Finding clarity in the Quiet

There are days when the world feels impossibly loud.

Emails, shifting expectations, new policy pressures, COP30 deadlines, acceleration, innovation, decisions to make… even our own minds start to scatter.

On one of those days, I stepped outside simply to breathe.

I found myself standing between a few trees beside the cold river behind my home. Nothing dramatic happened. No revelation. Just a soft, sudden stillness.

For a brief moment, everything that had felt overwhelming loosened its grip, and in that tiny pause, something became clear:

We don’t always need more strategy.
Sometimes we need the quiet to hear our inner direction again.

In the years I’ve worked with sustainability professionals, I’ve seen the same pattern emerge. Many are navigating a constant pressure to know the next step, keep up with change and carry more than what feels humanly possible. T

It is a bit like working in the NGO sector, what I truly know from my own experience. You care deeply—and yet energy quietly fades underneath the weight of expectations.

If you’re in that season, please know this:
There is nothing wrong, you just happen to carry too much without enough clarity or grounding to hold it.

Clarity isn’t about perfection or productivity.
It’s about steadiness.
Just like this tiny magical moment between inhaling and exhaling.

It’s about feeling rooted enough to know what truly matters in the middle of noise.
The calm of knowing.

The clarity is right there.

If today’s reflection reminded you how much clarity comes from stepping out of the noise, you may appreciate my mini-course Pathway to Clarity.
It’s designed for earth leaders and all those working in sustainability and want direction without burning out. You can download the free starter booklet here.

Alway, be kind and think global.
Berglind