When was the last time you allowed yourself to be bored? I don’t simply mean when was the last time you found yourself with nothing exciting or fun to do. Nor do I mean when was the last time you struggled through a painful class or lecture. Those moments aren’t exactly the voluntary situation I have in mind. Rather, when was the last time you found yourself bored and instead of running to something to entertain you, you sat in your boredom and embraced it? When was the last time you decided to unplug from your devices and just be?
Although one may think that embracing boredom is easy, after all, what could be easier than doing nothing, I have observed that with the increase of technology, people are struggling more with it. We are being conditioned to expect constant stimulation, and when we aren’t being stimulated, we seek it out. Also, in our society boredom carries a negative connotation. No one wants to be accused of being boring or associated with anything considered boring. Unfortunately, in our quest for constant stimulation and excitement we are losing the discipline of boredom. As a result, we lack the ability to cope with the natural lulls of life. Therefore, I suggest we learn to embrace boredom once again, and here’s why…
Boredom Is a Natural Part of Life
Most of life is spent doing those activities we consider mundane: brushing our teeth, ironing our clothes, commuting too and from work, etc. As I wrote in Despise Not the Mundane, we live primarily in those moments of preparation and/or maintenance of a goal or dream that at times feel very monotonous. Even if you had a job that starts off exciting, the routine nature of the “excitement” would cause it to lose its lure. It is not realistic to believe that we will experience excitement everyday and at every moment. After all, part of what makes something exciting is its rarity and nuance. What I am trying to say is that boredom, is a natural part of life. To run away from boredom, to some degree, is to run away from a natural part of your life.
Now, I am not suggesting that we never try to find excitement and embrace an aesthetic life. Instead, I’m speaking about a need for balance; knowing when to appropriately embrace excitement or boredom. Furthermore, I don’t believe that boredom should necessarily be viewed negatively. It holds benefits if you are disciplined enough to receive it, which brings me to my next point
Allow Your Brain to Fill the Space
I don’t know about you, but some of my best thinking occurs when I am bored. Boredom, or a lack of external stimulation, allows my brain to fill the space with thoughts and ideas. I am able to process through events and concepts. This internal stimulation does not occur when I flock to an external stimulation like Facebook, television or my phone. Boredom affords one the opportunity to sit with one’s thoughts even in a manner that’s different from when you practice meditation. But getting to this benefit is not always easy, which is why I call it a discipline. You must resist the temptation to seek the fleeting high of external stimulation and allow the boredom to trigger your internal stimulation. You might find that the genus idea you have been waiting for is there if you would allow yourself to be bored.
Time to Connect With Yourself
Finally, allowing yourself to be bored allows you to connect with yourself. This ties closely to the point above. Sitting with your thoughts is a great method for assessing where you are. When you’re bored, what thoughts come to mind? What thoughts do you try to suppress? To be sure, some people seek constant stimulation because they are intentionally running away from these types of questions and themselves. They are not comfortable with sitting with their thoughts and would rather scroll through Facebook. Nevertheless, I would encourage everyone to push pass any resistance and practice sitting in boredom. The benefits outweigh the costs. Your mind needs this time to process, and you need it as a way to connect with yourself. So the next time you find yourself bored, instead of picking up your phone or turning on the television, just let your mind roam and see what happens.
–Until Next Time—
Palooke
This is EXACTLY where I am right now. Periodically I resolve to avoid all news, social media and so on for the purpose of allowing my brain to quiet down. This obviously helps me mentally, as well as spiritually, but it is so darn hard. I believe that the difficulty of it is evidence of how beneficial it is. Having a bored mind is totally counter-cultural these days, as technology encourages us to cram as much info into our brains as possible.
I am going to post a link to this one on my blog, because I believe an uncluttered, ‘bored’ mind is one of the keys to living a healthy life.
Great! Yes I believe that it’s almost like we’re afraid to be bored. We don’t know what we may encounter in the stillness, but I think it’s a good thing. Thanks for sharing.
Funny that you’d release this yesterday. I had lunch with the director of my organization and a friend of hers and we discussed this very topic and how our desire to avoid boredom at all times will surely be to our detriment. Thanks for sharing these valuable insights!