Boredom shadows many creative individuals. This article presents a three step process that might help shed light on boredom.

Creative Pop: Snore & Bore- Awaken The Creator Within!

I would venture to guess you have been bored to tears at least once in the last week or so. It may have lasted a few minutes or several hours. If it lasted as a continual state, which stretches into days or weeks, I'm afraid you're more depressed than bored.


* Nothing seems to be happening.
* The world takes on a black & white tonality.
* Time seems to be elongated and impatience swells.
* There is no desire or sense of adventure to anything.
* It's impossible to work on projects because of this lack of desire.
* You settled into a state of ennui, where there is no movement.

Boredom is common among 'creatives' since they are always searching for solutions and challenges. They live lives that thrive on competition and expression.

When these don't appear on a consistent basis they are often left with a sense of 'lack' or 'emptiness' which easily transfers into boredom.

When asked about having a child, the great french author Gustave Flaubert said:

"A child of my own! Oh, no, no, no! Let my flesh perish with me, and let me not transmit to anyone the boredom and ignominiousness of life".

Gustave Flaubert (1821 - 1880)

His feelings about 'the boredom of life' may be a bit extreme, but it highlights the importance of this subject to our creative natures.

Boredom is frowned upon in our society. When the world is constantly in need of innovation and creative effort, those that present themselves as 'bored out of my skull' can feel the full brunt of this reaction:

"Boredom is a sign of satisfied ignorance, blunted apprehension, crass sympathies, dull understanding, feeble powers of attention, and irreclaimable weakness of character".

James Bridie

And one astute fellow Creator Lizzi in London wrote me her thoughts on the subject:

"Boredom is a challenge. It always makes you so fed up you have to do one of the things that you always find excuses to put off at other times. There are no excuses in moments of true boredom. It's a force in itself and does attack you in a very personal way.

Early on I would get so depressed about the futility in boredom - the worst is having to share boredom...I handle it much better when I'm on my own. Now I do relish true moments of boredom.

Though I might hate it initially, I usually end up doing something out of a deep seated anger at the laziness pulling me down and generally really value what gets done in these times. Of course, sometimes a deeper depression is coupled with boredom and this is much harder.

You can't always have the willpower to fight these together. "Boredom" by the Buzzcocks is a great punk song full of attitude and humor about this situation!"
Lizzi in London

These insights are valuable to all of us. The three step approach I'm about to present should give additional guidance to you.

1. "Society expects man to be a passive social animal who believes like the People of the Field in "Jurgen" that "to do what you always have done" and "what is expected of you" are the twin rules of life. This, is course, is not true . The wanton crucifixion of impulses, the unnecessary blocking and frustration of the drives and urges, are an evil that reflects itself in sophistication, ennui and boredom, dissatisfaction, melancholy, fatigue, anxiety and neurosis".
Abraham Myerson

So, first let's be on the lookout for societal influences that may have caused our initial boredom.

Is it the lack of good stimuli? A sense that people, places or work have placed us in a 'box'--and in our anger at this we simply build a bit of boredom into our lives in order to handle it without becoming societal pariahs?

Closely look at your relationships in every area and try to discover if these have been instrumental in your feeling of boredom.

I think you'll be surprised at how these 'outside' influences can cause boredom. Your spirit dominated by rules and laws that would just as soon be discarded by us.

2. "Someone's boring me. I think it's me".

Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953)

Look within. Have you cut off choices? Are you being stubborn and senseless in your decision making? Or have you simply decided to take a 'mini-vacation' from all the work involved in creating your life?

Sometimes boredom is a valuable spur to further growth and experimentation.

3. "The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity".

Dorothy Parker (1893 - 1967)

Parker is right. Curiosity is the one emotional element than can save us from our boredom. I offer you a free report I wrote on this subject titled: "Curiosity- The Questing Force," it can be accessed by visiting my Authors Den under the 'Articles' section.

Victor K. Pryles