The term “misophonia” is the emotional hatred of certain sounds like listening to someone chew.  It’s incredibly common in marriages. Ever had that negative reaction to someone? But there are lots of sound sensitivities – how about when a person in your open office space repeatedly clicks a pen?

Studies show that you’re not alone if you have such negative reactions.  The study also shows that the closer you are to a person, the more the sounds will likely bother you!

Don’t let your misophonia take down your relationships! You can talk to the person about how it bothers you – they probably have no idea they’re doing it. But if that doesn’t work, breathe, stick in the earplugs or get up and move.  Or, maybe you just have to refocus. A Wall Street Journal newspaper editor wrote 5 novels on his train commute even though there was all kinds of noise around him. He realized that as a journalist, he had written stories under intense deadline pressure in noisy newsrooms or in war zones with gunfire exploding in the streets outside his hotel room. He decided to keep his head down and just keep writing. You can, too!

Executive presence tip – Carol Keers