Survival vs Boredom

I watched an interesting episode on the Andrew Huberman Podcast recently where he had Dr Anna Lembke on. It bordered on how to beat addiction and the science behind it. Now I don't consider myself an addict in anyway but I do have some behaviors am not very proud of and will love to part ways permanently with, such as procrastination.

Anna made a profound statement talking about our modern day struggles that warrant coping mechanisms and ultimately degenerate into full blown addiction.

The biggest challenge we face as individuals is navigating boredom

Now that certainly holds more than a mere food for thought. The overwhelming majority of the World today lives far more comfortable lives than even the richest kings of the premodern era. We have hacked supply, trade and information dissemination. We have hacked religion and a lot of us have cut ties with it permanently. Yet with this achievement comes a complexity that our ancestors did not have to contend with, which is the question of what to do with ourselves.

Like I earlier stated however, this state remains a privilege and not the norm. There are tons of people who have not quite left survival mode. There are people like myself who have one leg in at all times. We all dream of a period where we are truly financially independent to not have to worry so much about what the future holds.

I understand how boredom can ultimately pose an existential threat, and has led to many cases of people ultimately viewing life as meaningless. Yet, given the choice between my current state of survival and a state of boredom with financial abundance as a challenge, the choice seems a forgone conclusion.