Thursday Thoughts... The Power of Boredom

This week, I drove to Winter Park, Colorado, with my family for some skiing and time with relatives. We left first thing in the morning, and as soon as we got on the road, my two teenagers and my wife went back to sleep. With the car quiet and the radio quiet, it was just me and the open highway. I70 westbound is a straight shot with barely a turn for nearly four hours, making for an easy but uneventful drive.

At first, I felt the boredom creep in. Soft music, no conversation, just the steady hum of the road. But then something happened, my brain went into overdrive. Solutions to problems I hadn’t even realized I was working on started to emerge. Ideas flooded in. Things I needed to do, projects I had been thinking about, creative solutions to problems that had been sitting unresolved. It’s amazing how much boredom unlocks.

We spend so much of our time filling every gap with something, checking emails, scrolling through social media, listening to podcasts. There’s this pressure to be productive or entertained at all times. But what if the best ideas come when we do nothing at all?

Boredom gives our brains space to wander. It connects dots we didn’t even know existed. It helps us think bigger, see new possibilities, and solve problems in ways we wouldn’t have if we were constantly distracted. The stillness created space for thoughts that had been buried under the noise of daily life to finally surface. It reminded me of something powerfully simple: boredom unlocks creativity.

Think about the last time you truly allowed yourself to be bored. Not just waiting in line at the store and checking emails, but actually sitting in the quiet with nothing to do. Chances are, it’s been a while. But what if we made time for boredom on purpose? What if instead of avoiding it, we leaned into it?

Boredom isn’t wasted time. It’s a reset button for your mind. It’s where ideas form, where creativity ignites, and where clarity finds its way through the noise. Some of the best ideas don’t come from working harder or adding more to your schedule, they come when you finally give your brain some room to breathe.

That Leads Me to This Week’s Challenge…

Find some time this week to be bored on purpose. Put your phone away, turn off the music, and just sit in the quiet. Maybe it’s during a morning drive, a walk, the infrared sauna (a personal favorite of mine), or even just a few minutes at home. Give your brain the space to wander, and see what ideas come to the surface.

I’m thankful you took the time to read this, for choosing to work, and for being part of what makes this world amazing.

If this week’s Thursday Thoughts resonated with you, I’d love to hear about a time boredom led to a great idea or breakthrough. Drop a comment, share your experience, or tag someone who needs a reminder that sometimes doing nothing leads to something great.