Signal to Noise

One of my favorite concepts is from the world of science and it’s called the signal-to-noise ratio. It is pretty much what it sounds like: the signal is something that we’re trying to get from one point to another, and the noise is anything that interferes with that.

In sound, if you wanted to record your child’s violin recital, the sound of the violin is the signal, and the noise consists of things like people talking, someone coughing, or air circulating from a fan.

In life, to me, the signal or signals are the things that we want out of life. It could be an awesome relationship, a great job, or just a pastime like reading or biking. The noise consists of all the things that interfere with those signals. In general, it is an excellent idea to reduce the noise wherever you find it, whether that means getting out of toxic relationships, limiting social media, or taking a news fast. You’ll find that the more you can reduce the noise in your life, the clearer the signals get through.