The Art of Boredom

The idea of sitting in our rooms by ourselves with nothing to do is an idea that the majority of people have nightmares about. No entertainment from a show on your TV, no endless doomscrolling, and no texting your friends. We commonly associate boredom with negative feelings. It feels like a waste of time not being productive, making us uncomfortable. However, scientists and researchers counter this idea; boredom is not as bad as it feels.

Harvard professor Arthur Brooks states that it is important for people to switch off cognitively. Our brains come to rest when we switch to the Default Mode Network (DMN)^[1]. The DMN enables emotional processing and mental exploration. It also makes us think about the big questions of life^[2]. These thoughts are uncomfortable for many people, yet it is important that we have them.

The main issue that makes it difficult for us to switch off cognitively is that we are living in a fast-paced, highly digitalised world where we are constantly occupied. This does not allow us to fully process certain aspects of our lives. This in turn can lead to depression and anxiety. Research fellow Marc Wittmann, who researches topics such as time perception, observed that people go online to feel less bored. However, after doing so, they feel like they have wasted their time by not being present in the moment^[3].

Allowing our brains to take a break can help us healing from stress, general illnesses and other things^[4]. As mentioned, when being bored, we allow our brains to have more freedom, allowing people to be more creative. A group of researchers use the COVID-19 pandemic as example where people were able to discover new hobbies and passions. Additionally, people can reflect on what they want to do and how they would like to change their lives^[5].

Although there is an increasing amount of research which shows the positive aspects of boredom, it is also important to recognise some of the negatives. People with deep senses of boredom may feel isolated, show weakened academic performances, and have an increase of impulsivity^[6]. Like most things, it is all about balance. Being bored from time to time can help the brain relax and recover, but too much boredom may lead to undesirable consequences.

So consider putting your phones down more often. It gives you time to disconnect and allows you to think about things you may not had the chance to reflect on. Boredom is not the enemy we typically think it is, as it lets us delve into parts of our mind that we do not connect with on a daily basis.

^[1] https://hbr.org/2025/08/you-need-to-be-bored-heres-why

^[2] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12025022/