Ask Sam letter

Hi there,

Everyone has their own hobbies and interests and you should feel free to be interested in whatever you want. There will always be some people who don’t understand why others enjoy hobbies that they don’t find interesting. But they shouldn’t be mean about it. You should be able to do the things you enjoy without facing judgement.

The internet has allowed lots of different people to meet online and share their interests. Some have grown in popularity over time and led to people spending time offline on that hobby as well. But sometimes people who don't understand a particular interest or culture find it hard to accept it.

It can hurt when we lose a friend. Sometimes people let us down when they turn out to be different than we thought. It might be that you can still save that friendship by explaining more about your interests and helping them to see why you enjoy them.

If that friendship doesn’t work out, it’s important to still be yourself. If you're open about who you are and the things you enjoy, you can make friends who share the same interests. It can be tempting to meet up with people you’ve met online who share the same hobbies but this can be dangerous, unless people like your parents or carers are involved too. We've got lots of tips to help you stay safe online.

Remember that your friends don’t all have to be interested in the same things as you. As long as they accept you for who you are it’s okay for them to like other things. You may be able to share each other’s hobbies and meet even more friends that way.

Thanks for sending me this letter, I hope it’s helped. Take care.

Sam