“ Being bored is a precious thing, a state of mind we should pursue. Once boredom sets in, our minds begin to wander, looking for something exciting, something interesting to land on. And that’s where creativity arises.
My best ideas come to me when I am unproductive. When I am running but not listening to my iPod. When I am sitting, doing nothing, waiting for someone. When I am lying in bed as my mind wanders before falling to sleep. These “wasted” moments, moments not filled with anything in particular, are vital. They are the moments in which we, often unconsciously, organize our minds, make sense of our lives, and connect the dots. They’re the moments in which we talk to ourselves. And listen.
—

Peter Bregman

Whenever I find myself “bored” I reach for the refresh button on NetNewsWire or Twitter or email. I look to distract myself from my boredom. And I suppose I never considered boredom to be a useful thing. I listen to a dozen podcasts during the week and when I’m not listening to a podcast, I’ve got music going. I try to keep my brain busy. That staves off boredom, right?

This article resonated with me because I’ve been feeling less creative. Like my creativity has become malnourished. I thought it was a result of work (repetitive, template-driven, comfortable) but now I wonder if the culprit might not be my relentless pursuit to “cure” my boredom.

(via monkeyairplane)

I can personally attest to the notion of Boredom Yielding Ideas ringing true for me. I think it goes right in line with the Slow Living movement that is, sort of, going on. We constantly push ourselves to be distracted by something… but it only serves to keep your brain from actually thinking about anything.

(via yewknee)