Saturday Self-Study: Boredom

I’ve been practicing boredom lately. Yes, you read that correctly, I’ve been practicing boredom and no, I haven’t lost my mind any more than usual.

It’s been very similar to when I started meditation. This morning, I sat there for about five to ten minutes just looking out of my office window. I didn’t do anything during this time except look out the window and take a sip of coffee.

The goal was to stay present, in the moment, and just watch what was happening out of the window. I saw two neighbors walk by, I saw a couple of birds fly in and out of the picture, and that was about it.

I did notice something bigger; I was crawling in my own skin to do something. I wanted to start writing, get up and walk around, or start doing some work. It was weird. I was getting extremely antsy, similar to what happened when I first started meditation.

Being bored and sitting in your boredom can have some benefits. It gets you out of that mentality where you’re just trying to fill your time throughout the day or should I say “distract yourself” from real life.

I know I’m guilty of this, you know, finding something to do so that you can pass the time and not be stuck sitting there with your thoughts. Since I’ve started my healing journey, it’s not so much the thoughts that get me anymore, I noticed that when I practice boredom, I don’t have too many thoughts. This is actually a good thing.

I know in the past, I kept busy or distracted myself so that I wouldn’t have to think about anything, especially anything to do with the past.

However, the struggle now is feeling like I always need to be doing something. Whether it’s doing something with my business, working out, or something around the house, there’s that pull to find something to do. There’s that pull to pull out the to-do list and get something done on that list.

This is what I’m fighting now, and I make it a practice now to try and sit in the boredom and see what comes of it.

I was reading some things lately on boredom and how it’s good for your brain and nervous system. It gives your brain a chance to catch its breath, and boredom is an indicator that your nervous system is starting to heal from living in survival mode.

So next time you find yourself bored, try to stop yourself from filling that boredom with mindless activity. Take the time to sit in your boredom and observe how you handle it. Like me, maybe you need a little more practice to improve your boredom skills. 

Stay positive and take action!

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