In November, fog settles over Zurich many mornings. If we are lucky, it lifts by noon. If not, it hangs around white cool and misty until the sun goes down again. Over the weekend, I took a tram across the bridge in front of Lake Zurich. Hills normally set back along the lakeshore somehow loomed closer, shrouded in a peculiarly matt grey fog. I found myself kind of enjoying the difference in normally lovely scenery. Everything appeared bigger than and hiding from reality.
Sometimes communicating in an organization seems equally shrouded in a damp cloak. Issues appear larger than in real life impact. Words disappear into a haze of confusion, purposefully or simply veiled by the mixing of warm ground and cool air.
And yet the right conversation creates a piercing ray of sunshine through the rising grey. It lifts your spirit a little and puts a spring in your step against the creeping mist. I'm reminded today, like a number of other days, how important that interaction can be on a day that starts in a little chilly.
Let's put it in real words. I've been busy these days with short project deadlines and too much conversation around topics that put a grey fog over creativity and inspiration. Yet a couple of interactions with people equally willing to see the rays of sunshine nearly make the grey an interesting pool to wade through. Waiting for the inevitable look at the world as it will appear after the sun one moment burns into view.
The great thing about November in Zurich is that the grey makes you so crazy, it only takes a little sun to make you dance for joy!
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