In turbulent times we may wish for a boring life – but in the long run monotony can take a toll on us. You can read here how you know that you need variety.
Consistency in life and a routine everyday life are generally good for most people and are therefore more sensible for many to strive for than an ongoing, unpredictable adventure in which no two weeks are the same. However, if we lead a life that offers us too little variety and never presents us with new challenges, this can make us dissatisfied in the long term and result in us neither developing further nor realizing our potential. It may feel comfortable to us, and as long as everything works, disaster probably won’t befall us too quickly. But over time, the world will fade to us and our feelings will become monotonous and weak – and before we know it, our life is over and there is little to remember.
3 signs that your life is secretly too boring
1. Things that mean little to you take up a disproportionate amount of space in your thinking
If the basic processes in our lives are well-established and we don’t have to worry in the slightest about essential matters such as our health, safety or the supply of food or clothing, on the one hand this is positive and certainly a desirable everyday state, as it relieves us and gives us capacity for releases other things. On the other hand, it can lead us to start thinking about little things instead that we actually consider to be insignificant and that we don’t want to spend too much time with. For example, about a colleague’s thoughtless statement. Or about the weather in Berlin, even though we are in Hamburg. Once we start doing it, such thoughts can take on a life of their own and become a habit, especially since they take place in a consistent, routine setting.
2. You quickly feel stressed by even the smallest things
If our everyday lives follow the same pattern over the long term, we can lose flexibility and sovereignty. Even smaller challenges – the bread is moldy, our manager sets us up for a ten-minute appointment at short notice, our friend wants to meet at the other end of town instead of in our neighborhood as planned – can trigger feelings of stress in us and we find it increasingly difficult to cope to deviate from our plans or our routine.
3. You enjoy what was once good for you less and less
Morning jogging, evening relaxation with a book on the couch or afternoon coffee on the balcony – such everyday rituals are sources of strength for many people. But if they are repeated over and over again, they can lose their magic in the long run. If we get too used to comforts and things that bring us joy, over time we take them for granted and forget to appreciate them. So even the absolute dream job or the city in which we always wanted to live and in which we actually ended up can seem boring to us after a while and no longer mean anything to us, even though we should actually be grateful and satisfied.
What helps against boredom?
If we are stuck in our everyday lives and our lives are boring us on a perhaps subconscious level, that doesn’t mean that our path in life is wrong and that we need to change it completely – it just means that a little variety and more frequent deviations from our well-established routine are good for us can.
A great way to break through a phase of boredom in life is obviously travel. When we leave our familiar surroundings, when we return we usually perceive them differently than before, see a lot of things that we didn’t see before, and are able to put things into perspective better. Travel also presents us with special challenges that we don’t have in everyday life: We have to organize, think about certain things and find our way in a new environment. Even if we go to the nearest big city for a weekend or just take a trip, we can benefit from it and feel invigorated and stimulated.
Other useful ways to bring variety into our lives include, for example, varying little things in our everyday lives or trying out new things: For example, we can now and then choose an unusual route to work or for a jog or sign up for a bouldering course. Something like this can often lead to new acquaintances, which in turn have a positive, stimulating effect on us.
Sources used: forbes.com, community.thriveglobal.com