Seeking Boredom 😐
Hello friends!
I hope you're enjoying this Serial Maker newsletter! If you missed any of the past editions, make sure to check them out. And if you know someone who might benefit from this newsletter, please forward this email to a friend. 😀
It's good to be writing again, now that Serial Maker is back from the holidays. I find that this time of year, when I force myself to take a break from work, new ideas start pouring in. It would be great if we could encourage ourselves to find more boring down time throughout the year, let our minds rest, and generate even more moments of inspiration.
This issue is all about seeking boredom 😐
TLDR
Find time for mundane tasks. Go clean the garage. Mow the lawn. Let your mind open up to other sources of inspiration.
Keep a notebook handy and write down your thoughts as soon as possible after having a moment of clarity.
Try open-ended unguided meditation.
The Life of Curiosity
I recently listened to Tim Ferris interview Tony Fadell. Tony led the team that created the first 18 generations of the Apple iPod, and the first 3 generations of the iPhone. In 2010, Tony founded Nest Labs, which makes the Nest Learning Thermostat.
What struck me most was the time following Tony's time at Apple, when he decided to leave Apple to travel the world with his family. He took one year and lived for long periods of time in places like France, Asia, and California. What he found, now that his mind wasn't laser-focused on iPhone product development, was that no matter where he lived, everyone had the same struggle with their home devices. And so, he came up with the idea for the Nest device during his travels.
If he hadn't taken this time to stop work and just live life, Tony doesn't think he ever would have invented the Nest. His life experience and his time spent finding boredom created the Nest.
Anti-Flow
A big thanks to Kevin for pointing me to the following two articles!
In Anti-Flow by Michael Lopp, he takes a very meta approach to describing being in the Flow, and then purposefully leaving the Flow to do something completely different. It's during this Anti-Flow when Michael finds his "shower thoughts" tend to lead to solutions to long forgotten open-ended problems, or inspiration ranging from "the mundane to the magical."
Fast Company also talks about how an unfocused mind is often in the best state to find your most creative ideas.
Meditation
I started meditating regularly over a year ago. But I primarily used guided meditation apps like Headspace because I wasn't sure how to get started. This year I'm going to try for more unguided meditation sessions. Just let my mind wander wherever it takes me. It will most likely require more than the short 5-10 minute sessions I've been doing previously. You'll be hearing from me in the near future with the results of this change.
Keep making, and thanks for reading! 🙌
Hit reply to tell me what you're making. I'm looking for anyone interested in talking about their own side-projects and maker journey, so speak up if you'd like to appear in Serial Maker. I'd also love to know what you thought of this issue, and what you want to hear about in the future.
Until next week,
Craig