Well, coming from someone that doesn't leve link often enough to mention it, SP gained from crafting/gathering is reliable and not nearly as slow as you might think. Overall, they're a lot less frustrating then trying to rank up a combat class when getting max 300 SP off even enemies, leve or otherwise, 10 ranks over myself.

And while crafting has a bit of a timed element to it, gathering is free to be as you please, and it's easy to talk with LS mates as you go. Though gathering, of any type, is a really simple little mini-game, it can still be fun, and has enough depth, if you go into detail, to keep you paying attention. Crafting has a random element that can be a little frustrating, but overall, so long as you do difficult synths rather then spamming easy ones, it can be fairly encompassing... just don't do it for six hours at a time . Take a break to gather, do a bit of combat, or just socialize.