Do you take time to think and reflect or do you stay so connected and engaged that you end up listening to someone else and forming your opinions from their thoughts instead putting in the hard work to think for yourself?

Do you enjoy quiet time or do you find silence scary or even depressing?

Anecdotal evidence shows that while most people are uncomfortable with silence, others are actually terrified by it. Not the silence of a sensory deprivation tank, just natural silence; the silence that come from turning off and unplugging from our wired world. No iPod, cell phone, TV, radio, etc.

But it’s only in silence that

• your mind can wander unfocused down paths you would never think of intentionally;
• unconnected scraps can coalesce to form new ideas;
• you can dig around and learn what actually comprises your MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophy)™;
• really get to know yourself; and hopefully
• become best friends with yourself.

I wonder if it was silence that fostered the great thinkers and philosophers of the past as opposed to what passes for wisdom these days. Perhaps the natural silence led to self-knowledge and knowing gave them the ability to formulate their great ideas.

Did the enforced silence of prison nurture Nelson Mandela’s ability to conceive his vision and eventually articulate it to the world?

No matter your age, try it. Unplug and get comfortable—with silence and with yourself.

Make silence your friend and watch your (and your people’s) happiness, satisfaction and creativity soar.

Image credit: Geek&Poke on flickr

Your comments-priceless

Don’t miss a post! Subscribe via RSS or EMAIL

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 20th, 2009 at 1:30 am and is filed under Business info, Motivation, Personal Growth. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Tags: creative thinking, think, unwire
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.