Pull the earbuds out on a walk and you’ll find out your own head has been trying to get a word in.

A steady stream of sound keeps your own thinking at a distance, which is sometimes exactly what you want and sometimes the reason nothing gets resolved. Remove it and the first thing you notice is how much was queued up: half-finished worries, a decision you have been postponing, an idea that never got a clear run. None of that was gone. It was just outvoted.

Walk one route this week with nothing playing. Do not set an agenda for the thinking. Let it go where it goes, and keep a note on your phone for whatever surfaces near the end.