Question: What do you say to all the kids (and adults) who are complaining about being bored?Īnswer: Frankly, that is music to my ears. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity. We talked to Headlee, who lives in Washington, D.C., about the toxic side to being busy, why texting isn’t an authentic social connection and why being bored can be a good thing. In her new book, “Do Nothing: How to Break Away From Overworking, Overdoing, and Underliving,” Headlee writes that we need to relearn how to appreciate idleness and leisure and rethink our relationship with work and productivity.īeing constantly busy and always striving for efficiency has caused us to cut out “expressions of our basic humanity,” such as long, undirected phone conversations, chatting with neighbors, personal hobbies - even being bored. Journalist Celeste Headlee, however, sees the silver lining in being forced to slow down. It’s time to reverse the trend that’s making us all sadder, sicker, and less productive, and return to a way of life that allows us to thrive.Canceled plans and stay-at-home orders have many (especially teenagers) singing the latest TikTok anthem: “Bored in the House.” Her research reveals that the habits we cling to are doing us harm they developed recently in human history, which means they are habits that can, and must, be broken. Pulling together threads from history, neuroscience, social science, and even paleontology, Headlee examines long-held assumptions about time use, idleness, hard work, and even our ultimate goals. Yet all is not lost-we just need to learn how to take time for ourselves, without agenda or profit, and redefine what is truly worthwhile. We won’t find what we’re searching for in punishing diets, productivity apps, or the latest self-improvement schemes. As it turns out, we’re searching for external solutions to an internal problem. In Do Nothing, award-winning journalist Celeste Headlee illuminates a new path ahead, seeking to institute a global shift in our thinking so we can stop sabotaging our well-being, put work aside, and start living instead of doing. Why do we measure our time in terms of efficiency instead of meaning? Why can’t we just take a break? We strive for the absolute best in every aspect of our lives, ignoring what we do well naturally and reaching for a bar that keeps rising higher and higher. So why are we so miserable?ĭespite our constant search for new ways to optimize our bodies and minds for peak performance, human beings are working more instead of less, living harder not smarter, and becoming more lonely and anxious.
We work feverishly to make ourselves happy. “A clarion call to work smarter accomplish more by doing less.”-Adam Grant
“This book is so important and could truly save lives.”-Elizabeth Gilbert “A welcome antidote to our toxic hustle culture of burnout.”-Arianna Huffington
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