Have you felt this frequency shift?
It’s not just about noticing the shift, it’s about knowing what to do with it.
I got home late last night after running a storytelling workshop. It was a long drive back, heater on, podcast turned up, snacks within reach, completely cocooned in my little world of sound and warmth.
I drove up the driveway of our little farm and parked.
I stepped out of the car, and suddenly, everything was different.
The air was cool and damp, the kind that clings to your skin before the rain arrives. No wind. No sound. Just this stillness. And above me, a sky so wide and clear it was like the stars had been waiting for me to notice them. And I did. I couldn’t not.
It was a huge shift in a single moment.
And I felt the shift before I even thought about it.
That’s the thing about frequency shifts. Sometimes, they’re obvious, like stepping from noise into silence. Other times, they’re subtle, almost imperceptible. A shift in energy. A shift in mood. A shift in the way something feels.
But whether they’re loud or quiet, fast or slow, intentional or unexpected, they’re always happening.
And they don’t just happen when you step out of the warm cocoon of a car into a country night. They happen in conversations, decisions, interactions, and even the way we move through the world.
Everything we do exists within a frequency.
The spaces we move through.
The tasks we switch between.
The interactions we have.
The thoughts that pull us in one direction or another.
And the real skill isn’t just noticing the shift. It’s knowing what to do with it.
Because not every shift feels good. Not every shift is welcome. And not every shift should be ignored.
Sometimes, a frequency shift is a relief, like leaving a loud, chaotic space and stepping into calm. Other times, it’s jarring, like waking up from a deep sleep to an alarm that feels like an electric shock.
Sometimes we need the shift to be fast - to snap us out of a rut, wake us up, change direction. Other times, we need it to be slow - to let us adjust, to settle in, to feel safe enough to move.
And sometimes, before we change the frequency, we need to match it first.
That’s the part most people miss.
How aware are you of the frequencies you’re operating on? The one you bring into a room, a conversation, a decision? How often do you notice when it’s different from the people around you?
Because when frequencies clash, things feel off. The conversation stalls. The message gets lost. The momentum disappears.
What happens when a frequency shift throws you off? When the energy feels wrong, when the pace isn’t right, when the vibe is just off? What do you do next? Do you adjust? Hold steady? Push through?
After reading The Penny Drop last week, my good friend and mentor Richard Hodge made the connection between my idea of Frequency Thinking and Hedy Lamarr - the Hollywood actress and inventor of frequency hopping, a technology designed to stop military radio signals from being jammed during WWII. Her invention became the foundation for modern wireless communication, from Wi-Fi to GPS.
Really, it’s not so different from what our brains now need to do all day, every day just to keep up with all the communication being thrown at us! Dodging misinformation, cutting through interference, making sure the right message lands with the right people at the right time. Sometimes, that means adjusting our signal, jumping frequencies, or finding a clearer way through the noise.
I think being more aware of these three things can help our brains do it better:
The situation: what’s happening around us?
The relationship: how do we fit into this moment?
The vibration: what’s the right way to respond?
Metaphor aside, I was lucky enough to land a job early in my career that demanded I learn to notice and shift frequencies constantly. In live radio, I’d find myself in different situations daily. I’d move from a high-energy live music act to a deeply personal one-on-one interview just moments later, from packed auditoriums to talkback callers, from unprepared interviews recorded in the intimacy of people's homes to high-stakes political conversations.
The relationships ranged from old friends to complete strangers, from prisoners to prime ministers. And the vibrations? Sometimes, they were instantly open and warm. Other times, I had to work to bring someone with me. To earn their trust, to guide them past their hesitation, to help them forget the audience and speak freely, or to ease them toward saying what they really meant.
What would change for you if you knew what to do with the different frequencies? If you knew when to match, when to shift, and when to hold?
Because whether it’s a conversation, a meeting, a project, or just the way you move through your day, frequency is always at play.
And when you start paying attention to it, everything changes.
This week’s recommendations: Mastering frequency thinking
Read: The Art of Communicating by Thich Nhat Hanh
Why not? May as well take some lessons from a Zen master, eh? Thich Nhat Hanh, gets straight to the heart of mindful communication. He’s all about tuning in before you transmit, deep listening, thoughtful speaking, and actually reading the frequency of the moment. Find it here.
Listen: Vin Giang on The Diary of a CEO
I’ve been following Vin Giang on LinkedIn for years, and it’s a delight to hear him on one of the world’s biggest podcasts. He has such a useful way of explaining simple fixes to common communication problems. In this episode, he nails a truth that every technical expert needs to hear:
If you’re a 10/10 in your technical skills but only a 3/10 in communication skills, do you think anyone will perceive you as a 10/10? You are only as good as you can communicate.
And that’s frequency thinking in action. If you're not tuned into the right frequency, your expertise gets lost in the static. Listen to the full episode here.
Watch: Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story
As mentioned above, you know Hedy Lamarr as a Hollywood star, but she was also the inventor of frequency hopping, a technology designed to stop military radio signals from being jammed during WWII. Her invention became the foundation for modern wireless communication, from Wi-Fi to GPS.
It’s all about cutting through interference and making sure the right messages get through to the right people at the right time, which is exactly what we’re trying to do in communication.
This documentary unpacks her story, and it’s fascinating. Watch it here.
Follow: Vanessa Van Edwards
Vanessa Van Edwards runs The Science of People, where she breaks down the science behind human connection - how we read people, how we engage, and how we shift energy in a room. If you want to understand the non-verbal side of frequency thinking, she’s the one to follow. Find her here.
Off the Record: The thinking partner you didn't know you needed
If Vin Giang’s insight hit home, if you know your technical skills are solid, but you’re not cutting through the way you should be, then maybe you need to work on your frequency.
That’s where Off the Record comes in.
It’s my private mentoring space for CEOs and executive leaders who need a thinking partner - someone to help them refine their message, presence, and influence. Because the smartest person in the room isn’t always the most influential - but they could be.
I love working with leaders, experts and advocates to make sure their communication skills match their technical expertise and their passion, so when they speak, people listen, remember, and act.
Want to work with me? Let’s talk.
Send me an email or head to pennyterry.com to find out more.