#102: The Power of Boredom

Why Silence Fuels Success

Mar 30, 2025

👋 Hey, Leo here! Welcome to The Antifragile Leader. Each week, I explain the concepts needed to lead through uncertainty. Subscribe to get every issue in your inbox.

Hey Friends,

Welcome to the 101st edition of my newsletter and I was so close to not sending this on my usual day :)

We are close to finishing the renovation of the new apartment and moving in (hopefully, we will do it in the next couple of days), and I had the last MBA class this weekend, Entrepreneurship. I will talk about this fascinating domain more in next week’s edition because it was one of those classes that generated an AHA moment in me.

If you have been following me on LinkedIn, you probably saw that I have not been posting so much lately, partly because I was very busy and partly because I am in a bit of a rut and I’m trying to figure out the type of content I would like to continue putting out there. I’ll have some time in the last few weeks to wrap my head around that.

I have been plugged in so much lately with everything going on in my life that I didn’t have too much time to go for long walks and think. And I need to change that.

And here’s why we should take the time to get bored.

The Power of Boredom

“All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone.”
— Blaise Pascal

I was struggling with an issue for many days. I just couldn’t find the right way to approach a thing I had at work, no matter how hard I tried.

And then, one evening, as I was showering after my gym session, it hit me.

The solution came to me, and it was more obvious than I dared to admit it.

It’s not the first time I've gotten good ideas while showering.

And I’m sure you had some “AHA moments” in there too.

It’s actually not by accident.

Our minds rarely have the opportunity to stray in today's always-on world.

We're constantly plugged in, scrolling, consuming, and responding.

Showering is one of those rare moments when we are distraction-free, and we can let our minds wander.

We need more boredom in our lives.

Not boredom as a distraction or procrastination, but boredom as a deliberate practice—a strategic pause to unlock creativity, clarity, and deeper thinking.

Cal Newport, author of Deep Work and Digital Minimalism, emphasizes that our brains require periods of unstructured, unstimulated time to generate original insights and solve complex problems. Newport argues that continuous stimulation sabotages our capacity for deep thinking, limiting our ability to produce genuinely innovative work.

The Benefits of Strategic Boredom:

Enhanced Creativity: Allowing your mind to wander freely can lead to new and innovative ideas. A 2013 study found that a small dose of boredom primes the brain to perform well on convergent thinking tasks, such as problem-solving.
Improved Problem-Solving: Engaging in non-demanding tasks can facilitate creative incubation. Research indicates that distraction can enhance creative cognition by allowing different ideas to surface, leading to innovative solutions.
Increased Mental Resilience: Regular breaks from stimulation enhance your ability to manage stress and maintain emotional balance. Periods of unstructured time can provide opportunities for self-reflection and mental restoration.

How to Embrace Strategic Boredom:

Schedule Unstructured Time: Set aside intentional blocks in your day for solitude without devices, agendas, or specific tasks. Even 15-30 minutes can make a significant difference.
Take Tech-Free Walks: Regular walks without headphones or smartphones can boost creativity. A Stanford University study found that walking can increase creative output by 60%.
Limit Digital Inputs: Adopt digital minimalism principles by curating your digital environment. Remove unnecessary apps, silence notifications, and cultivate spaces free from digital distractions.
Mindfulness & Reflection: Regular meditation or journaling sessions can deepen your connection to your thoughts. This practice builds mental clarity and insight.

By embracing intentional boredom, you're not just avoiding overstimulation—you're actively nurturing your mind's deepest capabilities.

Try integrating this approach into your routine and notice how your creativity and productivity thrive in the calmness of quiet.

3. Recommendations:

OpenAI’s new image generation model is just amazing. I played around with it these days and generated some Studio Ghibli-like images from my photos (of course, like everyone does on X), and I loved what it generated. Try it on in the latest 4o model by uploading an image and prompting, “Please create a Studio Ghibli-like image out of this photo.”
I love how it captured Zeno's "happiness"
Someone reminded me this weekend about one of the best books about personal and professional success, and that is the book “Principles”, by Ray Dalio. If you don’t have time to read the book or you have read it a while ago and need some reminders, here is a 30-minute YouTube video that summarizes it.
How Sam Altman takes notes and his thinking process (in brief)