As a procrastinator, boredom is my happy place, where I find the most opportunities to create. Anytime a task gets too boring my brain starts doing something else, and as paradoxical as it may sound, I am the most productive when I have something interesting to procrastinate on. I try to constantly have different projects going on: getting inspired by reading a book on fungus instead of writing, writing on serendipity instead of collecting data, working a bit later instead of going on a run, etc. I call this productive procrastination, a place that can only exist if boredom is allowed.
A couple of years ago I was looking for a new book to read in Waterstones, I found "Orange” by John McPhee. The aquarelle-painted oranges and bright blue title on the white cover caught my eyes, reminding me of distant summer memories and sunny days - very much needed in grey Britain. The blurb was so good I instantly craved oranges, so I bought it. Then I stopped on the way back and got some orange juice to quench my thirst. Thank God I am quite the fast reader (ok it is also a short read) because it would have bankrupted me.
This seems totally unrelated, but I’ll try my best to explain the link between Orange, boredom and why you are reading this. Serendipity often starts with simple curiosity, it is what you make out of it that creates luck. In “The Serendipity Mindset”, Dr Christian Bush describes serendipity as unexpected good luck resulting from unplanned moments in which proactive decisions lead to positives outcome, it is the process of spotting and connecting the dots to create bridges.
If it weren't for the librarian to put that orange-themed paperback on the “discovery” shelf (unplanned moment), I wouldn't have read a new experience of journalism (unexpected luck). What may have started as just another book opened a new door, after that I started to choose more and more books outside of my comfort zone (proactive decisions). Learning new things, reading more women author and ultimately finding a style of writing that made me thinks "I want to do that" (positive outcome from connecting all the dots). I probably jumped a few bridges (bad pun intended) with this metaphor but the essential is there.
By training your brain to recognise those patterns you end up creating luck all the time. When I first read that, I thought it was a whole lot of optimist bullshit. One lesson I have learned from my adventures is that if something can go wrong, it will go wrong (more on that later). Once I put all those experiences together, I noticed that I thrive in chaotic situations because I created mental bridges to get over the ambient stress and find creative solutions. Yes, I am bragging but honestly, if there’s one person you want to miss a flight with, it would be me (I have witnesses). All I need is to remember that all that crap is useful and, by reframing said crap, maximise it to gain profit. Look at me finance bro-ing myself through life.
Jumping from one task to another, getting inspired by random things I saw scrolling down my phone, and knowing where I get my creativity (power walking is the way), I find that serendipity is everywhere. If this end seems half-baked, it’s because work keeps me too busy to be productive in my procrastination. Cutting boredom out of life and keeping ourselves constantly busy is killing creativity and imagination, I reclaim the right to be bored out of my mind and have absolutely nothing to do.