There are a certain amount of mundane tasks that are a necessary part of human existence. Washing the dishes, making your bed, checking your email and the list goes on and on. These tasks can seem so mind numbing and repetitive that we look for escape...

There are a certain amount of mundane tasks that are a necessary part of human existence. Washing the dishes, making your bed, checking your email and the list goes on and on. These tasks can seem so mind numbing and repetitive that we look for escape into new and novel experiences. This is a normal and necessary piece of life, we all want to experience new and exciting things. Without planning though we can turn to vices in our lives to alleviate the pain and discomfort of boredom, true fulfillment lies in finding the balance of worthwhile tasks that yield novel experiences, feelings and relationships.    Examples of this can be professional athletes. They practice the same moves over and over in the gym, but it is all leading up to playing in big games that mean something to them week in and week out. Now we aren’t all professional athletes, so what then becomes the thing that we enjoy toiling towards that brings us novelty. We have to take chances and plan things in our life that challenge us in new and exciting ways to break up the normality of our days. When we create obstacles and challenges in our lives and build towards goals and challenges we can recreate that same balance of boredom and novelty.    Consistent effort is what brings us the most joy because it comes off the back of sustained hard work. So create plans, schedules and routines that are challenging and new. Get better at them and then move onto new challenges day in and day out, always moving towards the next thing. Not only with this create balance in boredom and novelty, but will also ensure constant growth.

Boredom and Novelty