Yesterday, at our weekly Dad and Daughter get together, Daughter mentioned to Dad, “The problem with kids today is they don’t appreciate boredom. They don’t know how creative that time can be. I used to stand in the line at the grocery store waiting for you to check out reading the headlines on the magazines thinking I can write a better line than that.”
Wise words from a 30-something, and yes, she did end up writing better lines than those come-on headlines, now running her own copywriting business. And it all started because when she was parked in the seat of a shopping cart during the weekly grocery runs instead of staying home with her child’s-app-loaded iPad in heavy duty protective case. It was after she dropped her adult appreciated iPad that she spouted this wisdom, noting the colorful protective covers sold to minimize damage to the children’s themed tablets would certainly have inflicted more damage than a mere week’s long bruise that her lightly protected covered unit inflicted upon her toe. And thus, we were off on to an hour’s long discussion of the things your mind can do when it seemingly is doing nothing, and of which we are robbed because parents would rather perpetually occupy their children’s time with electronic babysitters rather than risk answering a question like, “What’s that word?” several times while waiting to unload their haul onto the conveyor belt for the cashier to total the bounty.
We decided that although creatives intentionally turn their brains on when they write, or paint, or film, the ideas that lead to those compositions are often born from idleness. Filling up every moment of a mind’s time is actually a great way to suppress moments of mental creativity and might have led to the loss of some of the world’s greatest creative works.
When are you at your creative best? Something to think about the next time your child or grandchild or strange child looks to you and asks, “What’s that?” and how you choose to answer.
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Your daughter and you have hit on a truth too often ignored by adults everywhere. Constantly occupying the minds of children makes them anxious if they don’t have something to focus on. Idle thinking is the space where creative juices flow! Often for me, it’s as I’m trying to get to sleep and my mind wanders to places that intrigue and interest me. Your daughter has some amazing insights–a chip of her dad’s block!
She is a good kid. And she makes sure to keep some time open for a little creative boredom. Me? I’m often bored but I think my creative juice bottle is starting to run low!
Not likely, my friend. I think you’ve topped it off several times over.
Thank you Dayle. I just keep trying to do my best. You guys are the ones who keep my bottle from emptying.
Love this: …”the things your mind can do when it seemingly is doing nothing.” I do my best work when I’m doing nuttin. 😜 Honestly. It’s like spring cleaning when I give the noggin a rest to usher in new ideas, fresh images. Your daughter sounds wise AND talented. Hmmm…apple? Tree? Thanks, Michael!
Oh that’s s great comparison – spring cleaning for the mind! Love that!! Oh, the apple and the tree is one of the daughter’s oft said sayings, usually after she’s done something like not turn on the kettle and wonder why the water is taking so long to boil. Well, creative minded are also absent minded, no?
Yes…of course! Because we’re perennially preoccupied – right!? That’s my story and I’m sticking with it! 🥰😜🥰
Works for me! 👍
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Your daughter is wiser. I hated being bored when I was a child but learned to never say that to my mother. She could always find a chore for me to do around the house, thus I was trained to entertain myself. It’s been a valuable life skill.
Haha! Mothers indeed are good at finding things for kids to do.