Sit with boredom intentionally

Choose a boredom-inducing activity and resist the urge to escape it for 10–15 minutes.

Why it works

Escaping boredom immediately trains the attention system to demand constant novelty. Tolerating the discomfort without relief allows the brain's default mode network to activate — which is associated with mind-wandering, imaginative thought, and the loose associations that underpin creative insight.

How to do it

1. Choose a genuinely boring task — waiting in line, a repetitive household task, a slow commute without a device.
2. Leave your phone pocketed or out of reach for the duration.
3. Notice the discomfort without fighting it; observe the thoughts that arise.

Evidence

Mann and Cadman found that participants who completed a boring task (copying numbers from a phone book) before a creative task produced more creative ideas than controls who did not. Reading from the phone book was even more boring and produced the most creative output. (rct)

Lab study using a specific creative divergent-thinking measure; how well this generalizes to complex real-world creative work is an open question.

Sources

• Mann & Cadman (2014), "Does Being Bored Make Us More Creative?", Creativity Research Journal

Common mistake

Pulling out a phone at the first hint of boredom, which means you never actually experience the boredom-to-daydream transition that precedes creative insight.