A Goose’s Guide To Doing Nothing
Is it even possible to truly do nothing? If you really think about it, no matter how little you move, how little progress you make, or how lazy you feel, you can’t ever be doing absolutely nothing. Even when you sleep, you are still doing something beneficial for your mind and body. Even when taking breaks to do something you enjoy, you are resting your mind while enjoying a relaxing part of your day. Of course, there is a difference between doing “nothing” in a healthy and sustainable way vs. doing “nothing” in a way that damages your mind and can make you feel even lazier or more irritable.
Good “nothings” would consist of small activities that might not feel productive but are able to give you a small boost in joy, help you to rest in a healthy way, improve relationships or skills, or even just spend your time in a way that makes you happy!
Reading can be a fantastic source of rest for those who enjoy it. While it might feel unproductive, especially to those who enjoy it, reading actually has subtle benefits that you are gaining from as you turn the pages. For example, those who read more have shown an expanded vocabulary, better writing and communication skills, a more relaxed attitude, enhanced creativity, and even stronger empathy compared to those who don’t. The urge to spend a day doing nothing may stem from burnout or mental exhaustion from demanding parts of life such as work, school, or even family stress. When choosing what to read, keep in mind what you are truly in the mood for. If your brain needs a rest, consider leaning away from heavy or academic materials unless you know it won’t bring even more fatigue.
Learning through entertainment has never been easier. In modern educational programs, entertainment is often prioritized over the actual learning done by the student to ensure the students remain engaged in their material throughout the class. While this may have stronger implications in the education world, it works great for our purpose of doing something while doing nothing. If you can manage to watch a movie and turn it off having learned something from it, no matter how small, you have succeeded in turning it into a productive experience while still feeling as relaxed as you would be if you truly did nothing.
As mentioned before, sleep can be an extremely productive use of time. Especially after a long, busy, or even emotional day, rest for the mind and body can be just as important as continuing to work. While it may occasionally feel like sleep is the definition of doing nothing, it is actually one of the most important and productive “nothings” you can spend your time doing.
Occasionally you will find yourself with someone who you feel comfortable lounging around with. Sometimes we tend to try to entertain whoever surrounds us by doing fun activities, going out to new places, and giving up our peace for their time. On the other hand, we can also find moments in which we wasted our time with others by working the entire time, being distracted with phones or screens, or simply not allowing ourselves to enjoy their company because we were focussed on something else. The key is to find a happy balance between the two on days where we feel that we can only do “nothing.” Spending quality time with others doesn’t have to be busy or exhausting but it does have to be quality. We can spend the day doing nothing with someone as long as everyone continues to enjoy the day and truly be with each other!
If you truly have the energy for nothing else, thinking on its own can be a great way to spend some time. There is a large difference however, in the impact in which what you choose to think about makes. Thinking positive thoughts, planning for something you are excited for, or even just daydreaming can have good effects on your mind and overall mood.
Bad “nothings” are things that don’t typically have many positive effects on your life or mood. Doing “nothing” really only becomes a productive and beneficial use of time if we enjoy the time we spend doing it, and feel just a bit less fatigued afterward. Doing nothing in a way that harms how you feel while not being in the slightest bit productive, might be referred to as a waste of time. When you notice yourself falling into the traps of these “nothings” try your hardest to replace these activities with ones that make you happier!
“Doomscrolling” has been the coined term for scrolling through social media on what seems to be an endless loop of content. Once you are sucked into the feed of video after video, it feels as though it is impossible to turn it off. Sometimes, scrolling on your phone can be a fun way to spend a few spare minutes here and there. It only becomes a problem when it stops being fun. If you find yourself turning on your phone simply because it has become a habit rather than it being what you’d like to spend your time on, you are beginning to cross into the territory of being trapped in a bad nothing. Scrolling through your phone has no known positive effects on your brain once it stops being a fun way to waste time.
Watching movies and TV can be a great way to unwind. Maybe it's a new movie you’ve been dying to see, rewatching one of your old favorites, binging a show with a friend, or just looking for something to help calm your mind after a long day. These may be labeled as good uses of time as you are either enjoying what you are watching, strengthening a relationship by spending quality time together, or resting your mind. Mindlessly watching TV or movies becomes a problem when it loses its purpose. For example, if you decide you hate a movie half way through it and have full means to turn it off but choose not to only because you are already half way through, you are no longer enjoying yourself and therefore, likely wasting your own time.
Analysis Paralysis is the feeling you get when you have so many things to do that you can’t decide what to do first and end up wasting time by doing nothing. It can also be the term used to refer to a moment where in the process of making a decision, you freeze up and slow down the process of choosing an option. While taking time to make your decisions or plan out a way to get all of your tasks done is not time wasted, using up time only to panic about what you have not done or will have to do is not helping you to move forward but rather gluing you exactly where you are.
One of the main reasons we fall for wastes of time such as doomscrolling or purposelessly watching TV is that we are avoiding negative emotions by attempting to distract ourselves from them. Similarly to analysis paralysis, it is important to remember that the negative emotions themselves are not the problem, but rather the way we allow them to hold us back from moving forward. In spending time distracting yourself, you waste the valuable time you could have used to begin working through feelings or planning how to conquer challenging obstacles.
Thinking negatively is not only a massive waste of time, but has terrible impacts on our mind and mood. When we spend time worrying about the future without doing anything to enhance it or beat ourselves up over the past, we are wasting time and oftentimes, making our situation even worse by ignoring the present opportunities to improve our lives or even attempt to move on from past mistakes or future worries.
In the end, the main difference between the good “nothings” and the bad “nothings” is how we think about them. If we are enjoying how we spend our time, it cannot truly be considered a waste. If you are doing something completely unproductive, however, that doesn’t bring you joy, it may be worth considering avoiding this “nothing” in the future.
