We are so busy at work that it can be difficult to believe that adding something would actually make work easier.

Yet, the benefits of engaging in side projects outside the office are numerous. Whether it is a scrapbooking business or trying to write a play, here are three reasons to keep pursuing that dream and invest in your side hustle.

Business cycles

In 2009, Danica Patrick bought 24 acres of California wine country on which to build a winery. As noted in her cover article from Entrepreneur last month, she basically had to build it from scratch and did not bring a bottle to market until 2017.

In other words, at a high point in her career, Patrick was allocating time and money to a passion she may want to pursue down the road.

As leaders, we know the business cycle well, but how many of us think of it from a personal perspective?

In true leadership fashion, Patrick embraced a project following a cycle that would begin to peak as her current work began to wind down. This provided a practical business option to embrace at a time she anticipated looking for something different to do as well as a psychological boost that she could do something different than she was doing at the time.

Juice

Ask a roomful of executives to share something no one knows about them and odds are you will hear about passionate pursuits they guard like treasure.

There is a fine line between hobby and hustle — both benefit our leadership approach by giving us time away from thinking about work. Whether it is crafting cocktails with an eye for running a bar in the Caribbean or writing chapters late at night to finish the next "Da Vinci Code," those things we love to do outside the office keep our creative juices flowing.

Often, the more unrelated they are to what we do professionally, the better they are at rejuvenating us and keeping our perspective fresh.

Cash

Side hustles with pay are also a fantastic way to take the pressure off starting a new business. As many writers know, finding a way to make money writing is a great thing to do while still employed in another capacity.

It helps us to prove to ourselves we can write something someone will pay for, in addition to affording us time to hone our craft while being paid for something else. Furthermore, paid side hustles provide the opportunity to approach a business idea from different angles — a risk that might be harder to take when time and money are on the line.

The bottom line is, side hustles can be a practical way to plan for the future, serve as a safety net in a tough job market or keep our creative juices flowing so we can continue to excel in our current roles. They may take away some of our extras, like time, sleep and money, but they are worth investing in because they can return even greater benefits of security, creativity and freedom.