Planned Boredom

I have spent the last few days de-cluttering. Drawers, clothes, stationery (yes it gets its own special mention), kitchenware and the garage.

Some of you might be thinking, "Shouldn’t you have done that at the beginning of the holidays like most normal people?"

I would agree with you except I was traipsing about the Drakensberg getting caught in hail storms and summer rains, exploring, reading, sleeping and eating breakfast and supper prepared by an outstanding chef…..who we were told had cooked for Tom Cruise at the very place we stayed at!!

You know it’s a special place when you ask for your breakfast to be served without toast because you are gluten free, and the waiter brings out your breakfast with an apology for the delay.

The chef prepared my creamy mushrooms again because she had used flour to thicken the sauce and was so attentive to each meal she prepped that when the waiter mentioned gluten free, she immediately made a plan to accommodate me.

That evening at supper, the bread rolls arrived, and I sat salivating, looking at them with longing knowing I couldn’t have any, when suddenly the waiter appeared with my own little basket and said, "You mentioned this morning you don’t eat gluten, so the chef prepared you your own loaf of gluten free bread."

Talk about top-notch customer care.

The rest of December and 2025 passed in a scrumptious blur until it took a very wobbly turn into 2026. The wobbles have settled thank goodness.

I’m diving into 2026 with gratitude and excitement.

Just like that-my study is gleaming, my desk is cleared, my new ‘work’ notebook is filled with beautiful blank pages just waiting to be christened with fancy highlighters, coloured pens, meeting notes and to do lists.

I am not the kind of person who gets depressed about returning to work. I had for several years before I started my current job, been working at a place where I did not get paid leave and did not receive any benefits at all.

When my vacation leave now comes to an end, I’m very grateful I had leave at all. I was paid to be on leave. Hip hip hooray!

I'm grateful for the hundreds of pictures I took to go back to and reminisce.

I'm hard-pressed to find one picture in Cape Town where the hair was not being blown off my scalp..........

I’m grateful I have a permanent job to go back to.

I’m grateful I can still work hybrid and the office I do go to is beautiful and not too much of a drive away.

I’m grateful that public transport is a choice I make out of convenience, not a necessity because I do have my own vehicle to use.

I’m grateful I have extremely wonderful work colleagues.

I’m grateful that my wacky ideas are heard, validated and often implemented.

I’m grateful I still have vacation leave due to me (…..yes I have already looked at the public holidays for 2026!), but I also get sick benefits and family leave and study leave.

I’m grateful that I wasn’t one of the unfortunate people we know who was retrenched in November last year.

There’s a lot to be grateful for.

When I think back to the beginning of December and that chef who took such great care with my meals, without me actually requesting it, I'm amazed by people who love what they do and take pride in how they do it.

It's hard not think about the work year ahead and what I can do better or do differently to make it an exceptional year.

Here’s a few interesting thoughts I have come across. They are not all my own. Where I can, I have credited the people who laid these things across my path. Others I have read over the years and might not remember who introduced me to it. Some of it has been the catalyst for long overdue change. Some of them have just made life easier.

Others are just practical and useful so do with them what you will.

I have split them up so as not to overwhelm you in one sitting, so over the next few posts, I will throw out a few at a time.

Boredom

I once read a very interesting book on Writers Block by John Fox where the author was singing the praises of boredom.

Yes. You read it right. To become innovative and creative you must become bored.

So, I dug a little deeper and found that the Harvard Business Review, last year, highlighted the work of Prof Arthur C. Brooks where he suggests that instead of embracing boredom as a tool to become more creative, we have figured out a way to eliminate boredom.

Your brain chemistry is such that if you are bored, your brain switches your thinking system to use what’s called a default mode network. And as humans, we don’t like it. It makes us uncomfortable.

Our minds start to wander, and we start to think about the big questions.

What does my life mean?

What is my identity?

What is my purpose?

