We can make our minds so like still water
That beings gather about us,
That they may see, it may be,
Their own images,
And so live for a moment,
With a clearer, perhaps even with a fiercer life,
Because of our quiet. W B Yeats
The sound of silence can be uncomfortable. No, I’m not talking about listening to Simon and Garfunkel with the volume too high (that’s a joke there, folks!) but leaving silence in conversations to allow other people to think and respond.
Try it. It can feel unsettling being silent with others. We often feel the need to fill it with chatter or banter or observations or anything really.
There is also a delicious irony to writing about silence. I mean really this blog should just be a blank space for you, dear reader, to fill with your own amazing thoughts and brilliant insights. I don’t think I’m quite ready for that level of zen yet though.
In coaching, or coaching type conversations, silence is incredibly powerful. Nancy Kline champions the solitary walk that people go on during moments of silence or quiet. If we can maintain attention and presence, we will be there for them when they return.
This is the idea that silence in coaching prompts and supports deep thinking. The reverse is also true: butting in or interrupting, even speaking too soon can limit or frustrate quality thinking.
As Yeats says, our quiet, our silence, can provoke clarity. What a gift to give.