let's be useless for 28 days

a challenge that you can't win or mess up

Inspired by our slow read of Jenny Odell’s How to Do Nothing, I created a nonproductive challenge.

For this challenge, you are invited to notice, record, and honor when you waste time by doing something useless once a day this month. We are using Odell’s sensibility here as we consider doing “useless” things as deprogramming and decolonization from the mediated attention economy of capitalistism.

That means, find the activities in the day that are not being evaluated and monetized by someone else. The moments that are not directly goal-oriented or building your hustle.

Look for the slow, inefficient, and unproductive.

Ideas:

• handsew (something that is not useful)

• sit and stare out the window, or

• lie on the floor and look at the ceiling, notice the colors, cracks, imperfections

• make homemade play dough

• draw

• look at books at the library

• pick all the stickers off your fruit and put them in your journal

• write lines of poetry under your tables and in the door jambs

• cutting your toenails in silence

• rearrange a window sill sanctuary

• brush your cat or dog; talk to them about your life and ask them about theirs

• browse the dictionary

• construct a house of cards

• send a postcard to a friend to wishe them a good day

• smell all your perfume/toiletries or kitchen herbs

• cut out stars or make rainbows to stick in your windows

• build with blocks, legos, or popcycle sticks

What other ideas can you come up with?

Here is a printout for you if that is useful - or jot down your moments in a journal.

Or chat with your people at the end of the day and share notes.

There is no way to crush this challenge - it's not that kind of thing.

28 Days Of Useless Activities

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You are magical 💫Have an awesome time in your sanctuary of uselessness!🪟👁️