Do you remember being a kid, and having nothing to do for hours? Whole summer afternoons that seemed to last forever, just lazing around, being bored, thinking and daydreaming?
And, now that we’re adults, we make our lists, try to be as productive as possible, and want to squeeze as much “doing” in as we can.
But when is our time to think? If you’re a Big Bang Theory fan you may remember the episode with Amy, reading then just staring blankly off into the distance… When asked if she was OK, she answered: “Yes. I was reading. And now I’m thinking about what I read.” Sometimes we need time to just think, to figure out what to do with all that information coming at us.
Our brains work on several levels to process information. You may have noticed that something you were trying to remember will just pop into your head later when doing something completely unrelated. Especially when engaged in an activity that doesn’t require deep concentration, your subconscious will continue to work on solving a problem even though you weren’t actively trying.
And, even if it doesn’t find the solution for you, you’ll see the problem with fresh eyes and more energy when you return to it. Writers often use this technique to improve their ability to see writing problems – we walk away, take a break from our work, and magically can see lots we can improve when we return. I’m sure this process can work for many tasks and makes a strong case for taking regular breaks from any lengthy project.
The other problems we can have from constant “busyness” with little time to think are fatigue, stress and burn-out. But taking a break from work and spending it reading our devices isn’t really a break for our mind. A really helpful break is more like what Amy was doing: staring off into space. Closing eyes and listening to music or meditating give a similar effect. The Dutch call this “niksen” – doing nothing.
Taking short but regular “niksen” breaks during the day, even if it’s just a few minutes to relax and take a few deep breaths, can help you to be more productive when you return to work at the same time as it’s preventing overload, stress and burnout. Any sort of breathing exercise can help by distracting, giving you something else to concentrate on – I often used this technique to distract patients before giving them their flu shot. It worked well, giving the person something else to focus on besides the needle I had in my hand. Studies say distraction actually lessens the pain experienced during an injection.
Now, I’ve never been able to sit still and meditate without getting antsy, but I have found repetitive activities like knitting or jigsaw puzzles seem to fit the bill, occupying the mind and giving it a break from being busy. The key is creating a break for your mind, letting it wander and giving it time to process.
So, make time to be bored (or at least to do something mindless) on a regular basis – your brain will likely thank you for it!
And, if it’s time to give your brain a break and just do nothing, here’s a link to “The Nothing Song”
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