It has recently been brought to my attention that I am something of a savant. A true trailblazer. A man whose genius deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Da Vinci and Einstein.

And for what, you may ask?

Walking.

You see, I tend to be a little late to social media trends because I don't spend much time on those platforms. But I recently learned about a sensation that's been making the rounds on TikTok among Gen Zers.

It's called silent walking.

And get this. Here's how it works.

You go for a walk. Without your phone. Without headphones. No podcast. No music. Nothing. Just you and your thoughts.

Silent walking is also known as...

Wait for it...

Walking.

Now, I poke fun at this, but stop and consider how absurd it actually is. We've become so accustomed to having our phones attached to us and something playing in our ears that going for a walk without either one is now something that needs its own name.

Crazy and yet it's true. It's even something I've noticed with my clients this year who have a very strong desire to get out of the noise.

Less distraction. Less clutter. Less chaos and reactivity. More space to think, reflect, and tune back into their true north.

And the more I work with these men, the more convinced I become that it's impossible to do that when you're constantly consuming something.

When you're subconsciously reaching for your phone throughout the day, listening to another podcast in the car, checking notifications between tasks, or mindlessly deathscrolling through whatever social media feed happens to have your attention.

There's always another voice. Another opinion. Another piece of information. Another person telling you what you should be doing, thinking, wanting, or working toward.

And at some point, it becomes difficult to distinguish your own signal from all that noise.

How are you supposed to develop real self-knowledge and self-trust when you rarely give yourself the space to hear what you actually think?

Personally, I think silence and solitude are two of the greatest gifts you can give yourself as an entrepreneur dad.

It's one of the reasons I wake up at 5 AM every morning. Not to squeeze in another workout or get a head start on work, but to have a little window of peace and quiet before the demands of the day begin.

Time to sit, think, pray, read Scripture, reflect, and just be. No phone. No noise. No one needing anything from me. Just an opportunity to tune back into my own signal (unless it's daylight saving time and your children's internal clocks are off by an hour).

One of my clients, Kevin, recently used a word to describe his relationship with his phone, social media, and podcasts that I thought was incredibly appropriate.

Numbing.

He'd gotten so used to having something going all the time that he rarely had to sit with himself. How he was feeling. What he was thinking. What he actually wanted. Where he felt called to go.

There was always something available to fill the silence.

And it's been really cool watching what has happened as he's started letting some of that noise fall away.

He told me recently that he can't stand having a podcast on in the car anymore. He actually enjoys driving in silence.

And social media? He described it as painful to be on now. Too much noise.

What I love about this is that it didn't require him to add another habit, buy another tool, or learn another strategy. He just started removing things.

And I think that's one of the reasons this can be such a difficult change to make, especially for ambitious men. We're so used to improving ourselves by doing more. Learning more. Consuming more. Adding another practice or protocol to our already full lives.

But sometimes the thing you need most isn't another piece of information. It's the space to actually process what you already know.

To hear yourself think. To recognize what you're feeling. To get clear on what matters to you instead of constantly looking outside yourself for the answer.

And the funny thing is, creating that space can feel like the least productive thing you could possibly do.

Sitting in silence. Driving without a podcast. Going for a walk without your phone.

What a waste of time, right?

Except I've found that these are often some of the most valuable moments of my day.

Because when the noise quiets down, the signal has a chance to come through. And once you experience what that feels like, it's hard to imagine going back.

So maybe those Gen Zers are onto something after all.

Go for a walk. Leave your phone at home. And enjoy the silence.

Big love,

James

P.S. Here's how I can help, whenever you're ready…

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