Hobbies are great, right? I mean, we all have hobbies. We spend time doing things we love – and that’s good for the soul.

Narcissists also have hobbies, but they’re not necessarily what you’d expect. Often, these hobbies are for self-gain in ways other than your usual pottery or yoga class.

Nope. These hobbies are big red flags.

A narcissist’s hobbies are designed to enhance and maintain their image only.

Let’s take a look at 7 hobbies of narcissists that are instant red flags.

Related : Things Narcissists Do at the End of a Relationship

1 Exterior Home Improvements

What a beautiful home!

I love what you’ve done to the place!

It looks amazing – you’re so talented.

You have a great eye for color and vision.

And so on. Anything that involves making improvements to the exterior of a home is bound to get attention.

Narcissists love this. They love being seen climbing a ladder with a paintbrush or building a new fence. Neighbors will be drawn to coming up to them and asking them questions about what they’re doing and saying things like:

I don’t know how you find the time to do all this.

You’re obviously someone who takes pride in where you live.

Well done for wanting to make your home a nice place to live.

These comments will fill the narcissist with reassurance that they’re a good person. It’ll be like validation to them—and the narcissist will take every word.

They don’t actually care about painting. If they could just leave it, they would.

But…

They have an image to uphold.

2 Decorate Lavishly for the Holidays

When the holidays come around, whatever they may be, the narcissist will want to have the biggest and best decorations imaginable.

Narcissists don’t just decorate; they make sure to liven up the holiday and use those decorations to excite people. Most holiday decorations bring out the inner child in all of us. Narcissists love to light up children’s eyes.

Related : Things Narcissists Say in the Beginning

Children are some of the most impressionable people on the planet. Their innocent nature sees people only by their appearance, and anyone who smiles and has bright lights or fun decorations outside their home must be a fun person too!

3 Spending time on dating apps “for fun”

You’ll shudder to hear this, but narcissists are known to “use dating apps for fun.”

Many people in relationships will openly admit to being on their phones in front of their partners because they see it as a hobby.

Narcissists are some of the most judgmental people on the planet. They feel they have a divine right to view others through a critical lens just because.

What does that mean to you?

Often times, you can find them on dating apps, laughing at themselves, and maybe even showing it to you!

Look at this guy, who wants them?

Well, they’re too good for this site.

They’ll tell you it’s fun, but to you, it’s only going to lower your self-esteem. How can someone be so critical of others based on their appearance? What does that mean to you?

Having dating apps on their phone is a huge red flag for any couple. Being so rude to use them in front of you and treating them like a big joke is actually insensitive and annoying.

Narcissists to boot!

4 Anything You “Love” to Do

Simulation is a classic narcissistic tactic. They tend to jump on your love bandwagon, passions, and hobbies to make you think you two “have it all in common.”

Oh really? I love that band too!

I’ve always been into hiking!

I like to make time to meditate every day. It’s so good for my mental health.

Little by little, you’ll start to think about how you fit in.

Mirroring is actually a way to make you feel a certain connection to the narcissist. It’s helpful for them to know that you care about them, so the likelihood of you leaving them is pretty much zero.

Be prepared for red flags to go up when you see someone who loves everything you love. It’s really nice to meet someone who you have a hobby or two in common with. It’s also nice to know that you like different things, so you can maintain your independence and identity.

Narcissists don’t want that for you.

5 Exercise Obsessively

Exercise is healthy. We’re constantly told to keep our bodies and minds as healthy as possible because life is, right?

If you meet someone who is completely obsessed with going to the gym, but also obsessed with their image in ways you can’t fathom – watch what that means.

It’s nice to know that the person cares about themselves but not to the point that they care about them only. Constantly checking yourself in the mirror and loving yourself means you have a deep insecurity.

While insecurity doesn’t just indicate narcissism, it does indicate a level of unhealthiness. And that’s where the red flags come in.

Related : 8 Things a Narcissist Will Never Tell You

The gym is no place for narcissists, but narcissists are known to congregate here because of all the compliments they get from working out.

They love guts, and they love glory.

6 Gambling

I don’t want to create a strong link between narcissists and gambling, but there is an addictive link between the two that can be a red flag.

Narcissists have an addictive personality. Their personalities tend to be highly addictive to wealth, power, status, or fame.

Maybe everything!

They exaggerate their accomplishments and crave admiration and praise from others on a daily basis.

So let’s take a look at how addictive all of this is, and how damaging it is to be fascinated by something like gambling.

If you meet someone who is known to enjoy gambling to the point that they might consider it a hobby…

It’s time to see it as a red flag.

7 Using Their Narcissistic Habits as Hobbies

This may not seem so obvious at first, but think about it.

We do a lot of what we love, don’t we?

Let’s say the narcissist in your life spends a lot of time criticizing, belittling, punishing, exercising power, and generally being unpleasant. In that case, it would be a warning sign that you can’t ignore.

Related : Things That Make Narcissists Lose Their Mind

Narcissists love to meddle in other people’s affairs. They love to ridicule and insult friends, family, and even strangers and acquaintances.

They enjoy it so much that there’s not a moment when they can resist.

Noticing this really brings out the ugly side of this narcissist (if it wasn’t already obvious…)

Beware of these rude displays—and avoid them as a result.