Be More Bored

The festive period forces us all to take a step away from hectic schedules. Far from the inevitable calendar confusion and pyjama uniform being a cause for concern though, LWC’s Head of Psychology, Lottie Howes, argues that we should embrace the boredom…

 

The Twixmas period is a unique one. Fuelled by the lingering remnants of Quality Street and unable to grasp the day of the week (let alone when to put the bins out), we begin to adopt the brace position as we think about the incoming month of January.

 

The new year (and new term) encourages us to dive straight into schedules, goals and activities. Students may already be thinking about revision plans, staff return to full classrooms and families work to re-establish routines. This often feels like a time of acceleration, catching up and pushing forward. But hold fire. Research in psychology and neuroscience suggests that some of the most productive work that our brain does happens in quiet, unstructured moments like now.

 

When our minds are allowed to wander, when we sit without constant stimulation, or even experience mild boredom, part of the brain called the Default Mode Network (DMN) becomes active. You can think of the DMN like the brain’s background processing system – similar to a computer running updates whilst you’re working on something else. It helps us to make sense of past experiences, plan for the future, link ideas together and reflect on who we are. This network is most active when we’re not focused on an external task and it plays a key role in creativity, problem-solving, memory consolidation and self-reflection.

 

Modern neuroscience shows that when people let their minds drift away from focused attention, the DMN begins to create subconscious connections that more directed thinking can’t easily achieve. It’s this hidden creativity engine that often fuels our best ideas.

 

Far from being idle, moments of quiet allow the brain to reorganise information and make meaningful connections. Studies over the past two years show that people who spend time in quiet reflection or on simple, repetitive tasks later generate more creative ideas and solutions than those who remain constantly stimulated.

 

In his recent blogs, LWC Head, Adam Williams has emphasised the importance of giving students space to explore, reflect and develop beyond immediate performance measures or the constant visibility of achievements. He argues that education shouldn’t simply be about what can be measured or displayed, but about the development of curiosity, resilience and the capacity to think independently. Moments of quiet and mental wandering are exactly the spaces in which these capacities grow.

 

For young people, the opportunity to experience boredom or rest is increasingly rare. Notifications, streaming, messaging and endless digital engagement fill almost every pause in the day. Whilst these are enjoyable, they leave little room for self-generated thought. Unstructured time allows the brain to consolidate learning, process emotions and develop the creative and reflective capacities that enable students to engage meaningfully with new ideas, people and experiences… in other words, to truly widen their worlds.

 

Over the Christmas holidays, there are simple, practical ways to encourage these beneficial pauses. You might encourage your family and friends to go for a quiet walk without their phones, to spend a few minutes each day sitting somewhere peaceful, noticing their surroundings, or to let their minds drift whilst doing simple, repetitive activities such as cooking, drawing or tidying. Spend an extra few minutes in the shower under the hot water before thinking about your to-do list for the day. Reading for pleasure without pressure or journalling can also allow the brain to consolidate memories and ideas. Even just allowing a few minutes of “nothing time” between activities can give the DMN space to work its creative magic.

 

So, as we begin a new year, perhaps the greatest gift we can offer ourselves is the permission to pause. To experience quiet, to let thoughts drift, to allow boredom to become a tool for creativity and reflection. In these still moments, the brain consolidates, ideas emerge and our capacity to connect, imagine and understand grows.

 

Doing less at the right time is never wasted time. It’s how we prepare for meaningful achievement, personal growth, and a truly widened world.