by AJ Nold

Created on: March 03, 2007   Last Updated: April 12, 2010

Despite what many people choose to believe, boredom is by no means a result of having nothing to do. More often than not, victims of boredom have plenty of options at their disposal, though none may seem particularly appealing at the moment. In my experience, boredom is caused by unexpected periods of time in which an individual has no commitments or responsibilities, and has not prepared any actions. The extra leisure time is not something they are used to, and as a consequence, they have difficulty figuring out ways to fill it up.

The other main occurrence of boredom is at times when an individual is partaking of a repetitive task, or one that they find tedious either because it is too difficult or because it is too easy. Work that is too difficult leaves one frustrated and in search of ways to procrastinate until they may leave, which will ultimately make time appear to move along at a sluggish rate. Work that is not challenging enough does not force a person to pay attention, so their mind is more likely to wander to things they would rather be doing and making their current assignment seem all the more dull.

If an individual makes a conscious choice not to allow themselves to be bored, they likely will not be. It is a simple matter of making decisions as to how to occupy your time and having the discipline to pay attention to and follow the tasks you are currently trying to perform.

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