Beware the busy

photo of woman writing on tablet computer while using laptop

Yesterday I watched Ex Machina. I enjoyed the movie, even the predictable ending, but the part that really interested me was when they discussed one of Jackson Pollock's works, saying 'what if instead of making art, he (Pollock) said 'I can't paint anything unless I know exactly why I'm doing it' -what would have happened?' What indeed.

Busy does not equal important. This is something I constantly have to remind myself of when I find myself doing things that may not be the best use of my time. Sometimes I think that being busy means that I'm doing something important, but then I finish whatever it is I'm doing and realise that it wasn't all that important, and was doing it for the sake of keeping busy.

This probably stems from a sort of fear we have of being idle, or at least I have that fear, and I'm constantly thinking up stuff to do to keep myself engaged. I think this is a good thing though, I couldn't imagine lying on a beach all day, and I also dislike gaming because of the addictive tendencies it has that stop me from doing something creative (although, you can very easily be creative in a computer game). You just have to be sure that what you are doing is not just for the sake of keeping you busy I guess. And at the same time, you don't exactly need a clear purpose to do anything either.

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