A thought on thoughts

Have you ever been in a situation where you couldn't hear yourself think? Do I mean, standing next to a major runway with planes taking off every second - well maybe, but at least with airports there is usually a lull between planes. No, what I am talking about is the insiduous noise that permeates through to you.
 
Yesterday was impossible - we had training on the go, and my office sits next to the training room - which is ok if you're the trainer. Yesterday I was a bystander - listening to the low level buzz that crept through the walls. Unfortunately what made yesterday impossible for me was the telephone conversations and racket coming from the other offices. Why impossible? Well being a creative - means that one usually has to create something, and with the noise pollution racing through the office like a child on speed - my normal orderly thought processes were prevented from flowing.
 
I could have gotten grumpy - but who with?
 
The builders for not putting in adequate noise prevention measures?
Myself for not asking them to be quiet, or not closing my door?
My fellow workers for their inconsiderate level of speech?
The trainees for enjoying their training course?
 
And what good would it have done? In my opinion it wouldn't have achieved anything - except annoy everyone else, which would have disrupted the entire office output, rather than just mine.
 
So what did I do?
 
I actually added to the noise pollution - and turned on some music. Did it work - absolutely, and I was able to start my writing for the day.
 
Now I am not advocating that my "solution" to the noise pollution would work for everyone, in fact it probably won't - but if you have trouble thinking (for whatever reason) ask yourself a couple of simple questions - can I do anything about the situation? And should I do anything about the situation, or will it make things worse?
 
But and here is today's radical thought - are you the person responsible for most of the noise pollution? Do you work in an open plan office? then please bear in mind that not everyone will want to hear about your date with the new bloke, or what you had for dinner or watched on the tv. If you are planning on having a meeting - then book a meeting room and close the door. Simple workplace etiquette can make for a far more harmonious work environment.
 
We are totally responsible for every thought process that we have. Yet another radical thought - did you know that your thoughts can be seen as an outward manifestation - the way that you hold your body, the pattern of your speech, the way that you slam the door - all give tell tale hints about what you are thinking at the time. But what do you do if you can't stop the negative thoughts that you are having?
 
Well - putting on music that uplifts rather than depresses you. But don't listen to radio - the presenters may annoy you even more. So choose something that you normally enjoy listening too and allow the music to seep into your thoughts.
 
It is also worth taking a moment or two and asking yourself just who you are annoyed with. Most of the time the only person you can be annoyed with is yourself - as we discussed yesterday - we waste so much of our time waiting for things to happen, our thoughts have a field day. We also waste so much time listening to the negative thoughts that race through our minds. It has been said by other people, that we speak something like 20,000 words to ourselves every single day of the week - how many of those are positive? Between 2 and 5% - in other words - not very many.
 
I am not saying that changing your thought patterns and processes can be easy - but you have infinite power within yourself to change them - and if you can - you will get far more out of every day if you do.
 
So watch your thoughts during those 5 minutes you are waiting for the kettle to boil and see what you are thinking. It's quite an interesting exercise.
 
I'll speak to you again soon, until then - happy thought processes to you.