Boredom is Natural, Constant Entertainment is Not

I used to see boredom as an enemy I needed to fight every day, a never-ending battle fueled by the dopamine hits we’ve grown used to from the internet.

I am bored. What special food can I eat? My fitness? It is going shiiit.

I am bored. Where should we travel? My gym? Gone! In calories, I dabble.

I am bored. Let’s watch something. My focus? Vanishes like a hocus pocus.

I am bored. Let’s shop. My money? Poof! and I’m broke, honey.

I am bored. Let’s check my phone for the thousandth time. My self-control? Ruined for a lifetime.

If this were a once-in-a-while thing, it wouldn’t be a problem. But when it’s constant, it is. Mainstream media portrays boredom as unnatural as if we’re supposed to enjoy every single moment of our lives: travel, hang out, play, watch, drink, party, always on the go. So we keep doing something, anything, and end up constantly consuming. It becomes a handy escape from whatever we’re running from.

Here’s the simple truth: life isn’t linear, and you’re not supposed to enjoy every moment.

Boredom is necessary if you want to grow in your life. Growth comes from habit, and habits form when you do something consistently, without fail. To do something consistently, decision-making needs to be easy. How do you do that? By doing the same thing with little or no variation, which naturally leads to boredom. For example, I have the same breakfast every day: a protein shake after the gym. It helps hit my daily protein target and start work on time. Of course, sometimes I get bored and switch to Tofu and toast. But if I kept changing my breakfast every time I got bored, I’d end up skipping the gym, slacking at work, or missing my protein goal most days.

Boredom puts you on autopilot, letting you focus on what’s important without decision fatigue.

Boredom is the mental space where we’re forced to face our thoughts and find clarity, like forced meditation. And guess what? Nobody likes that. So we tell ourselves boredom shouldn’t exist, or that being bored is a bad sign. “Be happy, enjoy every moment, YOLO,” and so on. These ideas are taken out of context and twisted into a narrative that makes comfort the ultimate goal. We the privileged folks, see discomfort as evil, but that’s a newsletter for another day.

A few years ago, I couldn’t understand why I was always looking for excitement after work. I craved my favourite food, a trip, a meet-up with friends, online shopping, or anything that gave me a little burst of stimulation. I never questioned why I needed this constant excitement, or maybe I did, and told myself I “deserved” it after a long day. But why did it have to be excitement? Why not relaxation? I never dug deeper.

The thing about excitement is that it’s only exciting because of its novelty—it works when it happens once in a while. Do it every day, and it becomes boring again.

Now, when I get bored, I accept it as a natural part of life. I just keep doing what I’m supposed to do, whether it’s chores, work, reading, or staring out the window and letting my thoughts wander. I don’t turn to YouTube shorts or social media for cheap thrills because they only make things worse. Of course, it’s hard at first. You’ll catch yourself reaching for your phone or searching for the next exciting thing. But come back to boredom soon, and let it help you help yourself. Maybe it will finally push you to pick up that brush and paint, take a walk, or learn a new craft.

Meanwhile, save the things that bring excitement and make them a novelty. For example, my partner and I watch a movie every Friday or Saturday night. It’s something we look forward to. We don’t suffer from decision fatigue about what to watch, as we used to when we watched movies almost every day. And most importantly, we don’t watch crap because it’s a once a week and we want to make the most out of it.

So next time boredom strikes, remember: it’s not an enemy to fight, but a friend to guide you back to what truly matters.