10 Things to Do When You’re Bored

More screen time is only going to break your brain. Try this stuff instead.

Michael Easter
3 min readJul 31, 2021
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

The average American today spends nearly 12 hours a day on digital media. That figure includes all the time we spend focused on our phones, tvs, computers, tablets, and the audible information we beam into our ears.

Let’s face it, most of our digital time is wasted. We typically don’t use it reading literary classics, wiring money to widows and orphans, or learning a new language. We’re googling the answer to any half-baked question that leaks out of our gray matter, lurking on Instagram, reading lukewarm takes decrying whatever the social media mobs have deemed the affront of the day, etc.

We don’t know how to deal with boredom because we have more easy escapes from it. This is linked to burnout, stress, and decreased creativity. So instead of more screen time, kill your boredom in a way won’t end up driving you more crazy. Try these 10 methods.

1. Read this story about why you should embrace boredom.

2. Then actually embrace boredom. Do nothing. Go inward and let your mind wander. Focusing inwardly is a mental rest state that restores and rebuilds the resources needed to work better and more efficiently. Mental downtime is critical to get shit done, tap into…

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Michael Easter
Michael Easter

Written by Michael Easter

-New York Times bestselling author of The Comfort Crisis and Scarcity Brain. -I write about health, wellness, and mindset 3x a week at TWOPCT.com