Is absolute idleness a good idea? This month the David Lloyd fitness chain launched a class in niksen, a Dutch trend of purposeless idleness that is sweeping the world.
Gym chain launches classes in doing nothing
Is absolute idleness a good idea? This month the David Lloyd fitness chain launched a class in niksen, a Dutch trend of purposeless idleness that is sweeping the world.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper">Idle idol</h2>
In the 17th Century, Dutch sailors came across something strange on the island of BorneoThe third-largest island in the world, known for its biodiversity. : a huge red ape that looked and behaved just like a person. Locals told them the "forest man", or "orang-utan", was indeed sentient and able to speak. However, he chose not to, because he knew that if he did, they would make him work.1
Human beings have not been as sensible as orangutans. Today we are all working so hard that burnout has become one of the biggest health challenges of our age. Globally, 42% of workers report burnout.2
However, the Dutch might now be here to save us with another discovery. They call it niksen: the art of doing absolutely nothing. Niksen is spreading around the world - one gym chain has even started a class for its members advising them on how to switch off.
The idea of niksen is to stop thinking about the outcomes of what you do. Netherlands-based author Olga Mecking claims that one reason why modern life is so unrewarding is that we feel we need to justify everything we do with some kind of positive and measurable result.
If we go for a walk, it has to be to get in our 10,000 steps a day, or if we cook a nice meal it has to be to make us healthier. When everything has some utilitarianA school of ethics that focuses on maximising people's happiness and minimising their suffering. purpose, we cannot experience the moment: stop to sniff the flowers or savour the flavours. We just get it done so we can move on to the next task.
So niksen does not just mean doing nothing. It means doing nothing with no clear purpose, simply for its own sake.
Do we really need niksen? We tend to think we are working less than we used to because we compare ourselves with the Industrial RevolutionA period of sudden, rapid industrialisation that transforms a country from an agricultural to an industrial economy., when people were working as much as 70 hours a week for 50 weeks a year. Today we work for an average of just 36.4 hours per week.3
But this is still a historic high. In the Middle AgesThe Middle Ages was the period in European history that came between ancient and modern times. It lasted from about 500 to about 1500., even peasantsA historical term often used to describe poorer people who worked in farming. had around 60 days off every year. Historians think many chose to take more time off than that even if it meant being poorer.4
And long before that we worked even less. Hunter-gatherersHumans who lived an ancient way of life in which they foraged for food and occasionally hunted, but did not farm. probably worked no more than 15 hours a week, before the invention of agricultureThe practice of farming and growing food from the land. meant humans had to spend long and back-breaking hours tilling the soil.5
Humanity has always had a complicated relationship with work. In the Old TestamentThe first part of the Christian Bible, and is mainly based on the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh)., the need to labour is presented as a curse that God has placed on humanity in retribution for Adam and Eve's sin.
Yet in the New Testament, Jesus tells his followers not to worry too much about working: "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toilWork very hard. not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, That even SolomonIn the Old Testament, the monarch of ancient Israel and the son of King David. in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."6
Nonetheless, one of his most important apostlesEach of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ., Paul, came up with a different rule: "If a man will not work, let him not eat". And in the 16th Century, the new ProtestantA Christian religious movement that began in Europe in the early 16th Century. movement took this to heart. Sects like CalvinistsBelievers of a major branch of Protestant Christianity, following the ideas of John Calvin. They believe in predestination - the idea that God has already chosen who will go to heaven. began to argue that choosing an occupation and working to perfect it was our highest duty to God.
Other philosophers have taken a more nuanced view of work. Karl MarxA 19th-Century German economist and philosopher who argued that capitalism was doomed to collapse. argued that it is in our nature to produce things for our own pleasure and use. However, he thought industrial work, by forcing us to make things for other people, made us deeply unhappy.
He thought the only solution was to move to a socialist society where people would produce things for everyone to use.
Is absolute idleness a good idea?
Yes: The human brain did not evolve to have hundreds of things to think about all the time. Our workaholism is putting it under too much pressure. It is time to ease off and enjoy downtime.
No: Humans are made to work. Without it we become bored and listless. We should not aim to be idle, but to find ways of working that do not distract us and stress us out.
Or... The problem is not the amount of work but the working mindset. We treat our hobbies like work and that means we cannot really enjoy them. We need a clearer separation between work and leisure.
Borneo - The third-largest island in the world, known for its biodiversity.
Utilitarian - A school of ethics that focuses on maximising people's happiness and minimising their suffering.
Industrial Revolution - A period of sudden, rapid industrialisation that transforms a country from an agricultural to an industrial economy.
Middle Ages - The Middle Ages was the period in European history that came between ancient and modern times. It lasted from about 500 to about 1500.
Peasants - A historical term often used to describe poorer people who worked in farming.
Hunter-gatherers - Humans who lived an ancient way of life in which they foraged for food and occasionally hunted, but did not farm.
Agriculture - The practice of farming and growing food from the land.
Old Testament - The first part of the Christian Bible, and is mainly based on the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh).
Toil - Work very hard.
Solomon - In the Old Testament, the monarch of ancient Israel and the son of King David.
Apostles - Each of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ.
Protestant - A Christian religious movement that began in Europe in the early 16th Century.
Calvinists - Believers of a major branch of Protestant Christianity, following the ideas of John Calvin. They believe in predestination - the idea that God has already chosen who will go to heaven.
Karl Marx - A 19th-Century German economist and philosopher who argued that capitalism was doomed to collapse.
Gym chain launches classes in doing nothing

Glossary
Borneo - The third-largest island in the world, known for its biodiversity.
Utilitarian - A school of ethics that focuses on maximising people’s happiness and minimising their suffering.
Industrial Revolution - A period of sudden, rapid industrialisation that transforms a country from an agricultural to an industrial economy.
Middle Ages - The Middle Ages was the period in European history that came between ancient and modern times. It lasted from about 500 to about 1500.
Peasants - A historical term often used to describe poorer people who worked in farming.
Hunter-gatherers - Humans who lived an ancient way of life in which they foraged for food and occasionally hunted, but did not farm.
Agriculture - The practice of farming and growing food from the land.
Old Testament - The first part of the Christian Bible, and is mainly based on the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh).
Toil - Work very hard.
Solomon - In the Old Testament, the monarch of ancient Israel and the son of King David.
Apostles - Each of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ.
Protestant - A Christian religious movement that began in Europe in the early 16th Century.
Calvinists - Believers of a major branch of Protestant Christianity, following the ideas of John Calvin. They believe in predestination — the idea that God has already chosen who will go to heaven.
Karl Marx - A 19th-Century German economist and philosopher who argued that capitalism was doomed to collapse.