We then start to fill all our moments with something to avoid thinking about the answers to these questions. Before our brain has a chance to get over these questions and move on to other thoughts - creative, innovative, fun thoughts, we have stopped the process.

I used to proudly announce that I never went anywhere without my Kindle. If I was early, which I usually am, I could sneak in a few chapters.

If I was meeting someone and they were late, I had something to read.

If I was in a queue that was taking too long, out it would come, and I was reading.

Until I came across this concept and tried to practice it and let me tell you, it’s not easy!

When was the last time you were bored? We switch between work, family, religious activities, house chores, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney and Apple TV. Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

Have you ever stopped at an intersection and found your hands inching towards your phone to pass the time until the traffic light changed? We cannot stand to be idle for even just a few seconds.

Do you always have to have some noise in the background? TV, music, podcast?

There’s always something hovering in the fringes.

When was the last time you heard a child say, “I’m bored” and some screen wasn’t shoved in their hands to ease the boredom?

When was the last time you sat in silence?

I’m sitting in silence while I write this. I can hear the birds outside – either they are fighting for territory or praising the Lord. I can’t figure out which.

I can hear someone’s lawn being mowed. The neighbours dog is yapping. I can hear the neighbours gardener cleaning their pool.

I can hear a plane flying overhead.

Heaven only knows why I’m 'angry typing' because I can also hear the clackity-clack of the keys on my laptop!

Don’t take my word for it.

The Happiness Files: Insights on Work and Life by Prof Brooks.

You can check him out on YouTube as well.

https://youtu.be/orQKfIXMiA8?si=64VPjyx_bplX4QLb

Planning

I’m pretty sure I have mentioned this before. I am a planner. I can be spontaneous but for 95% of my life, I plan. My friends are very similar, and we often struggle to peg down dates for coffee because everyone’s calendars have been carefully thought out and planned.

Roland is tired of it. He told me today that he is just going to call someone up, who he wants to catch up with and say, “I want to come over. Are you free?”

I know people who find it too rigid or limiting or even completely controlling.

I find the opposite to be true.

If everyone knows what’s expected, then chaos can be calmed, and we can be working towards one common goal.

If I am invited to someone’s home, I have planned what I will be taking. I have planned what meals can be made from what’s available in the fridge and freezer.

I have planned on who will be doing Kelsie’s hair for her matric dance and when I get the date, he will be booked.

That’s only in October people!

I have planned possible gifts for upcoming birthdays, and I have even planned to see a newly built retirement village so that I can have options in the next few years.

You are probably thinking, "This sounds so exhausting."

It’s actually invigorating and brings the ability to take a deep breath and know that when the time or event arrives, I am not under pressure.

I am not indecisive because I have at least one option to consider. I’m not feeling anxious because even if changes have to be made to modify the plan, there is at least an inkling of serenity because there is a plan.

Throughout history, there has been planning.

Can you imagine countries going to war without a plan?

Can you imagine the 1^st flight taking off or the 1^st motor vehicle hitting the tar without some plan being put into motion?

Can you imagine launching human beings into space to walk on the moon, without a plan in place?  

When you think about it, boredom and planning might seem to be in complete conflict with each other. If I have a plan, there’s no time to be bored. If I’m bored, the last thing I need is a plan, because the boredom is going to benefit me.

I think they make very good partners. Plan when to be bored. Pencil it in. Planning creates space to be bored. With the boredom comes new ideas, new spurts of creativity and new ways in which to be innovative. There is a huge distinction between laziness and boredom.

You will know when you are being lazy!

To wrap up these 2 concepts, I invite you to try one of following with me:

• sitting in silence for 15 minutes.

• watching the rain fall for 15 minutes.

• doodling for 15 minutes. A blank page. A pen. NO end goal.

• 30 minutes at the beginning of the week to plan your work week.

• 10 minutes every evening to plan your next day.

• 15 minutes to plan your weekly menu or grocery list.

Here’s to bigger and better ideas in 2026!