Living with silence dealing with the lack of noise

Well two months in and I must say the lack of noise is a breath of fresh air.

For years my days were filled with noise constant conversations, solving other people’s problems, supporting customers, managing leaders, managing stakeholders. It never stopped. My mind was always running hot, replaying interactions, preparing for the next one. And the irony is, I’m as introverted as they come.

Now I sit here in the quiet. I can hear birds outside, the dryer humming, even distant traffic — sounds I never noticed before because the noise of my old life drowned everything out. My world is calm now.

Something else has gone quiet too: the phone calls. Not from my close circle, but from the peers I spent years around. People I mentored, people I led, people I thought I had real connections with. It’s as if they vanished the moment I stepped away.

Only a small handful have reached out. I’m not naïve I’ve been around long enough to know how life works and how busy people are. But still, I can count on one hand the number of people who checked in when I left. That part stung a little, even if I understand it.

But here’s the truth: since walking away, my life has changed. I feel happier. More focused. My drive is back.

And the biggest silence of all is the one I didn’t realise I needed — the silence of constant pressure. The voice telling me to do more, hit more targets, be better, be faster. The lack of appreciation. The never-ending demands. That noise did more damage to my self-esteem and mental health than I ever admitted.

Now that it’s gone, I can finally hear myself again.