Amp Up Creativity: Embrace Boredom
The Myth of Multitasking
Your brain can’t actually multitask, well, not like we think it can. It obviously has to multitask on some level in order for us to both talk while walking or breathe while reading. So, while your brain can pay attention to something like talking or reading while also doing something autonomic (breathing, pumping your heart) and automatic (walking, chewing gum), your brain cannot pay attention to more than one thing at a time (e.g., talking and reading).
So, while you feel like you are killing it while scrolling through LinkedIn and watching a movie and listening to your 4-yr-old and brushing your dog, your brain is actually very rapidly switching focus between each of those things. Not only does that mean you are missing chunks of information about each thing, but also that you’re using up valuable energy in your brain and it will get tired more quickly. And, while your brain is only about 2% of your body weight, it accounts for around 20% of the energy that you use.
So, you can blame your brain the next time someone with a manual, physically demanding job questions how you can possibly be exhausted after a day of sitting in front of your computer.
Forced Multitasking in Today’s Always-On World
While it is possible to isolate yourself, unplug, and not be constantly bombarded with things vying for your attention, that is not the norm for most of us. The latest research shows that, on average, we spend about 2 hours and 30 minutes a day on social media and another 3 hours a day watching television. You then add constant dings from messages and phone calls on your phone or watch and whatever other interruptions you have from your devices, kids, pets, etc… you’re brain is saturated with things to pay attention to for most of your waking hours.
The Cost of Constant Interruptions
This has impacts on your capacity for learning and creative problem-solving, your ability to listen to understand, how connected you can be to someone you’re interacting with, and how present you can be in the moment (even when you’re by yourself).
If you can’t actually pay attention to more than one thing at a time, that means that if you really need to absorb information, actively listen to someone, or basically do anything that requires your full attention, you have to try as hard as you can to eliminate everything else.
Your Brain on Boredom
Often when we’re doing, watching, or listening to something boring, we may feel like our brain is shutting down, even that we’re losing smarts (I know I’ve remarked before that I was losing brain cells while enduring something supremely boring). In some ways, your brain is shutting down (but, don’t worry, you aren’t actually losing brain cells or smarts). So, it may be counterintuitive that boredom leads to more creativity, not less. But, it does.
Bored and Brilliant by Manoush Zomorodi, 2017, St. Martin’s Press
Why is this? Partly it has to do with the multitasking we talked about—if you’re not paying attention to anything because you’re bored, your brain has open capacity to focus on fully thinking about one thing. But, there must be something else going on. How else do you explain being bored and then suddenly having an a-ha moment about something you haven’t thought about for hours, days, or even years? Neuroscientists may have an answer. When your body is only doing autonomic or automatic (i.e., mindless), it allows your brain to form new neural connections that can mean you suddenly see a connection between ideas or have a brilliant way to solve a problem. Manoush Zomorodi explains this phenomenon (and how she came to realize the power of boredom) in her TED talk How Boredom Can Lead to Your Most Brilliant Ideas and her book Bored and Brilliant.
Reducing Our #1 Attention Hog
While social media and other activities on your phone/mobile device may not be your #1 attention-seeking problem, it certainly is mine. As a constantly recovering/regressing social media addict (it’s a lifelong process, don’t judge) I can tell you that it’s not easy to curb the habit and create more space for my brain to be it’s most creative. I’ve made a conscious effort to set my phone down more often, turned off notifications on my watch, and used apps that measure my screen time.
I have an iPhone and Apple Watch. I tried a few apps and really liked both Freedom and Zen Screen, but there are a ton of options for both iOS and Android devices.
My first week was just about setting a baseline, so I tried not to curtail my habits at this point. And, boy was it a habit. I averaged 4 hours a day on my phone, mostly on LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, and Tik Tok, but some days were completely out of hand (yes, I admit that I have been that person who ignores Tik Tok’s gentle nudge to get a life more than once and frittered the night away on addictive short videos).
I found that just being aware and deciding to make a conscious effort made a big difference (cutting my average time in half) and then using apps help me shave off some more time. These days I sometimes forget my phone in the car for an entire evening and am pumped when I realize it in the morning (picture “We are the champions” as the backing track to my little victory dance).
So, give boredom a chance… see if it doesn’t help you make connections, solve problems, or otherwise have creative breakthroughs.
