This is already what I do in my free time. Projects.
When I retire (which I hope is soon, so I can get away from my crushing, but well-compensated schedule), I imagine I will have no problem at all filling my time with projects and a huge backlog of games and books for when I don't feel like doing projects.
I took -8 years off. I did the things you mentioned. I currently see it as throwing most of this 8 years down the toilet. Maybe I could pull out 3 of those 8 years as actually having done something I'll have good memories of but the other 5 years was wasted IMO.
i'm not saying you should have a job but I think, for at least me, I need to doing something productive. That could be raising a child, it could be volunteering, it could looking after someone, it could be helping others with their projects or goals, it could be a project that will be for more than just myself, but it needs to be something that I can look back at and say to myself "that was time well spent"
I binged some shows I'm happy I spent the time watching and played some games I have good memories for but plenty of other shows and movies that just wasted my time. Read too much meaningless internet.
How did you explain the 8 year gap on your resume, when looking for work? I'm on my 5th year, and while I've been busy the whole time, am not sure how to explain the gap to prospective employers. I've also learned so many new skills that my old network doesn't match what I'd like to be doing.
I'm year two into this and I have to say I feel like 80% of my time has been wasted. What did you do before you took time off and what did you do after the 8 years?
Indeed, I have no problem filling my free time with stuff. I took a year off not too long ago. Some days I'd watch two or three movies, there were weeks I spent bingeing Netflix, nights spent playing video games late into the morning, nights spent writing software late into the morning, nights spent enjoying fine food and drink, reading books, hiking, seeing friends, learning new things, exploring new places. There's no shortage of stuff to do. Sure, some days are slow, but I'm not complaining. I could do this forever.
Others are not so lucky, they don't know how to spend their time outside of work. I see retired folks frustrated with their lives, lost and directionless. It makes me sad.
When I retire (which I hope is soon, so I can get away from my crushing, but well-compensated schedule), I imagine I will have no problem at all filling my time with projects and a huge backlog of games and books for when I don't feel like doing projects.