Modern working life and the disappearance of silence
The acceleration of communication in professional life is creating an unhealthy dynamic.
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The problem becomes particularly acute in leadership, where executives operate under conditions of permanent communicative exposure.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: UNSPLASH
Mathias Goyen
In many modern professional environments, silence has become difficult to interpret. A delayed response to a message, an unanswered e-mail or a pause during a meeting creates a subtle discomfort – not because anything has necessarily gone wrong, but because modern systems demand such responsiveness that silence itself creates uneasy tension. Was the message ignored? Is the person disengaged? Overwhelmed? Resistant? Uncertain?
This shift is driven by unwritten norms that shape professional behaviour: Messages are expected to be answered quickly. Meetings move continuously from one exchange to the next without meaningful pauses. Digital communication platforms create low-level pressure for responsiveness, and visibility itself increasingly functions as a proxy for participation, commitment and competence.
