A perfect subject, for this time of year, especially. I have not known boredom for a good many years, mainly due to having been taught the joy of looking into nooks and crannies, from a very young age. "Quieting the mind" only matters to those who want to control the planet.
Thank you so much for the mention, Valentina! And yes, this is totally a thing I care about - because, like you, I don't think boredom is as easy to understand as it first looks...
Firstly, a common way of expressing boredom is saying "I've run out of things to do" or "everything is uninteresting". So it's about blaming the world, or other people.
Or we decide we're bored because we feel disappointed and bored with ourselves. So we blame ourselves for it.
In every case, there's blaming (and guilt, and shame). Why? Why do we have to blame someone or something for boredom? Why can't it just be a thing that happens to everyone, including amazingly smart and world-changing people? Why can't boeredom be seen as part of the creative process? Because - isn't that where good ideas come from? You get bored with all the existing ideas in the world, and you think "there MUST be something better out there", and you start thinking, and - bang. You suddenly have a Good Idea.
And it happened *directly because of* boredom.
So yeah. There's a lot to think about here. I've been chewing it over for a while. I'm glad that you're doing it too. :)
“When boredom sets in, they reach for the phone, and the phone becomes their lighthouse, and the waves within become fewer and fewer until…the sea swollen with darkness consumes them.” From one Bulgarian to another…thanks for inspiring us. Благодаря : )
I still struggle not to feed guilty when I rest and do nothing. I want to prioritize boredom on my to do list.
I encourage parents to let kids get bored, I tell kids all the time is good to be bored because a brilliant idea will come to you when you really don’t know what to play. I need to fallow my own advice more often.
I love this: “Could it be that we've been trained with clickbait to secrete dopamine? Like Pavlov's dogs, we now wait for the next bell to ring instead of hunting for opportunities.”
Kids nowadays are exactly Pavlov’s dogs, they are just waiting for adults to entertain them all the time or click for the next show, next video, next …
You asked for thoughts on boredom; Here are some of my own.
Whenever I feel the numbing grip of boredom, I know I'm tired or fried from my workday and I need to take action. The first step toward reclaiming my focus is cleaning my immediate space.
This allows my body and intentions to realign with the present realities. Walks help.
On occasion, I do indulge my inner sloth. I've found that I set myself up for failure if I am too consistently rigid with my own guidelines.
Wow, so much to go over here and we haven't even gotten to hurling feces.
Thanks for sharing. Yes, being tired can lead to being disinterested in things to do. I am not sure it's the same as boredom though. Just a need to relax?
no
A perfect subject, for this time of year, especially. I have not known boredom for a good many years, mainly due to having been taught the joy of looking into nooks and crannies, from a very young age. "Quieting the mind" only matters to those who want to control the planet.
Thank you so much for the mention, Valentina! And yes, this is totally a thing I care about - because, like you, I don't think boredom is as easy to understand as it first looks...
Firstly, a common way of expressing boredom is saying "I've run out of things to do" or "everything is uninteresting". So it's about blaming the world, or other people.
Or we decide we're bored because we feel disappointed and bored with ourselves. So we blame ourselves for it.
In every case, there's blaming (and guilt, and shame). Why? Why do we have to blame someone or something for boredom? Why can't it just be a thing that happens to everyone, including amazingly smart and world-changing people? Why can't boeredom be seen as part of the creative process? Because - isn't that where good ideas come from? You get bored with all the existing ideas in the world, and you think "there MUST be something better out there", and you start thinking, and - bang. You suddenly have a Good Idea.
And it happened *directly because of* boredom.
So yeah. There's a lot to think about here. I've been chewing it over for a while. I'm glad that you're doing it too. :)
“When boredom sets in, they reach for the phone, and the phone becomes their lighthouse, and the waves within become fewer and fewer until…the sea swollen with darkness consumes them.” From one Bulgarian to another…thanks for inspiring us. Благодаря : )
Awe. Super cool! Poetry! Thanks for reading. I na vas blagodaria.
I still struggle not to feed guilty when I rest and do nothing. I want to prioritize boredom on my to do list.
I encourage parents to let kids get bored, I tell kids all the time is good to be bored because a brilliant idea will come to you when you really don’t know what to play. I need to fallow my own advice more often.
I love this: “Could it be that we've been trained with clickbait to secrete dopamine? Like Pavlov's dogs, we now wait for the next bell to ring instead of hunting for opportunities.”
Kids nowadays are exactly Pavlov’s dogs, they are just waiting for adults to entertain them all the time or click for the next show, next video, next …
Where is the fun of figuring things out?!
Your article spoke to me.
You asked for thoughts on boredom; Here are some of my own.
Whenever I feel the numbing grip of boredom, I know I'm tired or fried from my workday and I need to take action. The first step toward reclaiming my focus is cleaning my immediate space.
This allows my body and intentions to realign with the present realities. Walks help.
On occasion, I do indulge my inner sloth. I've found that I set myself up for failure if I am too consistently rigid with my own guidelines.
Wow, so much to go over here and we haven't even gotten to hurling feces.
Thanks for sharing. Yes, being tired can lead to being disinterested in things to do. I am not sure it's the same as boredom though. Just a need to relax?