Puzzle skills help, actually, by making you better equipped to solve everyday problems, like programming a VCR, putting together a bookcase, and things like that. Then, after the puzzle has been typeset, three solvers actually test it to make sure that it's doable, and one of these looks up everything that she's not certain of. So by the time the puzzle sees print, a mistake is extremely unlikely. On average, about half the clues in any Times crossword are my own. You probably have to be born with it.
Many people use puzzles as a way to unwind or take a break from their daily grind.
Lots of reading. Also, I have my own pinball machine in the basement, which is a great way to take a five-minute break. Your job is to puzzle other people. I have no idea how they work. Also the furnace in my home is still a mystery.