We often under-estimate the power of silence. Silence is often even used as a strategy in marketing. When the sales person has done his pitch, he would often just keep silent on purpose. Maybe he’ll ask a question, but after that…….silence.
Without being rude or ‘pushy’, he is actually putting the prospect under pressure. The silence becomes uncomfortable, and the potential customer would rather break the silence, often with a positive response (if the sales person knows what he is doing).
We also refer to the ‘silence before the storm’. During times of war, there would often be a time of such silence that it’s actually scary, and then….the next moment….it’s all chaos.
‘Recharge’ Yourself.
That brings us to nugget #40 in John L. Mason’s book An Enemy Called Average. It says “retreat to advance”.
Yes, there is another side to silence as well. We often get so caught up in the ‘rat race’ and we don’t allow ourselves enough time for rest and recovery. We think we are on the go and while we have the momentum we should just keep going.
But often we can do better by taking a break. When writing, I would hardly ever publish an article immediately after I’ve written it. Sometimes you work against deadlines and you don’t have an option, but as a rule, I don’t do it. It’s amazing how many changes I would make to an article after leaving it for a day. Yet, when I completed it the day before, it seemed to be in order.
When you need to be focused, silence can be powerful. You might be working on an important project and you need the silence to concentrate.
Taking time to retreat will be the best decision you have made in a long time. By taking a week to just isolate yourself from all the ‘busyness’ around you, you might even be able to finish that project faster as you remove all the distractions around you.
Retreat and Be Victorious
While you find yourself surrounded with activity, it will often take courage and will power to step away and take some time to retreat. Being ‘busy’, gives you the feeling of being productive, but it is not always the case.
All the activity and noises also often prevents us from hearing from God.
Build up that courage and take some time to retreat. Just allow yourself some space – some quiet time. Retreat and be victorious.
The Victory Lifestyle 