Keys to overcoming boredom — Entering the room of choices

by Richard L. Weaver II, Ph.D.    

As I prepared for church this morning, it seemed to me I had just done it, even though it was a full week ago.  When I pulled down all the Christmas decorations from the attic, it seemed as if I just put them up there the day before. Time flies, the routines become repetitive, and there seems to be little that is new and different.  It is easy to get caught up in the every day, become drugged by the nausea and din of life, and “go with the flow” because it requires no thought, satisfies our comfort zone, and permits nothing but our base survival instincts — routines that are deeply entrenched.
    
Now, if you are a regular reader (or even an occasional one) of my essays, you already know the key to the keys to overcoming boredom.  That is, there is a key to entry into the room of choices.  This is the room in which you are free to select different ways to combat boredom.  But, if you’re not in the room of choices, there is no way to overcome it.  What is the entry key?
    
The key to the keys is a basic desire — an “I want to” — because without that base-line motivation, no further key in the room of choices will work.
    
(Just an aside here.  Wouldn’t it be great if there were an M.P. (motivational pill) that we could take that would spark (ignite) the desire?  That M.P. would be the key to the room.  Can you imagine the popularity of an M.P. pill?)
    
My point is simple: Nothing that any writer, motivational speaker, or person can do or say will work if he or she is facing total lethargy, boredom, or ennui.  When boredom or laziness is deeply entrenched it is just plain easier to continue following this course of least resistence — a life of no change — nothingness (apathy).
    
(Another aside here.  One of the problems with so many people is that they are truly uninformed, and they don’t care.  Choosing to be informed, they know, requires purpose, direction, motivation, and effort — desire!  I prefer not knowing.)
    
Thus, any suggestion of keys (in the room of choices) to overcoming boredom must not involve going out and meeting others, reading, going to church or to the library, or even breaking through the barriers that cause ennui.  Any suggestion for overcoming boredom must first address the lack of desire.   How does anyone light that spark or re-invigorate basic motivation?
    
You already know this, but it bears repeating: You are responsible for your behavior.  Any change, improvement, or success — just as any  frustration, annoyance, or lack of progress — is dependent on you and, in the end, on you alone.  So, let’s begin by exploring how to deal with this basic fact.  Where can you begin?  What, indeed, is the key to the room of choices?
    
First, recognize the fact that you are a total victim of your routines, and it is your routines that are boring, repetitive, and uninspiring.  Routine behaviors can be un-motivating.  If you don’t break the routines nothing will happen.  You don’t have to do a lot, but you have to do something.  Change the time you go to bed or the time you get up.  Change the television channels or shows that you watch or the Internet sites you visit.  Change your attire in some small way or the way you do your hair.  Change the route you take to work, the food you choose to eat, the friends with whom you associate, or the books you choose to read.
    
Any change in your life has the power to change negative thoughts into positive ones.
     
One frustration that occurs when routines become boring is that your brain begins
bombarding you with negative or limiting thoughts.  “Life isn’t worth living,” “Nothing exciting ever happens,” “I am utterly and hopelessly stuck,” “I’m bored, apathetic, lazy, and I don’t care,” “I will never succeed.”  Those are precisely the thoughts that will make you question if any effort is worthwhile. Why change?  
    
One simple way to control these negative thoughts is to ignore them.  Another is to say CANCEL immediately when you hear them. By acting in a strong and decisive manner you will  disrupt the negative thought and prevent it from growing and causing you to remain as you are or revert to the security of where it is most comfortable.  Saying CANCEL is a simple method, but you need simplicity when negative thoughts occur.  It is an excellent way to help you build your motivation.
    
With small changes and a new way of thinking (canceling negative thoughts as they occur), you need to depend on your resources.  As a functioning human being, you are a problem solver.  Not only do you have innate and successful problem-solving skills, but you are a creative person, too, and you need to put your skills, experience, and knowledge to work at once.  With Internet access, you can expose yourself to more knowledge and more knowledgeable people than anyone at any previous time in history.   
    
Just those little changes you make in your life as well as the cancellation of negative thinking can result in a complete change of perspective. Suddenly you will find new opportunities opening up, not only for personal growth, but for careers, relationships, and numerous other possibilities.

If you choose not to put your thoughts and feelings into action, you won't be taking
charge of your life and stagnation, negativity, and inactivity will continue unabated.  But change, even a small one, can open the door to positive action, optimism, and growth.
    
There are many benefits to personal change; however, what you must do at this new stage of development is to set goals to keep yourself moving in a positive direction. “I want to be more assertive,” “I want to listen better,” “I want to develop a serious relationship,” “I want to accomplish more in my life,” “I want to break out from this dungeon of depression.”  By setting goals you will also be able to accomplish more in a shorter time.  Each time you are successful at achieving a goal you move forward with more clarity, and you become increasingly positive and stronger.  Each achievement provides greater incentives to be even more successful.  Success builds on itself just as small changes (where you began) build on themselves.
    
Now is the time to combat boredom more directly.  You are now in the room of choices.  Surround yourself with positive people, keep active, read new, interesting, positive material on the Internet, eat healthy food, begin a regular exercise routine, and get enough sleep.  With a more positive and optimistic outlook, you need to accept that some boredom in life is inevitable.  Do what has to be done as quickly as possible, and get on with it.  Life can’t be all fun and games.  Pat Riley, the basketball coach said, “If you have a positive attitude and constantly strive to give your best effort, eventually you will overcome your immediate problems and find you are ready for greater challenges” — the challenges offered in the room of choices.
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At wikiHow there is an essay, “How to overcome boredom,” in which Fatimah Musa, Anonymous, Sondra C, Ben Rubenstein, and others offer and discuss 30 practical ways to overcome boredom.

Etienne A. Gibbs, a management consultant and trainer, at HomeHighlight.org, offers and discusses six great ways for overcoming boredom in her article,
“Overcoming boredom in six ways.”

At the website Positive-thinking-for-you.com, there is an inspiring essay, “Motivational Tips From A To Z That Truly End With Your Success In Life!” by an author who goes by the name of “Howard.”  The tips are practical and useful.  Also, click on “Home” from the left-column index, and see many of the other inspiring essays available at this website.
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Copyright July, 2011, by And Then Some Publishing, L.L.C.