How many times have you heard something like, “Shhhh, I’m trying to think,” as if noise inhibits thinking? To me, one of the most distracting environments is one that is quiet. Most people I come across tend to think otherwise, where a quiet atmosphere ascends focus more than a busy, noisy, and “distracting” one. I suppose there are different levels of “distracting”, but I’m referring to that of a typical office environment. You know, people talking, faxes coming in, doors opening/closing, etc. Not a jack-hammer outside of the window.
In January, the team I work with moved to a separate office space, consisting of around five people—it was dead silent. I quickly realized how much I had missed the “distractions” from the other office. Instead, I was being irritably distracted by the silence. It’s still the same, today. Personally, I think being able to hear every keystroke, mouse click, chair movement, etc from a co-worker is not only distracting, but annoying. Every morning, I play music because it just gets too quiet around here. I think better with noise. I don’t wear headphones (I’ve yet to find a pair that doesn’t hurt my ears after 2 hours), so it just blares out for everyone to hear—thanks to Amie’s Dad for the online XM access. Bottom line: I don’t want to be able to hear myself think; despite popular belief, silence is itself, distracting.
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