Connected at Brookwood: The Problem with Never Being Bored

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TL;DR: Screens have eliminated boredom from childhood, and that's a problem. Just like AI can shortcut cognitive work, screens shortcut the emotional work of tolerating boredom. That work builds creativity, self-direction, and frustration tolerance. Without it, kids struggle to occupy themselves and become dependent on external entertainment.

Over the past several weeks, we've talked about AI and cognitive development: how shortcuts around thinking prevent kids from building essential mental capacities. This week, I want to talk about a different kind of shortcut: how screens have eliminated boredom from childhood.

The Friction We've Eliminated

Think about the last time your child was truly bored. Not "bored at school," but genuinely at loose ends with nothing to do. For many kids, that moment never comes. Every car ride, waiting room, or quiet Saturday afternoon (situations that used to require kids to figure out how to occupy themselves) now has an instant solution in your pocket.

This isn't an accident. Technology companies have engineered products to be the perfect boredom killer. And it works. But just like AI can shortcut cognitive work, screens shortcut the emotional work of tolerating boredom. And that work, that friction, is essential.

What Boredom Actually Does

When kids are bored, their brains activate networks responsible for creativity, imagination, and problem-solving. The discomfort is actually a signal: "Your current situation lacks meaning. Go find something more interesting."

Kids who regularly experience boredom develop the ability to self-direct, tolerance for frustration, creative problem-solving, and intrinsic motivation. Kids who never experience boredom because screens are always available don't get that practice.

The Screen Time Trap

Screens are very effective at eliminating boredom, but they also change how kids experience it. Research on tens of thousands of children shows that after one hour of daily screen time, each additional hour is associated with less curiosity, lower self-control, more distractibility, and greater difficulty finishing tasks.

Screens provide quick, easy dopamine hits. When kids get used to that level of stimulation, slower-paced activities (drawing, building, playing outside) can feel less appealing by comparison. It's not that screens are inherently bad, but they can recalibrate what feels "interesting enough" to be worth doing.

The Bigger Picture

This connects to what I've been reading. Byung-Chul Han writes about the "infosphere," that constantly expanding realm of information and communication that displaces stillness from our lives. Lowry Pressly calls it "oblivion," those unmeasurable spaces where we lose ourselves in play and imagination.

For kids, those moments aren't empty. They're where development happens.

The Bottom Line

The paradox: In trying to make childhood more comfortable by eliminating every moment of boredom, we're removing experiences that build the capacities kids need most.

What I'm Reading: You and Your Profile: Identity After Authenticity by Hans-Georg Moeller and Paul J. D'Ambrosio

I'm just starting this one. The basic premise is that identity has shifted from being about authenticity (being your true self) to what the authors call "profilicity"—the constant work of curating profiles to manage how others see you. We present ourselves not as we are directly, but as we're perceived by a broader public, and we're always calibrating based on how others observe us. The book argues this is an actual shift in how identity works, not just social media superficiality. 

- David Saunders
Director of Leadership, Changemaking & Technology