We live in an era obsessed with utility. Every app promises to optimize our time, every self-help book claims to unlock our potential, and every notification demands our immediate attention. We are trained to ask one fundamental question about everything we encounter: Is this useful?
But in our relentless pursuit of efficiency, we have accidentally waged war on the unhelpful. In doing so, we are losing the very things that make life worth living. The Tyranny of Usefulness
When every action must yield a tangible return on investment, our world shrinks. Relationships become networking opportunities. Hobbies morph into side hustles. Even rest is rebranded as “recharging”—a clinical necessity to ensure future productivity rather than a moment of pure peace.
When utility becomes the ultimate metric of value, anything that cannot be monetized, optimized, or measured is discarded as unhelpful.
Yet, history shows that humanity’s greatest leaps and deepest joys rarely come from a spreadsheet. They come from the margin. They come from the beautiful, stubborn pursuit of things that serve no immediate purpose. The Case for the Futile
Consider the act of stargazing. It will not pay your rent. It will not answer your emails. It is entirely unhelpful to your daily checklist. Yet, looking into the void reminds us of our cosmic insignificance, a perspective that cures anxiety faster than any productivity hack.
Art, too, is gloriously unhelpful in a strictly practical sense. You cannot eat a painting. A symphony cannot shelter you from the rain. Poetry will not fix a broken engine. As Oscar Wilde famously wrote, “All art is quite useless.” He did not mean it was worthless; he meant it exists solely for its own sake. Art does not want to use you, and it does not want to be used by you. It simply demands to be felt.
When we strip away the need for a functional outcome, we unlock true freedom. Finding Room in the Margins
To embrace the unhelpful is not to advocate for chronic laziness or nihilism. It is about creating empty space in a crowded life.
Unproductive Conversations: Talking to an old friend for hours about nothing in particular. No networking, no gossip, just connection.
Aimless Wandering: Walking down a street you have never visited, without checking a map or aiming for a specific destination.
Deep Curiosity: Reading a book about ancient pottery or the life cycle of mushrooms simply because you want to know, not because it helps your career.
These activities are the counter-weights to a world that demands constant output. They are the friction that keeps us from sliding into a purely mechanical existence. Reclaiming Our Time
The next time you catch yourself abandoning an activity because it feels like a “waste of time,” pause. Ask yourself if you are treating your life like a business that needs to turn a profit.
We are not machines built for maximum throughput. We are complicated, emotional creatures who need silence, beauty, and absurdity to thrive.
Step away from the dashboard of your life. Do something entirely unhelpful today. You might find it is the most meaningful thing you do all week. If you’d like to refine this article, let me know: The preferred length or depth of the piece.
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