time to go corporate...

That said I just game and ignore most anything that comes in unless I am on call.

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cornellartworks@reddit

Every hobby is phone unreachable if you don't reach for your phone while you're doing them. With that said, Warhammer and drawing comics are my go-to's. Unless it's my on-call week, my work phone stays in my backpack after 5PM, zero exceptions.

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swissthoemu@reddit

Knive sharpening

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whatdoido8383@reddit

I've started just putting my phone physically away out of reach when I don't actually need it. In your sock drawer or whatever. I have also been leaving my phone in the car when I go out to dinner or event, it forces me to be more present and engaged.

I also have a separate cell for just work stuff, that's the only number they have, not my personal cell. I turn it off at the end of the day and it stays off until work starts the next day. I'm not on call 24x7 so they shouldn't expect to be able to reach me whenever they want. Totally worth the $15 a month for that line.

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OmegaNine@reddit

I fly FPV ( r/fpv ) and have to have my phone off when I do it. Don't wanna be distracted.

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egpigp@reddit

Airsoft 🔫

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Worth_Efficiency_380@reddit

Gaming or range. They dont need to know why they couldnt reach me.

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ggibby@reddit

The public range where I shoot is in a magic spot where texts/emails come through, but not voice.

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reinhart_menken@reddit

Hobby that are not phone reachable? Living life, and waiting for that text during work hours to purposely ignore. Those are my hobbies :p

But really to answer your question: Camping in the middle of nowhere.

But but what others have said, have boundaries, when you're off you're off.

Or have a faraday cage.

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OGHOMER@reddit

When I'm woodworking, I wear eye and hearing protection and need to stay completely focused to avoid accidents, like losing a finger. Such an injury would put me out of work for an uncertain period, so having a phone around would only be a distraction

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Ciderhero@reddit

Cave diving. Had a colleague who had standing order with us that if he wasn't in work by 10am any day, to call his club and tell them that he was missing.

His club was used as an unofficial rescue service by the regional police force for anyone stuck down a hole. Told us a story where another group had gotten injured deep into a cave complex, so spent the best part of a whole day lifting a guy with a broken leg UP an underground waterfall.

That, my friend, is a plausible no-phone hobby.

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MostMediocreModeler@reddit

Most of the places I go backpacking have no service and sometimes even GPS is a challenge.

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XxsrorrimxX@reddit

Mountain biking ftw

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dayburner@reddit

Camping. We had a guy that would take one week a year and go hunting and camping in the Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming areas where there was no cell service for miles and miles.

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bgatesIT@reddit

i like to do some rally cross and track days currently building a hill climb car. I also enjoy simply just going out to our hunting camp, where there is no service or internet and just disconnecting. Hiking with my dogs, or anything outdoors, the more remote, the bettererererest

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testestisthingon@reddit

I love sailing! You really need to focus and really can’t use your phone.

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NightMgr@reddit

Meditation. Religious study.

Or.

Bottom in a BDSM relationship. “I’m really tied up right now.”

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Trooper_Ted@reddit

Motorbikes.

Internal peace & quiet while violently smashing through the air turning petrol into noise & insects into splatter.

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WindowsVistaWzMyIdea@reddit

I have a personal phone and a work phone. Very few have my personal phone #, the rest can sit in voicemail till I come back from Vaca or whatever

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550c@reddit

Off-roading and camping in remote locations. Spelunking.

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rivkinnator@reddit

Here in Florida we have a ton of natural springs, so I go spend the day out at those beautiful parks and float down the river

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ngorm@reddit

Rock climbing, you know, going into nature and climbing some big walls. Completely getting away from everything.

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boondoggie42@reddit

Do whatever you want and tell them you're camping.

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Expensive_Finger_973@reddit

When I am on my time, it is my time, and I'm not answering shit for work unless I want to. I will lie about why I wasn't available with something no one will want to challenge at a later date if need be.

But in the spirit of the discussion I would add gardening as a good "sorry I was outside elbows deep in planting a tree/bushes/etc and couldn't get to the phone" hobby.

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read-snowcrash@reddit

I picked up fire dancing over covid, and it has been a great cheap hobby that is both athletic and social, which were my main two needs. I do single sword, dual sword, and rope dart, which gives it a nice 'martial' component. It doesn't always get you away from your cell phone, but it is a good excuse to go camping or hit the beach with friends.

Somewhat related, I've gone to Burning Man the last few years. Two weeks in an environment that is hostile to computers does wonders for the brain, and the realities of 'surviving in the desert' keep your mind off of real life.

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