Is boredom really a bad thing? People have different views about this.
There are people who think that only negative things come out of boredom. An article in Scientific American reports that chronic boredom puts some people at an increased risk for anxiety and depression, compulsive behavior, eating disorders, and poor performance at work and school.
Meanwhile, others argue that boredom can be good for you, as this article from Time shows. When people use their moments of ennui wisely, they tend to be creative. Moreover, boredom can be a chance for you to rejuvenate yourself from the bombardment of information from social media, emails from work, and other distractions that demand your time and attention.
Today’s article features 35 boredom quotes and sayings to let you decide whether boredom is really harmful, or something that can be harnessed as an opportunity to better ourselves.
Read on and judge for yourself.
35 Boredom Quotes and Sayings
1. “You'll find boredom where there is the absence of a good idea.” – Earl Nightingale
2. “If you want to cure boredom, be curious. If you’re curious, nothing is a chore; it’s automatic – you want to study. Cultivate curiosity, and life becomes an unending study of joy.” – Anthony Robbins
3. “Boredom is the feeling that everything is a waste of time; serenity, that nothing is.” – Thomas S. Szasz
4. “Boredom is the deadliest poison.” – William F. Buckley
Boredom is the deadliest poison.” – William F. Buckley
5. “… millions long for immortality who don't know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon.” – Susan Ertz
6. “Only boring people get bored.” – Ruth Burke
7. “I am never bored; to be bored is an insult to one's self.” – Jules Renard
8. “There's no excuse to be bored. Sad, yes. Angry, yes. Depressed, yes. Crazy, yes. But there's no excuse for boredom, ever.” – Viggo Mortensen
9. “The most total opposite of pleasure is not pain but boredom, for we are willing to risk pain to make a boring life interesting.” – Peter Kreeft
10. “There are 6 reasons that a person does anything: Love, faith, greed, boredom, fear… revenge.” – Ally Carter
11. “I can excuse everything but boredom. Boring people don't have to stay that way.” – Hedy Lamarr
12. “Life is for living and working at. If you find anything or anybody a bore, the fault is in yourself.” – Queen Elizabeth I
13. “Boring is the right thought at the wrong time.” – Jack Gardner
14. “Boredom is a pleasing antidote for fear.” – Daphne DuMaurier
15. “I think that the word bored does not get the attention it deserves. We speak of all sorts of terrible things that happen to people, but we rarely speak about one of the most terrible things of all: that is, being bored, being bored alone and, worse than that, being bored together.” – Erich Fromm
16. “Boredom is the price one pays for not enjoying everything.” – Marty Rubin
17. “Boredom, that traitorous devil that possesses us to do things sometimes useless, and often stupid.” – Apol Lejano-Massebieau
18. “It becomes clear when you love silence, boredom and hard work. For the wise it's play. For the ordinary it's hell.” – Maxime Lagacé
19. “Isn’t ‘not to be bored’ one of the principal goals of life?” – Gustave Flaubert
20. “One listens to the murmur of the soul only because of boredom.” – Robert Walser
One listens to the murmur of the soul only because of boredom.” – Robert Walser
21. “If you're bored with something, act as if you're seeing it for the first time. Look at it with new eyes. Pretend you're seeing it as a film director, theme park designer or your Aunt Josie — anything that provides a change in perspective. To beat boredom, make the familiar unfamiliar.” – Sam Harrison
22. “Unless a man has been taught what to do with success after getting it, the achievement of it must inevitably leave him a prey to boredom.” – Bertrand Russell
23. “You either fight boredom, or you become it.” – Stewart Stafford
24. “Boredom can be incredibly productive. It's the fear of boredom that's so destructive.” – Stephanie Danler
25. “Tedium is lethal to human souls.” – Kilroy J. Oldster
26. “Boredom is rage spread thin.” – Paul Tillich
27. “A clever person is never bored, and a bored person is never clever.” – Catheryne M. Valente
A clever person is never bored, and a bored person is never clever.” – Catheryne M. Valente
28. “Boredom is a sign of satisfied ignorance, blunted apprehension, crass sympathies, dull understanding, feeble powers of attention, and irreclaimable weakness of character.” – James Birdie
29. “People who understand how to convert their time into useful products do not complain of boredom.” – Sunday Adelaja
30. “In order to live free and happily, you must sacrifice boredom. It is not always an easy sacrifice.” – Richard Bach
31. “Solitude is not the only possible parent of boredom: we sometimes find ourselves bored to death while we are with someone, a few people, or even many people.” – Mokokoma Mokhonoana
32. “Your biggest battles internally happen in boredom.” – J. R. Rim
33. “If we allow our “high creativity” to remain alive, we will never be bored. We can pray, standing in line at the super market. Or we can be lost in awe at all the people around us, their lives full of glory and tragedy, and suddenly we will have the beginnings of a painting, a story, a song.” – Madeleine L’Engle
34. “Boredom is your mind and body’s way of telling you you’re not living up to your potential.” – Hal Sparks
35. “The concept of boredom entails an inability to use up present moments in a personally fulfilling way.” – Wayne Dyer
Final Thoughts on Boredom Quotes
Choosing to experience boredom in a positive way can have a rejuvenating effect. While waiting in line or sitting around with nothing to do, resist the urge to scroll on your phone. Allow your mind to wander, and you might be surprised with the results.
If you want something to do when boredom hits, you might want to check out over 217 fun ideas to do when you’re bored .Or you can use boredom as an opportunity to boost your career, with this post showing you 25 tips for things you can do when you’re bored at work. Are you a student? Here are some things to do when bored in class.
And if you want more eye-opening quotes, be sure to check out these blog posts:
- 79 Productivity Quotes for Getting Things Done at Work
- 35 Silence Quotes About the Power of Quiet Reflection
- 43 Sleep Quotes About Getting a Full Night's Rest
Finally, if you want to use these quotes to make a lasting change to your life, then watch this free video that details the 7-minute habit for planning your day to focus on what's truly important to you..
