The Context
Boredom is the symptom, not the problem. When people complain about how there's nothing to do and they're going stir crazy sitting around the house all day, the world's bullshit detector goes off. Because it's not like there was this sudden outbreak of an airborne virus called boredom that forced itself into their lives, infected their immune system and now they're helplessly stuck with it until some nerd in a white coat finds a cure. Boredom is not somebody else's fault. It's a choice. Boredom is a poisonous mood people trap themselves into when they've lost touch with their meaning making machinery. If someone can't discover new and exciting things about themselves and the world in order to stay engaged, then that's a failure of curiosity and wonder on their part.
The Tool
Crop Rotation
CROP ROTATION — Regularly changing and invigorating your creative ground in order to stay fertile over the long arc of your career
Ellis, the godfather of rational emotive behavior therapy, once wrote an inspiring book about recovering from problem drinking. His advice to addicts was, to avoid high risk situations that go with boredom, schedule normal activities that alcohol related chaos may have displaced. He told his patients to literally write out an activity chart. Make a handy list of existentially nourishing activities and tasks that are guaranteed to provide you with the experience of meaning and joy. Keep it with you at all times. That way, when a craving, trigger or trauma approaches, you can execute some crop rotation when the pressure is on. This strategy transformed my understanding of, and relationship to, the idea of boredom. Couldn't tell you the last time I was bored. The same can happen to you. As long as you're willing to take responsibility for your own time and attention, there is no way your land will go infertile. Or if it does, you'll find another plot to plant in the interim.
The Rest
Louie, the standup comedian, filmmaker and philosopher, said it perfectly in his recent concert film. He told his daughters, the fact that you're alive is amazing, so you don't get to be bored. The sense of wonder should replace your boredom and cure it. Next time you start moping around whining about how there's nothing to do, remember that it's not somebody else's fault. Pressure is a choice, and so is the opposite. Rotate the crops, get back in touch with your meaning making machinery, and the harvest will be plentiful. Have you discerned what will help prevent the experience of boredom from creeping in?
The Benefits
Avoid the high risk situations that often accompany boredom
Existentially nourish yourself during good, bad and neutral times
Constantly refill your reservoir of inspiration with energy that fuels your art
Build a diversified existence with multiple life purposes, different centers of belonging and many meaning making activities