Enjoy the Quiet Now

The world is a noisy place. We are constantly shrouded in clouds of people, music, television, and other mindless sound. Whether you are the person who can’t work without headphones in, can’t sleep without the fan on, or can’t eat a meal without watching television, we all have this need for noise. We are often afraid of stillness, afraid of going to a meal alone, afraid of awkward silences in conversation, afraid of not getting a reply. But in our instant-gratification world, we could all benefit from a little quietness, and here are a few reasons why.

One of the best roads to success is to work hard in silence and to let our success be our noise.

As a young professional in a decently cutthroat city, I have experienced many people who could learn a little about this. Be excited about your work, share your knowledge with others, love your job, but you don’t have to announce your endeavors every step of the way. People watch, they see your performance, and they do not need you to point out your every accomplishment in hopes of grabbing a gold sticker. Work thanklessly, and let your success be the eminent “thank you.”

We can’t let other people’s opinions get to us because it is only noise.

We have been told so many times to ignore what other people say because it doesn’t matter, but we all let it matter anyway. We take offense to the amount of likes we get, to the person who may not text us back, to the newest rumor we hear. It isn’t easy, because more often than not words do hurt, but at the end of the day, those words are only noise. People’s opinions only add to the constant swirling that occurs in our minds, and it isn’t worth it. If you think of their opinions as noise, if you think of them as a radio you can turn down and a phone you can mute, then you can begin to let it go, and you can begin to focus on what really matters, your own noise.

Silence isn’t empty; it is often full of answers.

Albert Einstein once said “I think 99 times and find nothing. I stop thinking, swim in silence, and the truth comes to me.” Oftentimes we drive ourselves crazy by thinking too hard, by trying to find answers to questions we don’t know, or by trying to fix dilemmas that we can’t control. We think so much we stress ourselves out, and it is not until we take time to quiet our mind that we finally understand the solution. Noise, thoughts, and opinions do not hold the answers to your problems; rather the quiet does, because once we calm the clatter, the light can finally be seen.

We can’t let the noise of this world still our quite voices.

This one is the most important, and I know all of my “liberal snowflakes” agree. The problems of the world, the bullies of the nation, and the difficulties at home can be so overwhelming that we let our voice go quiet. We let people step on us, because too many times our voices did not appear to help anything. But let me tell you, your voice will always be heard by someone. Michele Obama says it best, “don't ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious and hope can take on a life of its own.” So do not let this world get your down, and do not let it quiet your courage. Persist, always.

We can’t be afraid of silence, because if we are, the noise will become too much.

Go out to a meal alone, take a run without your headphones on, spend some time with your friends just enjoying each other, quiet moments and all. Do not fear it, embrace it. Because one day your life will feel too noisy and you will have no idea how to still it, not unless you learn to enjoy the quiet now.