When was the last time you were bored?

Not the “flipping through channels looking for what to watch” kinda boredom, or scrolling through your playlist seeking that jam you love. I’m not referring to those. I mean, boredom without options. You know, that type that leaves you rethinking all your life decisions. Yeah, that’s the one I’m about.

Well, I’m guessing you probably can’t remember… and understandably so. We have several entertainment options at our fingertips. With just a few clicks, we can access an endless stream of content on Instagram, Tiktok, and YouTube. It’s simply inexhaustible.

Once upon a time, you would find people waiting in queues or at the airport with only their thoughts to keep them engaged. Today, we have hacked the boredom code, and we have so many things to keep us distracted. We barely even notice the passage of time in such scenarios. With almost everyone owning a smartphone, being bored is only by choice.

But could it be that this choice is sometimes worth it?

Why do we get Bored?

Before anything, let’s begin by defining boredom. Psychologically and scientifically, boredom is said to arise from a combination of lack of neurological excitement and a subjective psychological state of disinterest or dissatisfaction. We also experience boredom when an action is repetitive or predictable.

From this explanation, we can infer that boredom is not always linked to an absence of activity. It is rather the lack of mental stimulation that brings about the release of dopamine (the feel-good neurotransmitter) in the brain.

In fact, some activities in themselves induce boredom. I don’t know about you, but having to sit through a 3-hour seminar on a topic I have no interest in is the definition of boredom. Even productive things can be boring sometimes. Most will prefer taking a long nap than studying for a term paper they need to write. This is because these activities don’t trigger as much excitement in our brains. Well, this stimulus deprivation can be advantageous.

Boredom and Creativity

“If you’re waiting for brilliance to strike, try getting bored first.” This quote was gotten from a Time article that discusses the findings from a study that considered the relationship between boredom and individual productivity and creativity. The study revealed that people who were subjected to boredom-inducing tasks were much better at generating ideas afterward compared to those who engaged in more interesting activities. 

Sandi Mann, a senior psychology lecturer, explains it thus; “boredom is a search for neural stimulation that isn’t satisfied. If we can’t find that, our minds will create it. There’s no other way of getting that stimulation, so you have to go into your head.” This quest for mental stimulation can sometimes lead to the generation of spectacular ideas that would otherwise not be possible.

Several folks —musicians, writers, sculptors, etc— who have creativity at the core of their work have credited boredom for some of their inspirations. One prominent example of such is the story of how JK Rowling came up with the fictional story, Harry Potter. The idea came to her while delayed on a train having no other option than to be alone with her thoughts. That “boring” train ride which lasted for about 4 hours gave her the space to think through the idea for the book.

Boredom makes our minds wander, and as Manoush Zomorodi wrote in her book Bored and Brilliant, “mind-wandering helps our brain create those new connections so we can solve anything from planning dinner to a breakthrough in combating global warming.”

Boredom and Deep Work

In the book, Deep Work by Cal Newport, Rule #2 for cultivating deep work in our personal and professional lives is to “Embrace Boredom”. Cal goes on to explain how habitual focus, which can sometimes be boring, helps in getting you maximum results.

A typical person in this era of hyperconnectivity is habitually distracted with all the excess information on the internet and across social media platforms. For many, scrolling their phones or checking for new messages across social media platforms is almost a subconscious activity. This is because these things stimulate our brains and the more we get the dopamine hits, the more our brains crave them, making it more of instinctive action.

These frequent distractions impede our productivity as it affects our ability to work deeply until we hit the ‘flow’ level. We often pick our phones or engage in some distracting activity when we feel the slightest hint of boredom in whatever we’re doing, however, this quest for mental stimulation is an enemy of maximum productivity.

So when next you get those hints of boredom creeping in, don’t be quick to distract yourself with mindless scrolling or some movie. It might just be your cue to explore the creative potential of your mind.