Why Do We Get Bored

Boring. Boring a hole is a slow process requiring repetitive movements from a tool that goes in circles, which may be why things that are slow and repetitive and don't appear to be going anywhere came to be described with the same word. They're boring.

But why do we get bored and why does it matter? Evidence of being temporarily uninterested in anything happening - boredom - has been found as far back as ancient Pompeii. Boredom is a feeling we don't like. It's uncomfortable, but it's trivial, right? I mean, boredom happens to all of us. But now, we have Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, texting and Candy Crush to keep ourselves occupied. So, really, who cares? Well, here's the thing. Physical pain, heartbreak and nausea are also uncomfortable but they're caused by dangerous serious toxic things, whereas boredom occurs when you are merely disinterested in the outside world and the inner world of your thoughts, when you are alone with just yourself. So, does the existence of boredom mean that when it really comes down to it life itself existing isn't really enough?

Arthur Schopenhauer said that "if life possessed in itself a positive value in real content, there would be no such thing as boredom. Mere existence would fulfil and satisfied us." But apparently it doesn't because boredom exists. Is something wrong with being, or is something awesome about us? Nearly 200 hundred years ago Giacomo Leopardi wrote in a letter to his father "boredom is the most sublime of all human emotions because it expresses the fact that the human spirit, in a certain sense, is greater than the entire universe. Boredom is an expression of a profound despair and not finding anything that can satisfy the souls' boundless needs." So, while superficially boredom might seem trivial or childish, embarrassing, almost rude to admit to feeling, one thing's for sure - boredom isn't boring. When bored, your brain activity only drops about 5% and magnetic resonance images of people's brains

Jennifer Schuessler wrote about this in her appropriately titled essay "Our boredom, Ourselves." She points out that in line with neurological evidence, boredom historically has been "an important source of creativity, well-being and our very sense self." It's an imposed state that leaves us to think about ourselves, notice things we may have overlooked and get "ancy" enough to take productive actions we might have otherwise put off, like cleaning, writing or challenging the mind with puzzles and games. As a pressure to move, boredom may have driven us to accomplish much of what we have achieved. Boredom is positioned as a light version of disgust. Emotions are not superfluous. Normal amounts of them have a purpose.

Creatures who feel emotions are often compelled to do and not do more complicated things than merely eating, drinking, sleeping and procreating, like building friendships, apologizing, loving unconditionally and planning and building for the future. Disgust is an emotion we don't like. It keeps us from doing things. Its purpose is most likely a warning, an alarm triggered by things that appear rancid, spoiled or toxic, that could poison us or make us sick. Like a good friend, disgust pushes us away from such things. It guides us in a healthy direction. Likewise, boredom protects us. Monotonous speakers, mind-numbing tasks and overloaded sameness, those things aren't dirty or poisonous, they're just not stimulating enough. Boredom compels us to new things, fresh stimulation and when it can't be overcome a propensity to boredom is a sign of a healthy mind. It's advantageous. Creatures who felt it wound up doing more, flourished more, which led to more creatures like themselves, boredness feelers. So the next time you're a little bored, be proud. Thank your ancestors, you are participating in a life improving drive, like hunger or thirst that pushes us toward new and better things. Give yourself time away from the usual distractions to get bored. It will be boring, but boring is literally how holes get made and perfected. Not all holes are useful but some become, to some people is pretty cool stuff.

And as always, thank you for reading.