Noise

Living somewhere where the silence has weight changes what you notice.

There are few interruptions here. No traffic. No mobile coverage in the valley. Nothing constantly asking for a response.

At first, the silence can feel like an absence.

Then you begin to hear what was already there. Birds moving through the canopy. Wind changing direction. Water running after rain. Your own thoughts, still carrying on long after everything else has become quiet.

Physical noise is only part of it.

There is also the noise of urgency. Of trying to work something out. Of reaching for an answer before the question has become clear.

I recognise that noise in business. When something important is stuck, the instinct is often to add more: more analysis, more discussion, more pressure.

But more does not always reveal more.

Sometimes you have to become quiet enough to notice what the noise has been covering.