Boredom can be a good thing

When we were younger and complained of being bored, our parents told us to go outside and play. Find something to do. Figure it out.

Now? Many of us grab our phones to text a friend, check email, see how many Likes we got on our latest photo. And boredom is averted.

But is that a good thing? Probably not.

Boredom and its oft-related cousin, daydreaming, may serve a very important purpose in our brain, allowing it to rest while also sorting out the thornier issues of our lives. Creativity is born from mind-wandering, and it’s not just the artsy kind — engineers and tech folks can find solutions when they loosen their hold.

A recent story on Medium pointed out that most of the studies on the neuroscience of daydreaming have only been done within the past 10 years. But those studies have been enlightening.

When our brains wander, neuroscientists discovered, they use the “default mode.” Brain-imaging technology has found that the brain is still extraordinarily active in this mode, however. The medial temporal lobe, medial prefrontal cortex, and the posterior cingulate cortex are active.

For the non-neuroscientists among us, that means our organizing and understanding of things is hard at work. Reflection, which leads to insight, can better take place.

It’s why we step away from the laptop and get an ah-ha moment when out for a walk, or wake up in the morning with fresh ideas (albeit after a cup or two of coffee).

So maybe the next time we hear that cringeworthy, “I’m booored” from the next room, we can smile and think, “Good.”