Online gaming may seem first and foremost a hobby or a pastime, but it provides benefits that make you a better person. These six ways are just a few examples of how you improve yourself through gaming.
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You Become Better at Solving Problems
Online games will have a sort of goal you’ll need to reach before you can advance to the next stage, complete an objective or win the game. Nearly all of them will involve figuring things out on your own to get out of a locked room or outwit another person in a round of chess, for example.
You may not think it applies to reality, but once you start assuming a solver’s mindset you can probably figure out problems offline, too. Planning, preparation and taking stock of what you have and what you can work with apply when you’re playing Bubble Shooter, as well as when you need to get from point A to point B in real life.
You Can Connect and Socialize with People
Social interaction cannot be perfected unless you spend a significant amount of time mingling with peers or strangers in various settings. It’s a problem most people have, and one that online gaming can solve.
Breaking the ice becomes less difficult if you’re in a game server with like-minded people. In time, you’ll learn how to make small talk and carry the conversation ball by going in online lobbies and game worlds.
Your Motor Skills and Reflexes Get a Workout
Physical exercise is just as important as any health aspect in our lives. Exercising for 15 minutes a day can do a lot of good for our bodies as well as our minds. In gaming, you get to flex your motor skills and hand-eye coordination, which can definitely come in handy in real life scenarios.
Reflexes and motor skills are needed in playing sports or while driving, to name a few. You’ll get better as time goes on, and it prepares you for real movements and actions, such as running a marathon, swimming or camping out in nature.
You’ll Be Happier and Experience Stress Release
Online gamers feel the rush of endorphins while playing and winning a massive multiplayer battle, but it’s not just the part that makes you a better person overall. It’s the fact that games can be a reliable source of stress relief, which in turn allows you to release all your pent-up frustrations and anxieties accumulated throughout the day.
Less stress equals a happier self, and the happier you are the better your physical, mental and emotional well-being. You’ll be able to work more efficiently and handle the stresses of the daily grind without burning out.
You’ll Learn the Value of Patience and Perseverance
Gaming has several parallels with real life and the lessons you can gain from both of them. Sportsmanship and taking losses in stride is one of them, as is the value of practicing until you have a strategy down pat.
Patience is actually one of the most difficult virtues to master, but the more practice you get the better you become at it. Perseverance, and sticking with the game until you reach the goal is another. All these things tend to make you better as soon as you go offline.
You Become a More Well-Rounded Person
Lastly, you become a well-rounded person if you have several interests and have the drive to explore and try new things. This could be in the form of trying the latest gaming experiences, such as a VR or AR headset or a gamification of some sort, such as karting or paintball. The experience from these games add up over time.
