---
title: Boredom Sparks More Creativity Than Entertainment
date: 2025-09-03T04:03:33.655610
author: Charlie M.
category: SIGNAL
---
The sun hits my window just right around 10 a.m., pouring in like it's got somewhere to be, kicking me out of whatever half-sleep web I've been spinning. Most days, I sit there, weirdly mesmerized, coffee cooling by my side while I mindlessly scroll through Instagram. Some influencer’s brunch, an ad for a new kind of toothpaste, kittens, and then—oh, look, I’ve wasted another hour. And, okay, maybe it's just me, but every time I force myself to stop, delete the app (for the seventh time, no less), I feel this creeping restlessness, like, what now? It’s like my brain’s convinced that doing nothing is basically a mortal sin.
But then, I read somewhere—probably a half-baked study or maybe it was just an article online—that scheduled boredom somehow increases creativity by some insane percentage, like 70%. Which makes me think, maybe I'm not doing "nothing" right. Is boredom the key, or just some kind of placebo we chase like a magic bullet for our burnt-out brains? There’s this thing called the "default mode network"—your brain’s autopilot when you’re not, like, focusing on spreadsheets or whatever. I guess it's supposed to click on when you’re not scrolling, not watching cat videos, not plotting your next grocery-list conquest.
I feel like every time I try to get bored—like, truly sit there and stare at the wall bored—my mind does that frustrating wander thing. But, apparently, that’s where the magic happens. Mind-wandering is linked to this whole creativity and idleness thing. People smarter than me say it’s when your brain starts making weird connections. Like, maybe that’s how someone thought to put pineapple on pizza, or more importantly, how I might solve that stubborn plot hole in my unfinished novel.
And yet, it’s complicated, right? Because I try to sit there and be bored but end up scrolling through puppies wearing hats or trying to beat my own 5K run record (which, let me be honest, isn’t that impressive). It's like my brain is wired to avoid boredom at any cost. Maybe it's just me, but it feels like there's a constant tug-of-war between wanting to be this creative powerhouse and this doom-scrolling zombie.
So, here's what I'm thinking: do I just need to force myself into boredom boot camp? How do I power off my brain’s relentless need for entertainment? Honestly, I don't know. Maybe boredom is where creativity lurks, but maybe it’s also just where procrastination hides out, too. Or maybe it's all just an excuse to make us feel better about sitting in silence, waiting for that lightning bolt of inspiration.
I guess the real question is, does it even work? Because sometimes I feel like I’m chasing this idea that boredom will suddenly turn me into some brilliant artist or a prolific writer when all it does is make me crave another scroll through Instagram. And there it is again, the sun sliding down the window, reminding me that time’s slipping through my fingers. So, maybe I'll try this boredom thing again. Or maybe I'll just find another way to procrastinate. Who knows?