Every year in the US and Europe, more and more successful bankers, marketing managers, lawyers, auditors, and accountants in their early 30s realise that they are utterly burnt out from working in finance or the digital sphere. Everything seems unreal, meaningless, monotonous, and banal. Work brings no pleasure. The daily routine breeds disgust and disappointment with life. The desire to trade comfort for new emotions and experiences grows stronger.

You might rightly point out that these are millennials who are going stir-crazy from having it too easy. They live in their beautiful minimalist apartments, take vacations twice a year, splurge on shopping and restaurants, and still complain. But the fact is, millennials are willing to sacrifice a stable salary and retirement savings for the clear sense that they are doing something meaningful. This generation desperately wants to break free from the virtual world and create something tangible. They feel like prisoners of the matrix, victims of the system, and nonsensical links in the capitalist chain.

And why do I keep saying them? Honestly, I can admit that I am one of those suffering millennials, yearning to throw the laptop on which I'm typing this text out the window to feel a real connection with the world. Over the past few years, I’ve changed a dozen hobbies to bring meaning to my life. I learned how to ride a motorcycle, how to sail, how to operate a motorboat, how to arrange bouquets, how to play big tennis, how to cycle and off-road. But true satisfaction came when I started woodworking.

One day, I woke up with a burning desire to create something with my own hands. Something not just beautiful like a bouquet but functional and useful. An item that everyone needs and uses every day. I had been enviously watching YouTube channels about furniture restoration and 19th-century mansions, so my first thought was that I wanted to learn how to work with wood.

I started googling woodworking courses in Dubai. As you might guess, the selection is rather limited. I came across the website of The Makers Society, founded by Luca Dal Molin and Eva Dal Molin. The idea is that there is a space with a well-equipped workshop where both beginners and seasoned craftsmen can create wooden items — anything from a coaster to a cabinet.

The Makers Society offers various workshops designed for gradual immersion into woodworking. Specialists explain safety techniques, different tools and equipment, types of wood, methods of processing, and more. You can attend an introductory workshop just to understand how the process is arranged, or you can immediately create an item. 

The millennial crisis is not a problem of privileged people, nor is it a myth. It’s a real issue of alienation — from work, from reality, and from oneself. And I truly believe that the only way to overcome it is by reconnecting with the physical world. If you, too, feel this overwhelming urge to create, don’t hold yourself back. Open your creative flow and take courses in floristry, sewing, pottery, woodworking, or painting. Trust me, it will do wonders for your mental health.