“I am bored.”
This is one declaration I have seen on Twitter, Facebook and BBM too many times, and struggled to understand. Seriously, I do not understand it. I’ve asked some people who seem to understand it, and they have tried to explain to me that it’s not a lack of things to do, but a lack of interest in those activities, that creates this boredom. I’m still trying to grasp this.
I have never been bored. I don’t know what it feels like to be bored, and I suspect I would have to be in solitary confinement to experience this. During periods when I was between jobs, I have ached to contribute to projects, to utilize my skills, to be part of something bigger than myself, but I have never, ever been
bored. I was tempted to conclude that my voracious appetite for literature- books, magazines, articles- was the reason for this, but I knew that wasn’t exactly correct. It is not books, friends or music per se that keep boredom at bay; it is being
busy.
Here are a few things you should know about being busy.
-It is absolutely important to discover the activities that fulfil you and give you joy. Your late teens and early twenties are the time to do this. Filling your life with these activities will not only chase boredom away; you will be happier for it.
-Once in a while, bite off more than you can chew. That’s how you know what you
think you can chew and what you really can chew. You surprise yourself, you stretch and you grow.
-Being busy helps keep you from doing foolish things. The woman popularly known as the Virtuous Woman was known to not “eat the bread of idleness.” That bread messes up your system, for real. For instance, you know how much more tempting it is to call your ex when you’re home alone with nothing to do? You know how that almost always turns out to be a stupid mistake? Aha.
-Build a network of true friends. Look, you don’t need to have many friends. What counts here is quality, not quantity. Those nights we just talked about? You need solid friends you can reach out to, to talk you out of your foolishness. We’ve all been there, it’s alright.
-Men love busy women. The ones who have nothing to do with themselves but choke a man with “love” or demand more and more time and attention, rarely keep healthy relationships and marriages. It’s the ones who have their hands full being productive and making a difference that have men running after them, grateful for what little time they can spare. You’ve never noticed this?
-You won’t get ahead in life without putting time into your life’s work. Any woman who is maximizing her potential, putting the hours in (not to mention managing a home at the same time), networking effectively, improving her skills and making her mark on the world will tell you, there is no time to be bored. Women like this don’t fight boredom; they are busy creating time to fit reading a book and getting a manicure into their already full schedule. There’s barely time to get everything done!
Even if for any reason you can’t work, get involved in charity, church activities,
something. Don’t waste the gifts and greatness in you. Your life should be full, lush and rich, not sparse, unproductive and boring. Go get more out of life, and out of
you! Get busy!
About the writer: Joy Ehonwa is a writer, editor and online proofreader who is passionate about relationships and personal development. She runs Pinpoint Creatives, a copy-editing, ghostwriting and transcription business, and blogs at
www.anafricandiva.wordpress.com and
www.girlaware.wordpress.com
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This article was first published on 24th October 2014 and updated on June 26th, 2015 at 2:51 pm
jehonwa
Joy Ehonwa is an editor and a writer who is passionate about relationships and personal development. She runs Pinpoint Creatives, a proofreading, editing, transcription and ghostwriting service.
Email: pinpointcreatives [at] yahoo.com
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