Doing nothing is a misnomer as no one can actually be doing nothing. An example to clarify this seemingly confusing premise is Japanese Shoji Morimoto, whose interesting occupation is renting himself out to anyone who would want him to do absolutely nothing.

Since he started his gimmick for fun and money in 2018, Morimoto has been hired 4,000 times, initially charging each client 10,000 Japanese yen per booking, Business Insider (BI) and Reuters reported.

Based on the accounts of his memorable clients in his memoir, “Rental Person Who Does Nothing,” Morimoto watched a woman search for a husband online, accompanied a person in filing divorce papers, bid someone farewell at a railway station, and waited for a client at a marathon finish line, according to BI.

Clearly, he did tasks for his clients, which were basically watching and escorting them.

On 12 May, 117 professionals and students competed in the annual Space-out contest and visual art in open grounds near the historic Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, South Korea. Organizers picked the contestants out of 4,000 who applied for slots in the competition founded a decade ago by visual artist Woopsyang.

Under contest rules, the contestants, sitting on yoga mats, have to do absolutely nothing, without falling asleep, for 90 minutes. Organizers monitor participants’ heart rates to determine the winner, who is the contestant with the most stable heart rate, according to moneycontrol.com.

Freelance announcer Kwon So-a won the competition and took home a trophy shaped like Auguste Rodin’s sculpture, “The Thinker,” CNN reported.

The event emphasizes that no time is wasted by being idle as it is a necessary break from relentless activity. Besides, by sitting on a yoga mat, the contestants were still doing something.